Patents by Inventor William T. Hopkins

William T. Hopkins 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: 7876543
    Abstract: A gas discharge lamp power supply having a base, a pair of opposed side walls extending from the base, and opposed first and second end walls extending from the base between the opposed side walls. The first end wall has a sloped wall extending angularly between the side walls, and two input terminals are mounted on the sloped wall. In another embodiment, the power supply has a control with a nonvolatile memory for storing an error code in response to a detected fault condition, thereby permitting the error code to be displayed upon power being removed from and then, subsequently reapplied.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 20, 2006
    Date of Patent: January 25, 2011
    Assignee: FRANCE/ A Scott Fetzer Company
    Inventors: William T. Hopkins, Anthony W. Banks, Alan M. Smith, Louis B. Pickvet, Robert L. Towe, Charles A. Schlemm
  • Patent number: 7283351
    Abstract: A gas discharge lamp power supply having a base, a pair of opposed side walls extending from the base, and opposed first and second end walls extending from the base between the opposed side walls. The first end wall has a sloped wall extending angularly between the side walls, and two input terminals are mounted on the sloped wall. In another embodiment, the power supply has a control with a nonvolatile memory for storing an error code in response to a detected fault condition, thereby permitting the error code to be displayed upon power being removed from and then, subsequently reapplied.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 28, 2005
    Date of Patent: October 16, 2007
    Assignee: France/A Scott Fetzer Company
    Inventors: William T. Hopkins, Anthony W. Banks, Alan M. Smith, Louis B. Pickvet, Robert L. Towe, Charles A. Schlemm
  • Patent number: 5550437
    Abstract: A ballast for driving a gas discharge tube light with overvoltage protection and dimming. A clamp winding coupled to the internal DC power source prevents overvoltage of the secondary terminals by permitting induced current flow in the clamp winding if the clamp winding voltage exceeds that of the internal DC power source. The transformer core includes a shunt leg which supports a dimmer control winding. When the dimmer control winding is open-circuited, magnetic flux is shunted away from the secondary winding, reducing the light intensity; when the dimmer control winding is short-circuited, currents induce in the dimmer control winding prevent substantial of magnetic flux density and increase the light intensity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 6, 1995
    Date of Patent: August 27, 1996
    Assignee: France/Scott Fetzer Company
    Inventors: William T. Hopkins, Alan M. Smith