Patents by Inventor William McRoy

William McRoy 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).

  • Initiation of vehicle liftgate actuation
    Patent number: 10407970
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus are disclosed for initiation of vehicle liftgate actuation. An example vehicle includes a liftgate, a proximity sensor for monitoring an activation area of the liftgate, a camera to capture an image of the activation area upon the proximity sensor detecting an object within the activation area, and a liftgate controller. The liftgate controller is to determine, based on the image, whether the object is a leg of a user and actuate the liftgate responsive to determining that the object is the leg.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 10, 2019
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Erick Michael Lavoie, William McRoy, Eric L. Reed, John Robert Van Wiemeersch, Adil Nizam Siddiqui
  • INITIATION OF VEHICLE LIFTGATE ACTUATION
    Publication number: 20190032391
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus are disclosed for initiation of vehicle liftgate actuation. An example vehicle includes a liftgate, a proximity sensor for monitoring an activation area of the liftgate, a camera to capture an image of the activation area upon the proximity sensor detecting an object within the activation area, and a liftgate controller. The liftgate controller is to determine, based on the image, whether the object is a leg of a user and actuate the liftgate responsive to determining that the object is the leg.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 31, 2017
    Publication date: January 31, 2019
    Inventors: Erick Michael Lavoie, William McRoy, Eric L. Reed, John Robert Van Wiemeersch, Adil Nizam Siddiqui