Patents by Inventor W. Robert Brown

W. Robert Brown 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).

  • Method and system for regulating electric drive system according to predicted temperature of inverter current sensor to prevent overheating
    Patent number: 11811349
    Abstract: An electric drive system includes a controller and an inverter having a switch and a current sensor. The controller reduces power output of the inverter while a sensed temperature of the switch, a sensed current from the inverter, and parameter values of the current sensor are indicative of a predicted temperature of the current sensor being greater than a threshold to maintain inverter temperature lower than the threshold. The parameter values are obtainable from a thermal model of the current sensor. The thermal model is derived from testing a test version of the inverter under different drive cycles in which for each drive cycle a set of information is recorded including a sensed temperature of a switch of the inverter test version, a sensed current output from the inverter test version, and a sensed temperature of a current sensor of the inverter test version.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 7, 2023
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Monty J. Anderson, W. Robert Brown
  • Method and System for Regulating Electric Drive System According to Predicted Temperature of Inverter Current Sensor to Prevent Overheating
    Publication number: 20220200512
    Abstract: An electric drive system includes a controller and an inverter having a switch and a current sensor. The controller reduces power output of the inverter while a sensed temperature of the switch, a sensed current from the inverter, and parameter values of the current sensor are indicative of a predicted temperature of the current sensor being greater than a threshold to maintain inverter temperature lower than the threshold. The parameter values are obtainable from a thermal model of the current sensor. The thermal model is derived from testing a test version of the inverter under different drive cycles in which for each drive cycle a set of information is recorded including a sensed temperature of a switch of the inverter test version, a sensed current output from the inverter test version, and a sensed temperature of a current sensor of the inverter test version.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 22, 2020
    Publication date: June 23, 2022
    Applicant: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Monty J. Anderson, W. Robert Brown