Patents by Inventor Stephen L. Ballou

Stephen L. Ballou 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).

  • Passively operated thermally diodic packaging method for missile avionics
    Patent number: 6404636
    Abstract: A passively operated thermal diode for controlling heat transfer from heat-generating electronic components to an external environment through an airframe is provided. The thermal diode comprises: (a) an electronics package within the airframe; (b) a heat-transferring mechanism thermally connected to the electronics package and controllably disengagable from thermal contact with the airframe at a predetermined temperature; (c) a shape-memory alloy component having a phase change at the predetermined temperature for thermally disconnecting the electronics package from the airframe once the predetermined temperature is exceeded; and (d) a spring for maintaining the heat-transferring mechanism in thermal contact the airframe below the predetermined temperature. The present invention solves the problem of heat transfer by introducing a shape-memory-alloy sensor-actuator component.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 31, 2001
    Date of Patent: June 11, 2002
    Assignee: Raytheon Company
    Inventors: David D. Staggers, Stephen L. Ballou, Edmund A. Singer