Patents by Inventor Stephen John Robb

Stephen John Robb 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: 9778305
    Abstract: A tire monitoring apparatus comprising a monitor installed on a tire and a pulse width measuring apparatus for measuring the width of pulses produced by the monitor. The pulse width measuring apparatus comprises a frequency analyzer for producing a frequency representation of the pulse, a signal processor for determining a minimum value of the frequency representation, and a pulse width estimator that inverts the minimum value to produce a measurement for the pulse width. The tire monitoring apparatus uses the pulse width measurement as an indication of characteristics of the tire.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 30, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2017
    Assignee: Schrader Electronics Limited
    Inventors: Giovanni De Sanctis, William David Stewart, Stephen John Robb
  • Publication number: 20150362542
    Abstract: A tyre monitoring apparatus comprising a monitor installed on a tyre and a pulse width measuring apparatus for measuring the width of pulses produced by the monitor. The pulse width measuring apparatus comprises a frequency analyzer for producing a frequency representation of the pulse, a signal processor for determining a minimum value of the frequency representation, and a pulse width estimator that inverts the minimum value to produce a measurement for the pulse width. The tyre monitoring apparatus uses the pulse width measurement as an indication of characteristics of the tyre.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 30, 2014
    Publication date: December 17, 2015
    Applicant: SCHRADER ELECTRONICS LIMITED
    Inventors: GIOVANNI DE SANCTIS, WILLIAM DAVID STEWART, STEPHEN JOHN ROBB
  • Patent number: 9126459
    Abstract: An apparatus for determining the position and/or orientation of a tire mounted unit in a wheel monitoring system comprises a lateral force sensor that is responsive to forces exerted on the respective tire along a lateral axis that is parallel with an axle of the vehicle on which the tire is mounted. The lateral force sensor is arranged to produce an output signal that indicates the direction of the exerted forces. A controller determines the position and/or orientation of the tire unit depending on the exerted force direction indicated by the output signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 15, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 8, 2015
    Assignee: Schrader Electronics Limited
    Inventors: William David Stewart, Stephen John Robb
  • Publication number: 20130207796
    Abstract: An apparatus for determining the position and/or orientation of a tyre mounted unit in a wheel monitoring system comprises a lateral force sensor that is responsive to forces exerted on the respective tyre along a lateral axis that is parallel with an axle of the vehicle on which the tyre is mounted. The lateral force sensor is arranged to produce an output signal that indicates the direction of the exerted forces. A controller determines the position and/or orientation of the tyre unit depending on the exerted force direction indicated by the output signal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 15, 2011
    Publication date: August 15, 2013
    Applicant: Schrader Electronics Limited
    Inventors: William David Stewart, Stephen John Robb
  • Patent number: 7367227
    Abstract: A remote tire monitor system includes a control unit and a plurality of tire monitors mountable on respective wheels of a vehicle to transmit radio signals to the control unit. The tire monitors each include a pair of motion sensors such as shock sensors and a control circuit configured to determine position information for the respective tire monitor based on first and second shock sensor signals from the pair of shock sensors. The shock sensors produce an output voltage proportional to a change in applied force. Therefore, the offset created by centrifugal force in previously used accelerometers is absent, simplifying design of the tire monitors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 2004
    Date of Patent: May 6, 2008
    Assignee: Schrader Bridgeport International
    Inventors: William David Stewart, Alan Kenneth McCall, Idir Boudaoud, Stephen John Robb