Patents by Inventor Paul A. ALEX

Paul A. ALEX 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: 11150291
    Abstract: The functional reliability of a cable shield system for a high voltage cable circuit is determined by electrically isolating a segment of the conductive shield from ground along the circuit length and supplying a test voltage of gradually increasing amplitude to the isolated shield segment. Current flows in the shield segment and a connected shield voltage limiter (SVL) in response to the supplied test voltage. The current through the SVL is monitored; and the operational integrity of the shield system is determined as a function of the voltage across and the monitored current through the SVL. Current flow is monitored by sensing the heat dissipated by the SVL included in the link box to which the shield segment is connected. Information representing the voltage across and monitored current through the SVL are transmitted to a remote location whereat the operational integrity of the SVL is determined.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 14, 2021
    Date of Patent: October 19, 2021
    Assignee: Underground Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: Robert F. Smith, Charles J. Wills, Duncan C. Breese, Paul A. Alex
  • Patent number: 10607475
    Abstract: A remote monitoring system for monitoring parameters of an underground asset, such as an electric cable system, a pipeline serving as a conduit for water, gas, oil, sewage, or the like. Parameter detectors, such as sensors that measure temperature, voltage, current, moisture, etc., are distributed along the asset to provide electrical signals that represent respective monitored parameters of the asset. An underground hub disposed in an underground vault, or manhole, through which the asset passes is coupled to the parameter detectors to acquire the signals provided by the parameter detectors. The hub includes a controller to provide data derived from the acquired signals, the data being transmitted to a remote central location by a transceiver, or modem, via LP-WAN communication. Signals from the transceiver are transmitted directly from underground.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 21, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 31, 2020
    Assignee: Underground Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: Robert F. Smith, Charles J. Wills, IV, Duncan C. Breese, Paul A. Alex
  • Patent number: 9638586
    Abstract: Techniques are described for generating earth sub-surface thermal characteristics over an area include collecting real-time weather data and earth data for a plurality of locations associated with an underground electrical cable and calculating earth thermal properties at the plurality of locations based on the real-time weather data and the measured earth data by an iterative process. The calculated earth thermal properties at two or more of the plurality of locations are interpolated to determine interpolated earth thermal properties at another location associated with the underground electrical cable and a wide-area thermal property map created from at least some of the calculated earth thermal properties and the interpolated earth thermal properties.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2014
    Date of Patent: May 2, 2017
    Assignee: Underground Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: David W. Purnhagen, Chunchuan Xu, Paul A. Alex
  • Publication number: 20150253458
    Abstract: Techniques are described for generating earth sub-surface thermal characteristics over an area include collecting real-time weather data and earth data for a plurality of locations associated with an underground electrical cable and calculating earth thermal properties at the plurality of locations based on the real-time weather data and the measured earth data by an iterative process. The calculated earth thermal properties at two or more of the plurality of locations are interpolated to determine interpolated earth thermal properties at another location associated with the underground electrical cable and a wide-area thermal property map created from at least some of the calculated earth thermal properties and the interpolated earth thermal properties.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 4, 2014
    Publication date: September 10, 2015
    Applicant: Underground Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: David W. Purnhagen, Chunchuan Xu, Paul A. ALEX