Patents by Inventor Robert E. Mudra

Robert E. Mudra 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: 5949493
    Abstract: A television receiver includes a removable panel that physically supports an integrated circuit board that provides for external control of certain of the receiver functions. A telephone jack and an antenna jack are secured to the removable panel for enabling external access. The television receiver has a separate communications microprocessor that communicates with the master microprocessor controller and a power supply that provides low voltage power for external use.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 10, 1997
    Date of Patent: September 7, 1999
    Assignee: Zenith Electronics Corporation
    Inventors: Robert E. Mudra, Nick Shaw
  • Patent number: 5923386
    Abstract: A VCR tuning system wherein broadcast channels 3/4, used for VCR tuning, has a different frequency assignment in a different tuning band. A special VCR indicia is added to the active tuning list and is accessed when VCR tuning is selected. The indicia is mapped to the corresponding frequencies of broadcast channels 3/4 as determined by the VCR flag. Non VCR indicia channel selections access look up tables corresponding to the various tuning bands in the system in the usual manner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 1997
    Date of Patent: July 13, 1999
    Assignee: Zenith Electronics Corporation
    Inventor: Robert E. Mudra
  • Patent number: 5502513
    Abstract: A full function remote control pillow speaker arrangement is coupled by three wires to a television receiver. The arrangement includes a standard IR control signal encoder, the output of which is filtered to remove the 40 kilohertz ultrasonic frequency, thus yielding an envelope corresponding to the data pulses. Operating power is supplied to the encoder from a DATA line and a common (COM) line with a shunt regulator being interposed to protect the encoder from over voltage conditions during standby operations. A speaker is supplied audio signals from the COM line and an AUDIO line. The receiver is capable of functioning with other types of pillow speaker control units, i.e. those having a single key closure for channel and on/off control and those with extra key closures for channel directional control.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 27, 1994
    Date of Patent: March 26, 1996
    Inventor: Robert E. Mudra
  • Patent number: 5495301
    Abstract: A full function remote control pillow speaker arrangement is coupled by three wires to a television receiver. The arrangement includes a standard IR control signal encoder, the output of which is filtered to remove the 40 kilohertz ultrasonic frequency, thus yielding an envelope corresponding to the data pulses. Operating power is supplied to the encoder from a DATA line and a common (COM) line with a shunt regulator being interposed to protect the encoder from over voltage conditions during standby operations. A speaker is supplied audio signals from the (COM) line and an audio line. The receiver is capable of functioning with other types of pillow speaker control units, i.e. those having a single key closure for channel and on/off control and those with extra key closures for channel directional control.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 27, 1994
    Date of Patent: February 27, 1996
    Assignee: Zenith Electronics Corporation
    Inventor: Robert E. Mudra
  • Patent number: 5315263
    Abstract: An audio power amplifier includes a stacked pair of complementary transistors having the emitters commonly coupled to a load. A driver stage couples the bases of the stacked pair to a source of audio frequency signal. A bootstrap capacitor is coupled between the commonly coupled output node and the supply voltage. An isolation diode is interposed between the bootstrap capacitor and the operating supply to prevent discharge of the bootstrap capacitor into the operating supply during positive signal swings.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 1992
    Date of Patent: May 24, 1994
    Assignee: Zenith Electronics Corp.
    Inventors: Robert E. Mudra, Mark A. Scholten
  • Patent number: 5301024
    Abstract: A video signal peak compressor circuit includes an emitter follower stage together with a feedback amplifier having a conduction threshold determined by a pair of voltage divider resistors. The feedback amplifier responds to increased conduction of the emitter follower stage to apply a compensating current to the emitter follower base and thereby impose a nonlinear compressing characteristic upon the emitter follower transfer function. In the embodiment shown, the emitter follower stage includes a PNP transistor having an input signal applied to its base and an output signal taken at its emitter which is coupled to operating supply by a pair of resistors. The feedback amplifier includes a PNP transistor having its emitter coupled to the junction point of a voltage divider, its base coupled to the junction of the emitter follower resistors and its collector coupled to the base of the PNP emitter follower stage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 30, 1992
    Date of Patent: April 5, 1994
    Assignee: Zenith Electronics Corp.
    Inventor: Robert E. Mudra
  • Patent number: 4592606
    Abstract: A printed circuit board is provided with a pair of parallel foil conductive strips on one side thereof coupled by means of a conductive foil jumper adjacent and generally parallel to an edge of the circuit board. In this configuration, the two conductive strips are coupled in circuit by means of the foil jumper. An inner portion of the circuit board is provided with an aperture positioned interiorly on the circuit board relative to the foil jumper and adjacent thereto. The portion of the circuit located between the parallel foil conductive strips and between the aperture and the edge of the circuit board and upon which the foil jumper is positioned is detached from the circuit board electrically decoupling the parallel foil conductive strips. With the foil jumper thus removed, a connector may then be positioned on the edge of the circuit board in contact with the foil conductors for coupling an associated electronic device in circuit therebetween for processing of the signal carried by the foil conductors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 20, 1984
    Date of Patent: June 3, 1986
    Assignee: Zenith Electronics Corporation
    Inventor: Robert E. Mudra