Patents by Inventor Thomas S. Tyrie

Thomas S. Tyrie 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).

  • Compliant mechanism and method of forming same
    Patent number: 6747784
    Abstract: The present invention provides a compliant mechanism that can be used to make a variety of devices, such as tunable optical devices, that are more reliable, more cost effective, and/or exhibit better performance than prior art devices. In one embodiment, the complaint mechanism includes an island that is suspended from a frame using a compliant member that is attached to the frame and the island. Individual actuators and/or sensor elements may be placed on the island, so that each island may be individually actuated or sensed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 22, 2002
    Date of Patent: June 8, 2004
    Assignee: NP Photonics, Inc.
    Inventors: Michael Little, Thomas S. Tyrie, William P. Eaton
  • Methods of making mechanisms in which relative locations of elements are maintained during manufacturing
    Patent number: 6678084
    Abstract: The present invention provides method of making mechanisms in which the relative locations of elements are maintained during manufacturing. The methods according to the present invention can be used to make a variety of devices, including tunable optical devices. The methods include displaceably attaching an island (support) to a frame with a non-rigid material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 2002
    Date of Patent: January 13, 2004
    Assignee: NP Photonics, Inc.
    Inventors: Michael J. Little, William P. Eaton, Thomas S. Tyrie, Harry Melkonian, Ping Li
  • Compliant mechanism and method of forming same
    Patent number: 6665109
    Abstract: The present invention provides a compliant mechanism that can be used to make a variety of devices, such as tunable optical devices that are more reliable, more cost effective and/or exhibit better performance than prior art devices.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 1, 2002
    Date of Patent: December 16, 2003
    Assignee: NP Photonics, Inc.
    Inventors: Michael J. Little, Thomas S. Tyrie, William P. Eaton, John J. Lyon
  • Tunable fabry-perot interferometer using entropic materials
    Patent number: 6597461
    Abstract: A cost-effective broadband tunable Fabry-Perot interferometer uses entropic, rather than enthalpic, materials to provide the compliant support for the interferometer's movable mirror. Entropic materials exhibit an entropic plateau region over a wide frequency range with a Young's modulus much lower than enthalpic materials, linear elastic behavior over a wide deformation range, and, in certain geometries, energy and stress behavior that tend to stabilize the movable mirror during deformation. The compliant support can be configured in a variety of geometries including compression, tension, sheer and diaphragm and of a variety of materials including elastomers, aerogels or other long chained polymers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 19, 2001
    Date of Patent: July 22, 2003
    Assignee: Parvenu, Inc.
    Inventors: Ravi K. Verma, Michael J. Little, Thomas S. Tyrie, John J. Lyon, Ron Pollock
  • Compliant mechanism and method of forming same
    Publication number: 20030011866
    Abstract: The present invention provides a compliant mechanism that can be used to make a variety of devices, such as tunable optical devices that are more reliable, more cost effective and/or exhibit better performance than prior art devices.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 1, 2002
    Publication date: January 16, 2003
    Inventors: Michael J. Little, Thomas S. Tyrie, William P. Eaton, John J. Lyon
  • Methods of making mechanisms in which relative locations of elements are maintained during manufacturing
    Publication number: 20020196521
    Abstract: The present invention provides method of making mechanisms in which the relative locations of elements are maintained during manufacturing. The methods according to the present invention can be used to make a variety of devices, including tunable optical devices. The methods include displaceably attaching an island (support) to a frame with a non-rigid material.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 18, 2002
    Publication date: December 26, 2002
    Inventors: Michael J. Little, William P. Eaton, Thomas S. Tyrie, Harry Melkonian, Ping Li
  • Compliant mechanism and method of forming same
    Publication number: 20020196522
    Abstract: The present invention provides a compliant mechanism that can be used to make a variety of devices, such as tunable optical devices that are more reliable, more cost effective and/or exhibit better performance than prior art devices.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 22, 2002
    Publication date: December 26, 2002
    Inventors: Michael J. Little, Thomas S. Tyrie, William P. Eaton