Patents by Inventor Thomas Skupien

Thomas Skupien 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: 8853944
    Abstract: Electron sources for a cathodoluminescent lighting system are disclosed. An electron source is a broad-beam reflecting-type electron gun having a cathode for emitting electrons and a reflector and/or secondary emitter electrode and no grids. An alternative electron gun has a cathode having a heater welded to a disk, the disk having an emissive surface on a side facing a dome-shaped defocusing grid and an anode. A lighting system incorporating the electron sources has an envelope with a transparent face, an anode with a phosphor layer to emit light through the face and a conductor layer. The system also has a power supply for providing from five to thirty thousand volts of power to the light emitting device to draw electrons from cathode to anode and excite a cathodoluminescent phosphor, and the electrons transiting from cathode to anode are essentially unfocused. A power-factor-corrected embodiment is also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 22, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 7, 2014
    Assignee: Vu1 Corporation
    Inventors: Richard N. Herring, Charles E. Hunt, Thomas Skupien, Tomas Hasilik, Viktor Jelinek, Bernard K. Vancil
  • Patent number: 8450917
    Abstract: A high-definition CRT is provided having an electron gun to produce high beam current without increasing spot size and to provide lower electrical power requirements at high beam-modulation frequencies. The electron gun includes beam-forming electrodes and a lens. Each beam-forming electrode has several aperture clusters operable to form several collimated beams of electrons. In addition, the lens is operable to focus the several collimated beams of electrons onto a display screen.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 22, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 28, 2013
    Assignee: Altera Corporation
    Inventors: Thomas A. Skupien, Byron G. Zollars
  • Patent number: 8294367
    Abstract: Electron sources for a cathodoluminescent lighting system are disclosed. An electron source is a broad-beam reflecting-type electron gun having a cathode for emitting electrons and a reflector and/or secondary emitter electrode and no grids. An alternative electron gun has a cathode having a heater welded to a disk, the disk having an emissive surface on a side facing a dome-shaped defocusing grid and an anode. A lighting system incorporating the electron sources has an envelope with a transparent face, an anode with a phosphor layer to emit light through the face and a conductor layer. The system also has a power supply for providing from five to thirty thousand volts of power to the light emitting device to draw electrons from cathode to anode and excite a cathodoluminescent phosphor, and the electrons transiting from cathode to anode are essentially unfocused. A power-factor-corrected embodiment is also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 11, 2009
    Date of Patent: October 23, 2012
    Assignee: Vu1 Corporation
    Inventors: Richard N. Herring, Charles E. Hunt, Thomas Skupien, Tomas Hasilik, Viktor Jelinek, Bernard K. Vancil
  • Publication number: 20110175517
    Abstract: A high-definition CRT is provided having an electron gun to produce high beam current without increasing spot size and to provide lower electrical power requirements at high beam-modulation frequencies. The electron gun includes beam-forming electrodes and a lens. Each beam-forming electrode has several aperture clusters operable to form several collimated beams of electrons. In addition, the lens is operable to focus the several collimated beams of electrons onto a display screen.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 22, 2011
    Publication date: July 21, 2011
    Inventors: Thomas A. SKUPIEN, Byron G. Zollars
  • Patent number: 7892062
    Abstract: A high-definition CRT is provided having an electron gun to produce high beam current without increasing spot size and to provide lower electrical power requirements at high beam-modulation frequencies. The electron gun includes three electrodes having clusters of apertures to allow collimation of the electron beam from a cathode. The main lens is operated to focus a parallel beam of electrons on a display screen. Methods for manufacturing by mechanical or semiconductor methods are also provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 3, 2006
    Date of Patent: February 22, 2011
    Assignee: Altera Corporation
    Inventors: Thomas A. Skupien, Byron G. Zollars
  • Publication number: 20100097004
    Abstract: Electron sources for a cathodoluminescent lighting system are disclosed. An electron source is a broad-beam reflecting-type electron gun having a cathode for emitting electrons and a reflector and/or secondary emitter electrode and no grids. An alternative electron gun has a cathode having a heater welded to a disk, the disk having an emissive surface on a side facing a dome-shaped defocusing grid and an anode. A lighting system incorporating the electron sources has an envelope with a transparent face, an anode with a phosphor layer to emit light through the face and a conductor layer. The system also has a power supply for providing from five to thirty thousand volts of power to the light emitting device to draw electrons from cathode to anode and excite a cathodoluminescent phosphor, and the electrons transiting from cathode to anode are essentially unfocused. A power-factor-corrected embodiment is also disclosed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 11, 2009
    Publication date: April 22, 2010
    Applicant: VU1 CORPORATION
    Inventors: Richard N. Herring, Charles E. Hunt, Thomas Skupien, Tomas Hasilik, Viktor Jelinek, Bernard K. Vancil
  • Publication number: 20070026756
    Abstract: A high-definition CRT is provided having an electron gun to produce high beam current without increasing spot size and to provide lower electrical power requirements at high beam-modulation frequencies. The electron gun includes three electrodes having clusters of apertures to allow collimation of the electron beam from a cathode. The main lens is operated to focus a parallel beam of electrons on a display screen. Methods for manufacturing by mechanical or semiconductor methods are also provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 3, 2006
    Publication date: February 1, 2007
    Inventors: Thomas Skupien, Byron Zollars
  • Patent number: 7135821
    Abstract: A high-definition CRT is provided having an electron gun to produce high beam current without increasing spot size and to provide lower electrical power requirements at high beam-modulation frequencies. The electron gun includes three electrodes having clusters of apertures to allow collimation of the electron beam from a cathode. The main lens is operated to focus a parallel beam of electrons on a display screen. Methods for manufacturing by mechanical or semiconductor methods are also provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 1, 2003
    Date of Patent: November 14, 2006
    Assignee: Altera Corporation
    Inventors: Thomas A. Skupien, Byron G. Zollars
  • Publication number: 20050073259
    Abstract: A high-definition CRT is provided having an electron gun to produce high beam current without increasing spot size and to provide lower electrical power requirements at high beam-modulation frequencies. The electron gun includes three electrodes having clusters of apertures to allow collimation of the electron beam from a cathode. The main lens is operated to focus a parallel beam of electrons on a display screen. Methods for manufacturing by mechanical or semiconductor methods are also provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 1, 2003
    Publication date: April 7, 2005
    Inventors: Thomas Skupien, Byron Zollars
  • Patent number: 6864625
    Abstract: Color CRTs, used in large display screens, have a plurality of three color electron beams that are strongly focused so that they crossover and become divergent in both the X and Y axes if the CTR's face. The strength of the focusing determines the size of the illuminated area on the face of the CRT. A shadow mask, aperture grill, or slotted mask and the red, green and blue phosphor dots or stripes are located at predetermined positions such that the red electron beams only hit the red phosphors, the green electron beams only hit the green phosphors, and the blue electron beams only hit the blue phosphors. No raster scanning with the electron beams are required.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 28, 2003
    Date of Patent: March 8, 2005
    Assignee: Trepton Research Group, Inc.
    Inventor: Thomas A. Skupien
  • Patent number: 6841924
    Abstract: A low voltage Einzel gun design maximizes the size of the second main lens to reduce spherical aberrations thereby reducing spot-size and improving focus quality. The gun's final accelerator electrode is formed as an internal conductive coating on the neck, which is connected to anode potential through an anode button. The jumper between the final and second accelerator electrodes is removed and the second accelerator electrode is connected through the high voltage stem pin to an external potential. Connection of the high voltage stem pin to anode potential defines an Einzel gun. The focus electrode is now connected to one of the low voltage stem pins. In a high voltage Einzel gun, connecting the second accelerator electrode and focus electrode to the high voltage and a low voltage stem pin, respectively, would cause arcing between the pins.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 3, 1999
    Date of Patent: January 11, 2005
    Assignee: Intel Corporation
    Inventor: Thomas A. Skupien
  • Publication number: 20040222730
    Abstract: Color CRTs, used in large display screens, have a plurality of three color electron beams that are strongly focused so that they crossover and become divergent in both the X and Y axes of the CRT's face. The strength of the focusing determines the size of the illuminated area on the face of the CRT. A shadow mask, aperture grill, or slotted mask and the red, green and blue phosphor dots or stripes are located at predetermined positions such that the red electron beams only hit the red phosphors, the green electron beams only hit the green phosphors, and the blue electron beams only hit the blue phosphors. No raster scanning with the electron beams are required.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 28, 2003
    Publication date: November 11, 2004
    Inventor: Thomas A. Skupien
  • Publication number: 20020089277
    Abstract: A beam-forming region (BFR) such as used in cathode ray tube (CRT) electron guns includes a cathode, a decelerating first electrode (G1), an accelerating secondelectrode (G2), an accelerating third electrode (G3) and an additional electrode (G2′) that introduces a pre-focusing lens. The decelerating first electrode (G1) and the accelerating second electrode include aperture arrays that introduce multiple emitting areas on the surface of the cathode. Electrons emitted from the cathode surface pass through their respective apertures and are then converged into a single high current beam by the pre-focusing lens. The high current electron beam passes through any one of many possible main-lens structures, which focuses the beam onto a phosphorescent display screen. The beam is swept across the display screen in a rater like manner while being modulated by a video source signal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 5, 2002
    Publication date: July 11, 2002
    Inventor: Thomas Skupien
  • Patent number: 6369498
    Abstract: A dual-gun, single neck CRT focuses two beams, with significantly differing energies, onto a secondary emission target while maintaining compatibility with a standard fourteen-rotation stem and achieving FTU in excess of 95%. A pair of Einzel guns (write and erase) are mounted in parallel and aligned in the vertical direction rather than the horizontal inside the CRT. The write and erase guns are configured to share a common second accelerator electrode, a common final accelerator electrode, mounting beads and a magnetic deflection yoke. The guns' focus voltages are independently adjusted so that both the write and erase beams have the same focal length.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 3, 1999
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2002
    Assignee: Intel Corporation
    Inventor: Thomas A. Skupien
  • Patent number: 6369499
    Abstract: Cathode venting for electron guns is improved by forming one or more vent holes around the apertures in the triode and any pre-focus lens. This configuration places the vent holes next to the active area of the cathode and provides a line of sight from the cathode to the funnel. If separate alignment holes are used to protect the aperture, one or more vent holes are provided in addition to the alignment holes. The pattern of vent and alignment holes is preferably rotationally symmetric about the aperture so that they do not effect the beam.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 3, 1999
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2002
    Assignee: Intel Corporation
    Inventor: Thomas A. Skupien