Patents by Inventor Todd M. Oestreich

Todd M. Oestreich 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: 20230324432
    Abstract: The present disclosure is directed to an integrated drive module assembly with vibration-based anomaly detection. The integrated drive module assembly may include a motor coupled to a drive module. The drive module may provide electric power to the motor for operation. Moreover, the drive module may provide control signals to control operations of the motor. The drive module may include an accelerometer and a processing circuit. The processing circuit may determine baseline vibration profiles of the motor during operation using the accelerometer. Subsequently, the processing circuit may determine anomaly conditions of the motor based on comparing the vibrations of the motor with the baseline vibration profiles. Accordingly, the integrated drive module assembly may facilitate performing countermeasures with low latency based on detecting the anomaly conditions using the accelerometer when the drive module is coupled to the motor.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 11, 2022
    Publication date: October 12, 2023
    Inventors: Zoran Vrankovic, Arun K. Guru, Todd M. Oestreich, Theodore A. Rodriguez, JR., Kristin N. Yee, Jon P. Vanderpas
  • Patent number: 11387761
    Abstract: A motor drive that outputs a sinusoidal waveform utilizes power switching devices operable at high switching frequencies. The switching devices may be operated, for example, between twenty kilohertz and one megahertz. A first filter is included at the output of the motor drive which has a bandwidth selected to attenuate voltage components at the output which are at the switching frequency or multiples thereof such that the output voltage waveform is generally sinusoidal. Additional filtering is included within the motor drive to establish a circulation path for common mode currents within the motor drive. Further, a shield is provided adjacent to those components within the motor drive that may experience voltage or current waveforms at the switching frequency or multiples thereof to cause radiated emissions to establish eddy currents within the EMI shield rather than passing through the shield into the environment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 24, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 12, 2022
    Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Zoran Vrankovic, Gennadi Sizov, Gary L. Skibinski, David A. Figie, Yao Da, Todd M. Oestreich, Adam M. Shea
  • Patent number: 11283388
    Abstract: A motor controller executing a current regulator and a modulation routine in separate update intervals provides an improved fundamental voltage waveform for a motor controlled by the motor controller. The current regulator is executed at a first periodic update rate and the modulation routine is executed at a second periodic update rate, where the frequency at which the modulation routine executes is at least twice the frequency at which the current regulator executes. Executing the current regulator and the modulation routines at different frequencies results in the current regulator generating a single voltage reference signal for multiple periods of the modulation routine. To reduce voltage ripple induced by decoupling execution of the current regulator and the modulation routine, the motor controller extrapolates the voltage reference generated by the current regulator into multiple voltage reference signals, where a unique voltage reference signal is provided for each period of the modulation routine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 2020
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2022
    Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Gennadi Sizov, Zoran Vrankovic, Todd M. Oestreich, Gary L. Skibinski
  • Publication number: 20210091697
    Abstract: A motor drive that outputs a sinusoidal waveform utilizes power switching devices operable at high switching frequencies. The switching devices may be operated, for example, between twenty kilohertz and one megahertz. A first filter is included at the output of the motor drive which has a bandwidth selected to attenuate voltage components at the output which are at the switching frequency or multiples thereof such that the output voltage waveform is generally sinusoidal. Additional filtering is included within the motor drive to establish a circulation path for common mode currents within the motor drive. Further, a shield is provided adjacent to those components within the motor drive that may experience voltage or current waveforms at the switching frequency or multiples thereof to cause radiated emissions to establish eddy currents within the EMI shield rather than passing through the shield into the environment.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 24, 2020
    Publication date: March 25, 2021
    Inventors: Zoran Vrankovic, Gennadi Sizov, Gary L. Skibinski, David A. Figie, Yao Da, Todd M. Oestreich, Adam M. Shea
  • Patent number: 10879826
    Abstract: A motor drive that outputs a sinusoidal waveform utilizes power switching devices operable at high switching frequencies. The switching devices may be operated, for example, between twenty kilohertz and one megahertz. A first filter is included at the output of the motor drive which has a bandwidth selected to attenuate voltage components at the output which are at the switching frequency or multiples thereof such that the output voltage waveform is generally sinusoidal. Additional filtering is included within the motor drive to establish a circulation path for common mode currents within the motor drive. Further, a shield is provided adjacent to those components within the motor drive that may experience voltage or current waveforms at the switching frequency or multiples thereof to cause radiated emissions to establish eddy currents within the EMI shield rather than passing through the shield into the environment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 24, 2019
    Date of Patent: December 29, 2020
    Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Zoran Vrankovic, Gennadi Sizov, Gary L. Skibinski, David A. Figie, Yao Da, Todd M. Oestreich, Adam M. Shea
  • Patent number: 9673725
    Abstract: A method for controlling voltage of a DC bus in a converter circuit is provided. The method includes monitoring a duty cycle of a switch that connects a resistive circuit across the DC bus, the switch being closed when the DC bus voltage reaches an upper voltage value and opened when the DC bus voltage reaches a lower voltage value and altering the lower voltage value based upon the duty cycle of the switch.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 12, 2015
    Date of Patent: June 6, 2017
    Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Gerry M. Nagel, Todd M. Oestreich
  • Patent number: 9207671
    Abstract: An automation network that utilizes motor drives to diagnose faults, and provide potential solutions to a user. The fault status and/or diagnostic remedies may be displayed via a user display integrated with (e.g., in a single cabinet with) the motor drives and/or coupled to (e.g., in an external device separate from) the motor drives. As such, a logic process or other algorithm may be executed by the motor drive to determine a potential set of solutions for any given fault, based on, for example, determined errors and likelihood of causes for presentation to a user. In this manner, motor drives may allow for user corrective actions to be communicated to a user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 12, 2012
    Date of Patent: December 8, 2015
    Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Murray E. Hersh, Todd M. Oestreich, Gerry M. Nagel
  • Publication number: 20150244281
    Abstract: A method for controlling voltage of a DC bus in a converter circuit is provided. The method includes monitoring a duty cycle of a switch that connects a resistive circuit across the DC bus, the switch being closed when the DC bus voltage reaches an upper voltage value and opened when the DC bus voltage reaches a lower voltage value and altering the lower voltage value based upon the duty cycle of the switch.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 12, 2015
    Publication date: August 27, 2015
    Inventors: Gerry M. Nagel, Todd M. Oestreich
  • Patent number: 9030851
    Abstract: A method for controlling voltage of a DC bus in a converter circuit is provided. The method includes monitoring a duty cycle of a switch that connects a resistive circuit across the DC bus, the switch being closed when the DC bus voltage reaches an upper voltage value and opened when the DC bus voltage reaches a lower voltage value and altering the lower voltage value based upon the duty cycle of the switch.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2010
    Date of Patent: May 12, 2015
    Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Gerry M. Nagel, Todd M. Oestreich
  • Publication number: 20140103848
    Abstract: An automation network that utilizes motor drives to diagnose faults, and provide potential solutions to a user. The fault status and/or diagnostic remedies may be displayed via a user display integrated with (e.g., in a single cabinet with) the motor drives and/or coupled to (e.g., in an external device separate from) the motor drives. As such, a logic process or other algorithm may be executed by the motor drive to determine a potential set of solutions for any given fault, based on, for example, determined errors and likelihood of causes for presentation to a user. In this manner, motor drives may allow for user corrective actions to be communicated to a user.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 12, 2012
    Publication date: April 17, 2014
    Applicant: ROCKWELL AUTOMATION TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
    Inventors: Murray E. Hersh, Todd M. Oestreich, Gerry M. Nagel
  • Patent number: 8525468
    Abstract: A method for controlling a motor drive system, the system comprising an AC-DC converter coupled to a DC-AC inverter by a DC bus, a motor coupled to and driven by the inverter, and a load coupled to and driven by the motor is provided. The method includes accessing a motion profile for the motor and load and determining power losses of the converter, the inverter, the motor and the load. The method also includes controlling the voltage of the DC bus based upon the motion profile and the power losses to enhance the motor drive system efficiency, reliability and motor shaft performance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 2010
    Date of Patent: September 3, 2013
    Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Craig R. Winterhalter, Robert H. Schmidt, Michael S. Baran, Todd M. Oestreich
  • Publication number: 20110267851
    Abstract: A method for controlling voltage of a DC bus in a converter circuit is provided. The method includes monitoring a duty cycle of a switch that connects a resistive circuit across the DC bus, the switch being closed when the DC bus voltage reaches an upper voltage value and opened when the DC bus voltage reaches a lower voltage value and altering the lower voltage value based upon the duty cycle of the switch.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 30, 2010
    Publication date: November 3, 2011
    Applicant: Rockwell Automation Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Gerry M. Nagel, Todd M. Oestreich
  • Publication number: 20110241580
    Abstract: A method for controlling a motor drive system, the system comprising an AC-DC converter coupled to a DC-AC inverter by a DC bus, a motor coupled to and driven by the inverter, and a load coupled to and driven by the motor is provided. The method includes accessing a motion profile for the motor and load and determining power losses of the converter, the inverter, the motor and the load. The method also includes controlling the voltage of the DC bus based upon the motion profile and the power losses to enhance the motor drive system efficiency, reliability and motor shaft performance.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 31, 2010
    Publication date: October 6, 2011
    Applicant: Rockwell Automation Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Craig R. Winterhalter, Robert H. Schmidt, Michael S. Baran, Todd M. Oestreich
  • Patent number: 7402965
    Abstract: A system and method in accordance with the present technique for protecting motor drives from damage due to misconfiguration while coupled to a common DC bus, comprises sensing electrical operating parameters of the motor drives, automatically determining whether each of the drives is actually installed as a common bus leader or a common bus follower, and comparing the actual installation of the motor drives to a respective stored configuration of each of the motor drives as either a common bus leader or a common bus follower.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 22, 2008
    Assignee: Rockwell Automation Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Todd M. Oestreich, Timothy A. Davis
  • Publication number: 20080074812
    Abstract: A system and method in accordance with the present technique for protecting motor drives from damage due to misconfiguration while coupled to a common DC bus, comprises sensing electrical operating parameters of the motor drives, automatically determining whether each of the drives is actually installed as a common bus leader or a common bus follower, and comparing the actual installation of the motor drives to a respective stored configuration of each of the motor drives as either a common bus leader or a common bus follower.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 21, 2006
    Publication date: March 27, 2008
    Inventors: Todd M. Oestreich, Timothy A. Davis