Patents by Inventor Stephen Howard

Stephen Howard 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).

  • Publication number: 20190270086
    Abstract: A sample preparation cartridge for use with a sample preparation device, the cartridge includes a housing defining plural separate segments, at least one of said segments comprising a fixed section of a pipette component; and a moveable head comprising a pipette tip, the head being configured, in use, to be moved between a position in which the pipette tip is in sealed engagement with the fixed section of pipette component and a position in which pipette tip is positioned adjacent to another of said plural segments. With the present invention a disposable sample preparation cartridge and corresponding analytical reader can be provided in a very cost effective and simple manner whilst still ensuring high quality sample preparation for analysis.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 5, 2016
    Publication date: September 5, 2019
    Inventors: Piers Sebastian HARDING, Gary Stephen HOWARD, Gary Keith JEPPS
  • Publication number: 20190142883
    Abstract: This disclosure relates to modified viruses, e.g., oncolytic vaccinia viruses, which have been modified to contain an exogenous nucleic acid that expresses a protein that modulates STAT3 activity. It is based, at least in part, on the discovery that vaccinia viruses modified to contain nucleic acid encoding PIAS3 and that express PIAS3 or a fragment thereof can inhibit STAT3 activity and enhance the anti-cancer activity of the vaccinia virus. Accordingly, this disclosure provides for oncolytic vaccinia viruses and methods of using them in the treatment of cancers.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 18, 2019
    Publication date: May 16, 2019
    Applicant: UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH - OF THE COMMONWEALTH SYSTEM OF HIGHER EDUCATION
    Inventors: Stephen Howard Thorne, Daniel J. Byrd
  • Publication number: 20190000111
    Abstract: Disclosed is a device (1, 100) for dispensing a food composition (13) from a receptacle (8, 108) comprising a compressed gas inlet (9, 109), the device comprising: a compressed gas source (12); a gas conduit (11) extending from the compressed gas source to a compressed gas outlet (10, 110); a housing (2, 102) surrounding the receptacle and having a door (3, 103) allowing access to the receptacle; and a mechanism (16, 17, 18, 19, 115, 118) for adjusting the relative position of the receptacle and compressed gas outlet in response to movement of the door to urge the compressed gas outlet (10, 110) and the compressed gas inlet (9, 109) into sealing engagement as the door is closed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 9, 2016
    Publication date: January 3, 2019
    Applicant: Conopco, Inc., d/b/a UNILEVER
    Inventors: William John CRAMER, Gary Stephen HOWARD, Paul SCOTT, Andrew Julian STOCKDALE, Adrian Michael WOODWARD
  • Publication number: 20180371810
    Abstract: A door barricade system includes a bracket attached to an inside of a door. The door barricade system also includes a removable puncture pin and an end sleeve recessed into a support structure. The bracket includes a pin sleeve which defines a through hole aligned with an opening defined by an end sleeve, both of which are large enough to accommodate the puncture pin. The puncture pin is engaged with the pin sleeve with an end of the puncture pin being able to be engaged with the end sleeve. When the end of the puncture pin is engaged with the end sleeve, the door barricade system is placed in a locked position. When the end of the puncture pin remains disengaged from the end sleeve, the door barricade system is placed in an unlocked position.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 21, 2017
    Publication date: December 27, 2018
    Inventor: James Stephen Howard
  • Publication number: 20180361416
    Abstract: A system for treating a surface and applying adhesive to an already treated portion of the surface concurrently is presented. The system comprises surface treatment equipment, adhesive application equipment, and a common feed system. The surface treatment equipment is configured to treat the surface of an elongated member. The adhesive application equipment is configured to apply adhesive to the already treated portion of the surface. The common feed system feeds the elongated member beneath the surface treatment equipment and the adhesive application equipment concurrently.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 19, 2017
    Publication date: December 20, 2018
    Inventors: Richard Allen Miller, II, Marcus Anthony Belcher, Stephen Howard Williams
  • Patent number: 10100376
    Abstract: Methods are provided for the purification of isoidide. The methods comprise subjecting an at least partially deionized isoidide composition comprising isoidide and other isohexides to chromatographic separation of isoidide from other isohexides, removal of solvent from the isoidide, and crystallization of the isoidide. Isoidide of monomer-grade purity is obtained.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 19, 2016
    Date of Patent: October 16, 2018
    Inventors: Stephen Howard, Brennan Smith, Josh Terrian
  • Patent number: 9970204
    Abstract: One embodiment of the invention is a horizontal scaffold member having a primary end connector and a secondary end connector. Each end connector is configured to couple to a cup on a vertical scaffold member. Each end connector includes a wedge assembly having a handle and a wedge, movable with respect to the wedge head to a latched and unlatched position. The primary wedge assembly is connected to the secondary wedge assembly by a cable, and configured so that moving the primary wedge assembly to an unlatched position also moves the secondary wedge assembly to an unlatched position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 23, 2016
    Date of Patent: May 15, 2018
    Assignee: Next Generation Scaffold Services, Inc.
    Inventors: Yates W. Hayman, Stephen Howard Thacker, Johnny Curtis
  • Publication number: 20180117860
    Abstract: A compaction device for use with an automated fiber placement machine includes multiple compaction rollers mounted for independent displacement on a supporting frame. The attitude of the compaction rollers change relative to each other when fiber tows are laid up at an angle over an edge of a tool in order to maintain compaction pressure on the tows and thereby reduce non-compacted areas of the tows.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 25, 2017
    Publication date: May 3, 2018
    Inventors: Michael Robert Chapman, Robert M. Watson, Stephen Howard Williams
  • Publication number: 20180044744
    Abstract: Methods are provided for the purification of isoidide. The methods comprise subjecting an at least partially deionized isoidide composition comprising isoidide and other isohexides to chromatographic separation of isoidide from other isohexides, removal of solvent from the isoidide, and crystallization of the isoidide. Isoidide of monomer-grade purity is obtained.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 19, 2016
    Publication date: February 15, 2018
    Applicant: Archer Daniels Midland Company
    Inventors: Stephen Howard, Brennan Smith, Josh Terrian
  • Patent number: 9865308
    Abstract: Individual time stamp data inputs generated by different viewers of a broadcast or other video output are used to identify parts of the video data to be used to generate a sequence of video clips or “highlights”. The individual time stamps for each event are aggregated to generate a single marker flag (93) for each event, defined for example as the median (95) (or some other point) in the distribution (90) of time stamps.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 31, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2018
    Assignee: BRITISH TELECOMMUNICATIONS PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY
    Inventors: Andrew Peter Gower, Stephen Howard Johnson
  • Patent number: 9856195
    Abstract: A process for preparing cyclic dehydration products from sugar alcohols is described. The process involve using a mixed-acid catalyst reaction mixture containing a reducing acid, having a pKa of about 1.0-1.5, and at least a strong Brønsted acid or a Lewis acid, having a pKa?0, or both acids in a solution to dehydrate and ring close said sugar alcohol. Synergistically, the mixed-acid catalysis can produce greater amounts of the desired product at similar levels of compositional accountability than either of the component acid catalysts acting alone.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 2, 2018
    Assignee: Archer-Daniels Midland Company
    Inventors: Kenneth Stensrud, Alexandra Sanborn, Stephen Howard, Erik Hagberg
  • Patent number: 9851081
    Abstract: A heat sink for a directional recessed lighting fixture, comprises a wedge-shaped rotatable inner heat sink 110 configured to fit within a hollow interior of an outer heat sink 130. The inner heat sink has an opening 120, for transmission of light from a light source 125 it houses. The inner heat sink includes a gimbal shaft 115 pivotally mounted to an inside wall 132 of the outer heat sink. The inner heat sink has a vertical surface 112 formed on one side, which is close to inside wall 132, when rotated in one direction (FIG. 1A) to direct light in a first direction. The inner heat sink has an angularly offset surface 114 formed on an opposite side, which is close to the inside wall, when rotated in an opposite direction (FIG. 1B) to direct light in a second direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 27, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 26, 2017
    Assignee: ABL IP Holding LLC
    Inventor: Stephen Howard Clark
  • Patent number: 9849635
    Abstract: A compaction device for use with an automated fiber placement machine includes multiple compaction rollers mounted for independent displacement on a supporting frame. The attitude of the compaction rollers change relative to each other when fiber tows are laid up at an angle over an edge of a tool in order to maintain compaction pressure on the tows and thereby reduce non-compacted areas of the tows.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 15, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 26, 2017
    Assignee: THE BOEING COMPANY
    Inventors: Michael Robert Chapman, Robert M. Watson, Stephen Howard Williams
  • Patent number: 9776980
    Abstract: Disclosed is a process for making HMF or a derivative of HMF by dehydrating one or more hexose sugars in a reduced oxygen environment. In another, related aspect, a method for improving the stability and resistance to degradation of an HMF product involves adding one or more antioxidants to the HMF product.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 9, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2017
    Assignee: Archer Daniels Midland Co.
    Inventors: Alexandra Sanborn, Erik Hagberg, Stephen Howard, Erin M Rockafellow
  • Patent number: 9708571
    Abstract: Reduced color epoxidized fatty acid esters are provided which may be used as primary plasticizers for PVC, in replacement of phthalate plasticizers. The reduced color epoxidized fatty acid esters are prepared from natural fats or oils by transesterification and interesterification processes, whereby through the use of borohydride, materials having Pt—Co colors according to ASTM D1209 on the order of 50 and lower are possible.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 21, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 18, 2017
    Assignee: Archer Daniels Midland Company
    Inventors: Stephen Howard, Erik Hagberg, George Poppe
  • Publication number: 20170185228
    Abstract: An interactive container creation method, apparatus and system. The method includes creating a list, deploying the list to at least one device, calibrating and identifying touch areas, identifying at least one of an asset and a shape to be defined as a touch area, identifying the x,y axis of each point for a predetermined number of points for each of the at least one of asset or shape, and creating a touch area based of the identified x,y axis.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 29, 2016
    Publication date: June 29, 2017
    Inventors: Stephen Howard, Larry McNutt
  • Patent number: 9657933
    Abstract: A recessed light fixture can include a movably adjustable light source and a thermal management system that includes a movable first heat sink, and a second heat sink. The first heat sink is thermally coupled to the adjustable light source, and is connected to move with the adjustable light source. The first heat sink includes a plurality of spaced apart first thermally conductive elements, such as fins. The second heat sink includes a plurality of spaced apart second thermally conductive elements, such as fins, which are interlaced between the first thermally conductive elements of the first heat sink. The interlaced thermally conductive elements increase surface area and heat transfer pathway(s) between the two heat sinks, while reducing physical contact, and thus friction, therebetween when movably adjusting the light source.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 27, 2015
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2017
    Assignee: ABL IP Holding LLC
    Inventor: Stephen Howard Clark
  • Patent number: 9630974
    Abstract: A process is described for the acid-catalyzed dehydration of a sugar alcohol, wherein the catalyst comprises a water-tolerant Lewis acid. In particular embodiments, the catalyst comprises a homogeneous water-tolerant Lewis acid, especially a homogeneous Lewis acid selected from the group consisting of bismuth (III) triflate, gallium (III) triflate, scandium (III) triflate, aluminum triflate, tin (II) triflate and indium (III) triflate. Such catalysts are effective for dehydrating both of sorbitol and the 1,4-sorbitan dehydration precursor of isosorbide, and bismuth (III) triflate particularly is beneficial for dehydrating mannitol to isomannide.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 21, 2014
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2017
    Inventors: Kenneth Stensrud, Erik Hagberg, Stephen Howard, Erin M Rockafellow
  • Patent number: 9604951
    Abstract: Disclosed is a process for making HMF or a derivative of HMF by dehydrating one or more hexose sugars in a reduced oxygen environment. In another, related aspect, a method for improving the stability and resistance to degradation of an HMF product involves adding one or more antioxidants to the HMF product.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 19, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2017
    Assignee: Archer Daniels Midland Company
    Inventors: Alexandra Sanborn, Erik Hagberg, Stephen Howard, Erin M Rockafellow
  • Patent number: 9581318
    Abstract: A recessed lighting optical holder for a recessed lighting fixture, comprises a retainer 100 having a generally annular shape, including a resilient snap projection 105 formed on an inner circumference and resilient beam 130 supported at both ends on an outer circumference. The beam slides into engagement with a heat sink extension 122 on a bottom portion of a circular heat sink 110, when a top surface of the retainer is positioned against a bottom portion of the heat sink and the retainer is rotated with respect to the heat sink, to lock the retainer to the heat sink. An optic 120 has a generally conical shape, with a bottom portion surrounded by circular lip 125 that snaps into holding engagement with the snap of the retainer, to positively retain the optic. The holder is relatively simple to manufacture and is conveniently accessible for installation and occasional maintenance or replacement.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 27, 2015
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2017
    Assignee: ABL IP Holding LLC
    Inventor: Stephen Howard Clark