Patents by Inventor Thomas A. Yager

Thomas A. Yager 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: 9938151
    Abstract: Technologies are generally described for method and systems effective to at least partially alter a defect in a layer including graphene. In some examples, the methods may include receiving the layer on a substrate where the layer includes at least some graphene and at least some defect areas in the graphene. The defect areas may reveal exposed areas of the substrate. The methods may also include reacting the substrate under sufficient reaction conditions to produce at least one cationic area in at least one of the exposed areas. The methods may further include adhering graphene oxide to the at least one cationic area to produce a graphene oxide layer. The methods may further include reducing the graphene oxide layer to produce at least one altered defect area in the layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 13, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 10, 2018
    Assignee: EMPIRE TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT LLC
    Inventors: Seth Adrian Miller, Thomas A. Yager
  • Patent number: 9868641
    Abstract: Implementations and techniques for conforming a layer of graphene to a target substrate are generally disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 16, 2018
    Assignee: EMPIRE TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT LLC
    Inventor: Thomas A. Yager
  • Patent number: 9640846
    Abstract: Implementations and techniques are generally disclosed are generally described for providing a metal air batter comprising, a cathode tube included in the metal air battery, the cathode tube having a conductive outer surface and a hydrophobic inner surface configured to define a tube wall there between, wherein the tube wall includes polymeric material and an anode material that surrounds the cathode tube.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2010
    Date of Patent: May 2, 2017
    Assignee: EMPIRE TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT LLC
    Inventors: Thomas A. Yager, Seth Adrian Miller
  • Patent number: 9512013
    Abstract: The fluid purification disclosed herein provides the advantages of high-voltage purification without electrocution risks. In illustrative purifiers, a contaminated fluid, such as contaminated water, is aerated and passed through a cavity that contains highly porous piezoelectric material and an ultrasonic transducer. The transducer emits ultrasonic energy that causes the piezoelectric material to discharge a high-voltage field, which produces strong oxidizing agents that kill organisms and oxidize organic pollutants. Since the ultrasonic actuator operates at relatively low voltages (e.g., 20-110 V) and can be electrically isolated from the fluid, illustrative purification is safe, environmentally friendly, and scalable from small to large size applications.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 2011
    Date of Patent: December 6, 2016
    Assignee: EMPIRE TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT LLC
    Inventors: Thomas A. Yager, Ezekiel Kruglick
  • Publication number: 20160194206
    Abstract: Implementations and techniques for conforming a layer of graphene to a target substrate are generally disclosed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 15, 2016
    Publication date: July 7, 2016
    Applicant: EMPIRE TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT LLC
    Inventor: Thomas A. Yager
  • Publication number: 20160185605
    Abstract: Technologies are presented for growing graphene by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) on a high purity copper surface. The surface may be prepared by deposition of a high purity copper layer on a lower purity copper substrate using deposition processes such as sputtering, evaporation, electroplating, or CVD. The deposition of the high purity copper layer may be followed by a thermal treatment to facilitate grain growth. Use of the high purity copper layer in combination with the lower purity copper substrate may provide thermal expansion matching, compatibility with copper etch removal, or reduction of contamination, producing fewer graphene defects compared to direct deposition on a lower purity substrate at substantially less expense than deposition approaches using a high purity copper foil substrate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 8, 2016
    Publication date: June 30, 2016
    Applicant: EMPIRE TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT LLC
    Inventors: Thomas A. Yager, Joshua Robinson
  • Patent number: 9322096
    Abstract: Technologies are presented for growing graphene by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) on a high purity copper surface. The surface may be prepared by deposition of a high purity copper layer on a lower purity copper substrate using deposition processes such as sputtering, evaporation, electroplating, or CVD. The deposition of the high purity copper layer may be followed by a thermal treatment to facilitate grain growth. Use of the high purity copper layer in combination with the lower purity copper substrate may provide thermal expansion matching, compatibility with copper etch removal, or reduction of contamination, producing fewer graphene defects compared to direct deposition on a lower purity substrate at substantially less expense than deposition approaches using a high purity copper foil substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 25, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 26, 2016
    Assignee: EMPIRE TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT LLC
    Inventors: Thomas A. Yager, Joshua Robinson
  • Patent number: 9297768
    Abstract: Fluorophores or other indicators can be used to label and identify one or more defects in a graphene layer by localizing at the one or more defects and not at other areas of the graphene layer. A substrate having a surface at least partially covered by the graphene layer may be contacted with the fluorophore such that the fluorophore selectively binds with one or more areas of the surface of the underlying substrate exposed by the one or more defects. The one or more defects can be identified by exposing the substrate to radiation. A detected fluorescence response of the fluorophore to the radiation identifies the one or more defects.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 29, 2016
    Assignee: Empire Technology Development LLC
    Inventors: Thomas A. Yager, Seth Adrian Miller
  • Patent number: 9289781
    Abstract: A method of separating material includes providing a mixture of a first material, such as a semiconductor, and a second material, such as an insulator or a different semiconductor. The mixture can be irradiated using a light source at a wavelength that causes the first material's conductivity to increase while leaving the second material's conductivity (substantially) unchanged. Placing the mixture in contact with a ground electrode discharges the first material but not the second material due to the difference in their conductivities. Applying an electric field to the discharged mixture separates the discharged first material from the second material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2016
    Assignee: EMPIRE TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT LLC
    Inventor: Thomas A. Yager
  • Patent number: 9263196
    Abstract: Technologies are generally described for a porous graphene electrode material is described herein that may incorporate a three-dimensional open-cell graphene structure fabricated via chemical vapor deposition onto a metal foam. After the graphene is deposited, the metal foam may be dissolved, leaving a three-dimensional open-cell graphene structure that may include single or few layer graphene. Pseudo-capacitive materials, such as RuO2, Fe3O4, or MnO2, may be deposited within the pores of the three-dimensional open-cell graphene structure to form the porous graphene electrode material. The porous graphene electrode material may have a specific capacitance comparable to chemically modified graphene (CMG) electrodes. The porous graphene electrode material may also have a conductivity greater than CMG electrodes of equivalent surface area. Use of the porous graphene electrode material in capacitors may result in significant improvements in specific power compared to CMG based capacitors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 20, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 16, 2016
    Assignee: Empire Technology Development LLC
    Inventor: Thomas A. Yager
  • Publication number: 20160009562
    Abstract: Technologies are generally described for method and systems effective to at least partially alter a defect in a layer including graphene. In some examples, the methods may include receiving the layer on a substrate where the layer includes at least some graphene and at least some defect areas in the graphene. The defect areas may reveal exposed areas of the substrate. The methods may also include reacting the substrate under sufficient reaction conditions to produce at least one cationic area in at least one of the exposed areas. The methods may further include adhering graphene oxide to the at least one cationic area to produce a graphene oxide layer. The methods may further include reducing the graphene oxide layer to produce at least one altered defect area in the layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 13, 2015
    Publication date: January 14, 2016
    Inventors: SETH ADRIAN MILLER, THOMAS A. YAGER
  • Patent number: 9103803
    Abstract: Technologies are generally described for identifying defects in saturable absorbers, such as graphene, by the saturable property of decreasing light absorbance with increasing light intensity. For example, a graphene coated substrate may be imaged twice under two distinct incident intensities. At a gap in the graphene, the substrate may reflect light proportional to the incident intensities. The graphene may show a non-linear increase in reflected light as the intensity of illumination increases. A difference between the two incident intensities may reveal the gap in the graphene. Any suitable imaging technique may be employed such as confocal microscopy or linear scanning. The imaging may be scaled up for high volume automated inspection.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 10, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 11, 2015
    Assignee: Empire Technology Development LLC
    Inventor: Thomas A. Yager
  • Publication number: 20150191796
    Abstract: In one aspect the invention is a method of testing for one or more colorectal pathologies or one or more subtypes of colorectal pathology (in one embodiment colorectal cancer) in a test individual by providing data corresponding to a level of products of selected biomarkers and applying the data to a formula to provide an indication of whether the test individual has one or more colorectal pathologies or one or more subtypes of colorectal pathology. In some aspects the method is computer based and a computer applies the data to the formula. In other aspects a computer system is configured with instructions that cause the processor to provide a user with the indication of whether the test individual has colorectal pathology. Also encompassed are kits for measuring data corresponding to the products of selected biomarkers which in some embodiments include a computer readable medium. Also encompassed are kits and methods of monitoring therapeutic efficacy of treatments for one or more colorectal pathologies.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 14, 2015
    Publication date: July 9, 2015
    Inventors: Choong-Chin Liew, Mark Han, Thomas Yager, Samuel Chao, Run Zheng, Hongwei Zhang
  • Patent number: 9011968
    Abstract: Technologies are generally described for method and systems effective to at least partially alter a defect in a layer including graphene. In some examples, the methods may include receiving the layer on a substrate where the layer includes at least some graphene and at least some defect areas in the graphene. The defect areas may reveal exposed areas of the substrate. The methods may also include reacting the substrate under sufficient reaction conditions to produce at least one cationic area in at least one of the exposed areas. The methods may further include adhering graphene oxide to the at least one cationic area to produce a graphene oxide layer. The methods may further include reducing the graphene oxide layer to produce at least one altered defect area in the layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 16, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 21, 2015
    Assignee: Empire Technology Development LLC
    Inventors: Seth Miller, Thomas Yager
  • Publication number: 20150079683
    Abstract: Fluorophores or other indicators can be used to label and identify one or more defects in a graphene layer by localizing at the one or more defects and not at other areas of the graphene layer. A substrate having a surface at least partially covered by the graphene layer may be contacted with the fluorophore such that the fluorophore selectively binds with one or more areas of the surface of the underlying substrate exposed by the one or more defects. The one or more defects can be identified by exposing the substrate to radiation. A detected fluorescence response of the fluorophore to the radiation identifies the one or more defects.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 18, 2013
    Publication date: March 19, 2015
    Applicant: EMPIRE TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT, LLC
    Inventors: Thomas A. Yager, Seth Adrian Miller
  • Patent number: 8974594
    Abstract: Corrosion control in reinforced concrete is generally disclosed. Some example embodiments may include concrete including aggregate, cement, and/or microcapsules distributed within the cement, where the individual microcapsules may include a high pH salt substantially contained within an acid-soluble shell. If the pH of the concrete decreases, the acid soluble shell may swell and/or dissolve, such as below a pH of about 11, which may release the high pH salt. The high pH salt may locally increase the pH of the concrete. By increasing the pH above about pH 11, corrosion of steel rebar may be prevented and/or reduced.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 29, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 10, 2015
    Assignee: Empire Technology Development LLC
    Inventors: Seth Miller, Thomas A. Yager
  • Patent number: 8951682
    Abstract: Implementations and techniques for rechargeable zinc air batteries are generally disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2010
    Date of Patent: February 10, 2015
    Assignee: Empire Technology Development LLC
    Inventor: Thomas A. Yager
  • Publication number: 20140285796
    Abstract: Technologies are generally described for identifying defects in saturable absorbers, such as graphene, by the saturable property of decreasing light absorbance with increasing light intensity. For example, a graphene coated substrate may be imaged twice under two distinct incident intensities. At a gap in the graphene, the substrate may reflect light proportional to the incident intensities. The graphene may show a non-linear increase in reflected light as the intensity of illumination increases. A difference between the two incident intensities may reveal the gap in the graphene. Any suitable imaging technique may be employed such as confocal microscopy or linear scanning. The imaging may be scaled up for high volume automated inspection.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 10, 2012
    Publication date: September 25, 2014
    Applicant: Empire Technology Development LLC
    Inventor: Thomas A. Yager
  • Patent number: 8802303
    Abstract: Implementations and techniques for metal air batteries including a composite anode are generally disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 12, 2014
    Assignee: Empire Technology Development LLC
    Inventors: Ezekiel Kruglick, Thomas Yager, Seth Adrian Miller
  • Publication number: 20140200437
    Abstract: A method placing a gas into a first cavity of a patient, where the gas includes hyperpolarized 3-Helium (3-He). At least a portion of the patient is imaged using MRI to detect the gas within the patient. Based at least in part on the imaging, a determination is made regarding whether at least a portion of the gas is present in a second cavity of the patient. Presence of the gas in the second cavity is indicative of a leakage of the first cavity.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 16, 2013
    Publication date: July 17, 2014
    Applicant: Empire Technology Development LLC
    Inventors: Thomas A. Yager, Alfred Yager