Patents by Inventor Thomas Etter

Thomas Etter 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: 20140242400
    Abstract: The invention refers to a method for manufacturing a hybrid component including the following steps of manufacturing a preform as a first part of the hybrid component, then successively building up on that preform a second part of the component from a metallic powder material by means of an additive manufacturing process by scanning with an energy beam, thereby establishing a controlled grain orientation in primary and in secondary direction of at least a part of the second part of the component. The controlled secondary grain orientation is realized by applying a specific scanning pattern of the energy beam, which is aligned to the cross section profile of the component or to the local load conditions for the component.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 28, 2014
    Publication date: August 28, 2014
    Inventors: Matthias Hoebel, Thomas Etter, Maxim Konter, Julius Schurb
  • Publication number: 20140154088
    Abstract: The invention refers to a method for manufacturing a three-dimensional metallic article/component entirely or partly. The method includes a) successively building up said article/component from a metallic base material by means of an additive manufacturing process by scanning with an energy beam, thereby b) establishing a controlled grain orientation in primary and in secondary direction of the article/component, c) wherein the secondary grain orientation is realized by applying a specific scanning pattern of the energy beam, which is aligned to the cross section profile of said article/component, or with characteristic load conditions of the article/component.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 27, 2013
    Publication date: June 5, 2014
    Applicant: ALSTOM Technology Ltd.
    Inventors: Thomas Etter, Maxim Konter, Matthias Hoebel, Julius Schurb
  • Publication number: 20140053956
    Abstract: The disclosure refers to a method for manufacturing a three-dimensional article, the method including successively building up the article from a metallic base material by means of an additive manufacturing process, thereby creating an article with a substantial anisotropy of its properties and heat treating the manufactured article at a sufficiently high temperature to reduce the anisotropy significantly by recrystallization and/or grain coarsening.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 21, 2013
    Publication date: February 27, 2014
    Applicant: ALSTOM Technology Ltd
    Inventors: Thomas ETTER, Julius SCHURB, Lukas Emanuel RICKENBACHER, Andreas KÜNZLER
  • Patent number: 8153187
    Abstract: A method for forming an oxygen resistant aluminum oxide layer on an outer surface of a thermocouple sheath composed of a nickel alloy containing between 1% to 7% aluminum comprises removing a pre-formed oxide layer from the outer surface so as to create a prepared sheath; performing a controlled oxidation by subjecting the prepared sheath to atmospheric conditions at a temperature between 1000° C. and 1250° C. so as to form the oxygen resistant layer on the thermocouple sheath and to thus form an oxidized sheath; and cooling the oxidized sheath so as to prepare the oxidized sheath for service.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 27, 2009
    Date of Patent: April 10, 2012
    Assignee: Alstom Technology Ltd
    Inventors: Hanspeter Zinn, Giuseppe Bandiera, Thomas Etter, Robert Baumann
  • Publication number: 20090297698
    Abstract: A method for forming an oxygen resistant aluminum oxide layer on an outer surface of a thermocouple sheath composed of a nickel alloy containing between 1% to 7% aluminium comprises removing a pre-formed oxide layer from the outer surface so as to create a prepared sheath; performing a controlled oxidation by subjecting the prepared sheath to atmospheric conditions at a temperature between 1000° C. and 1250° C. so as to form the oxygen resistant layer on the thermocouple sheath and to thus form an oxidised sheath; and cooling the oxidised sheath so as to prepare the oxidized sheath for service.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 27, 2009
    Publication date: December 3, 2009
    Applicant: ALSTOM Technology Ltd
    Inventors: Hanspeter Zinn, Giuseppe Bandiera, Thomas Etter, Robert Baumann
  • Patent number: 6045355
    Abstract: A gas catalytic heater having an improved temperature distribution is disclosed which includes a body having an open end in which is disposed a porous catalytically active layer containing a catalyst such as platinum metal. A sealed plenum chamber is disposed below the catalytically active layer and has a gas-permeable wall portion facing toward the active layer and a gas inlet orifice for introducing a fuel gas into the chamber. The gas-permeable wall portion may comprise a perforated metal plate having a plurality of tiny apertures the total open area of which is significantly less than that provided by perforated plates used in catalytic heaters of the prior art.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 11, 1998
    Date of Patent: April 4, 2000
    Assignee: New England Catalytic Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Michael J. Chapman, Thomas Etter