Patents by Inventor William T. Zollinger
William T. Zollinger 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).
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Patent number: 8122780Abstract: An Explosion Proof Vehicle (EPV) having an interior substantially filled with an inert fluid creating an interior pressure greater than the exterior pressure. One or more flexible tubes provide the inert fluid and one or more electrical conductors from a control system to the vehicle. The vehicle is preferably used in subsurface tank inspection, whereby the vehicle is submerged in a volatile fluid.Type: GrantFiled: March 20, 2008Date of Patent: February 28, 2012Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the United States Department of EnergyInventors: William T. Zollinger, Kerry M. Klingler, Scott G. Bauer
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Patent number: 7294323Abstract: A method of producing a chemical hydride is described and which includes selecting a composition having chemical bonds and which is capable of forming a chemical hydride; providing a source of a hydrocarbon; and reacting the composition with the source of the hydrocarbon to generate a chemical hydride.Type: GrantFiled: February 13, 2004Date of Patent: November 13, 2007Assignee: Battelle Energy Alliance, LLCInventors: Kerry M. Klingler, William T. Zollinger, Bruce M. Wilding, Dennis N. Bingham, Kraig M. Wendt
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Patent number: 7279077Abstract: A method of forming a chemical composition such as a chemical hydride is described and which includes the steps of selecting a composition having chemical bonds and which is capable of forming a chemical hydride; providing a source of hydrogen; and exposing the selected composition to an amount of ionizing radiation to encourage the changing of the chemical bonds of the selected composition, and chemically reacting the selected composition with the source of hydrogen to facilitate the formation of a chemical hydride.Type: GrantFiled: October 13, 2003Date of Patent: October 9, 2007Assignee: Bettelle Energy Alliance, LLCInventors: Dennis N. Bingham, Bruce M. Wilding, Kerry M. Klingler, William T. Zollinger, Kraig M. Wendt
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Patent number: 7153489Abstract: A method of producing hydrogen is disclosed and which includes providing a first composition; providing a second composition; reacting the first and second compositions together to produce a chemical hydride; providing a liquid and reacting the chemical hydride with the liquid in a manner to produce a high pressure hydrogen gas and a byproduct which includes the first composition; and reusing the first composition formed as a byproduct in a subsequent chemical reaction to form additional chemical hydride.Type: GrantFiled: February 13, 2004Date of Patent: December 26, 2006Assignee: Battelle Energy Alliance, LLCInventors: Dennis N. Bingham, Kerry M. Klingler, Bruce M. Wilding, William T. Zollinger
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Patent number: 7078012Abstract: A method of producing a high pressure gas is disclosed and which includes providing a container; supplying the container with a liquid such as water; increasing the pressure of the liquid within the container; supplying a reactant composition such as a chemical hydride to the liquid under pressure in the container and which chemically reacts with the liquid to produce a resulting high pressure gas such as hydrogen at a pressure of greater than about 100 pounds per square inch of pressure; and drawing the resulting high pressure gas from the container.Type: GrantFiled: October 14, 2003Date of Patent: July 18, 2006Assignee: Eattelle Energy Alliance, LLCInventors: Dennis N. Bingham, Kerry M. Klingler, William T. Zollinger
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Patent number: 6997012Abstract: A method of liquefying a gas is disclosed and which includes the steps of pressurizing a liquid; mixing a reactant composition with the pressurized liquid to generate a high pressure gas; supplying the high pressure gas to an expansion engine which produces a gas having a reduced pressure and temperature, and which further generates a power and/or work output; coupling the expansion engine in fluid flowing relation relative to a refrigeration assembly, and wherein the gas having the reduced temperature is provided to the refrigeration assembly; and energizing and/or actuating the refrigeration assembly, at least in part, by supplying the power and/or work output generated by the expansion engine to the refrigeration assembly, the refrigeration assembly further reducing the temperature of the gas to liquefy same.Type: GrantFiled: January 6, 2004Date of Patent: February 14, 2006Assignee: Battelle Energy Alliance, LLCInventors: William T. Zollinger, Dennis N. Bingham, Michael G. McKellar, Bruce M. Wilding, Kerry M. Klingler
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Patent number: 5375530Abstract: A pipe crawler having a midsection that provides the stability and flexibty to allow the pipe crawler to negotiate curved and uneven segments of piping while traveling through piping systems. The pipe crawler comprises a front leg assembly, a rear leg assembly, a midsection with a gimbal at each end for connecting the midsection to the front and rear leg assemblies in a flexible manner, and an air cylinder for changing the distance between the front and rear leg assemblies. The pipe crawler moves in "inch worm" fashion with the front and rear leg assemblies alternating between an extended and a retracted position as the air cylinder moves the retracted leg assembly forward. The midsection has a plurality of legs extending radially for holding the midsection within a maximum displacement from the piping axis so that the gimbals are not pivoted to extreme angles where they might lock up or seize.Type: GrantFiled: September 20, 1993Date of Patent: December 27, 1994Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Department of EnergyInventors: William T. Zollinger, Richard C. Treanor
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Patent number: 5370006Abstract: A pipe inspection instrument carriage for use with a pipe crawler for performing internal inspections of piping surfaces. The carriage has a front leg assembly, a rear leg assembly and a central support connecting the two assemblies and for mounting an instrument arm having inspection instruments. The instrument arm has a y-arm mounted distally thereon for axially aligning the inspection instrumentation and a mounting block, a linear actuator and axial movement arm for extending the inspection instruments radially outward to operably position the inspection instruments on the piping interior. Also, the carriage has a rotation motor and gear assembly for rotating the central support and the front leg assembly with respect to the rear leg assembly so that the inspection instruments azimuthally scan the piping interior. The instrument carriage allows performance of all piping inspection operations with a minimum of moving parts, thus decreasing the likelihood of performance failure.Type: GrantFiled: September 20, 1993Date of Patent: December 6, 1994Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the United States Department of EnergyInventors: William T. Zollinger, Richard C. Treanor
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Patent number: 5309844Abstract: An apparatus for moving through the linear and non-linear segments of piping systems. The apparatus comprises a front leg assembly, a rear leg assembly, a mechanism for extension and retraction of the front and rear leg assembles with respect to each other, such as an air cylinder, and a pivoting joint. One end of the flexible joint attaches to the front leg assembly and the other end to the air cylinder, which is also connected to the rear leg assembly. The air cylinder allows the front and rear leg assemblies to progress through a pipe in "inchworm" fashion, while the joint provides the flexibility necessary for the pipe crawler to negotiate non-linear piping segments. The flexible connecting joint is coupled with a spring-force suspension system that urges alignment of the front and rear leg assemblies with respect to each other.Type: GrantFiled: May 24, 1993Date of Patent: May 10, 1994Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the United States Department of EnergyInventor: William T. Zollinger
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Patent number: 5265132Abstract: Apparatus for manipulating a vacuum hose in a reactor vessel comprises a housing with two opposing openings, an arm carried by the housing and deployable from a stowed position essentially completely within the housing to an extended position where the arm extends through the two openings in a generally horizontal position. The arm preferably has a two-fingered gripping device for gripping the vacuum hose but may carry a different end effector such as a grinding wheel. The fingers are opened and closed by one air cylinder. A second air cylinder extends the device. A third air cylinder within the housing pivotally pulls the opposing end of the arm into the housing via a pivoting member pivotally connected between the third air cylinder shaft and the arm.Type: GrantFiled: February 10, 1992Date of Patent: November 23, 1993Inventor: William T. Zollinger
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Patent number: 5121694Abstract: A pipe crawler for moving through a pipe in inchworm fashion having front and rear leg assemblies separated by air cylinders to increase and decrease the spacing between assemblies. Each leg of the four legs of an assembly is moved between a wall-engaging, extended position and a retracted position by a separate air cylinder. The air cylinders of the leg assemblies are preferably arranged in pairs of oppositely directed cylinders with no pair lying in the same axial plane as another pair. Therefore, the cylinders can be as long a leg assembly is wide and the crawler can crawl through sections of pipes where the diameter is twice that of other sections. The crawler carries a valving system, a manifold to distribute air supplied by a single umbilical air hose to the various air cylinders in a sequence controlled electrically by a controller.Type: GrantFiled: April 2, 1991Date of Patent: June 16, 1992Inventor: William T. Zollinger