Multiple Temperature Levels Of Gas Or Vapor Patents (Class 34/496)
  • Patent number: 11674252
    Abstract: A method of drying laundry in a laundry treating appliance having a treating chamber in which the laundry is received for drying comprises moving the treating chamber to redistribute the laundry, supplying air to the treating chamber to define a supply air flow, exhausting the supplied air from the treating chamber to define an exhaust air flow, actuating a heater at full output to heat the air supplied to the treating chamber, turning the heater off, and maintaining a maximum evaporation rate for a duration of time by operating the heater.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 26, 2020
    Date of Patent: June 13, 2023
    Assignee: Whirlpool Corporation
    Inventors: James P. Carow, Moeed Mukhtar, Sanjida Tamanna
  • Patent number: 8695229
    Abstract: A laundry machine, more particularly, a dryer and a control method of a dryer may be disclosed. A control method of a dryer includes (a) of supplying an additive to a drum in an initial part of a drying cycle for drying a drying object; and (b) of supplying an additive to the drum in a last part of the drying cycle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 28, 2008
    Date of Patent: April 15, 2014
    Assignee: LG Electronics Inc.
    Inventors: Chul Jin Choi, Sang Hun Bae, Yang Hwan Kim, Min Ji Kim
  • Patent number: 8650771
    Abstract: A method for operating a household appliance used for taking care of laundry. In the method, a Peltier heat pump of the household appliance is activated and is supplied with electric power for drying the laundry. The power supplied to the Peltier heat pump is varied during the drying process in accordance with a reached process phase of the drying process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 24, 2007
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2014
    Assignee: BSH Bosch und Siemens Hausgerate GmbH
    Inventors: Klaus Grunert, Günter Steffens, Andreas Stolze
  • Patent number: 8578625
    Abstract: A process for removing water and solutes from the lumens of green wood, while leaving the cell walls throughout the wood uniformly fully swollen, comprises subjecting the green wood to supercritical carbon dioxide.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 29, 2007
    Date of Patent: November 12, 2013
    Assignee: New Zealand Forest Research Institute Limited
    Inventors: Robert Arthur Franich, Sheryl Suzanne Gallagher, Hendricus Wilhelmus Kroese
  • Patent number: 8533972
    Abstract: Described herein are devices and techniques for spray drying a fluid to produce a dried powder. Assemblies include a spray drying head attachable to a gas supplier and a liquid sample, such as a standard unit of blood product. The spray drying head can be adapted to provide an aerosolized flow of liquid sample exposed to a drying gas. The assembly also includes a drying chamber adapted to separate the aerosolized flow of liquid sample into a dried powder and humid air. The assembly can be disposable, provided in a sterilized kit and having simplified attachments allowing quick connect and disconnect from the gas and liquid sample. Separation of the powder from the humid air exiting the drying chamber occurs within a filtered collection bag. In some embodiments, one or more of the drying chamber and collection bag are formed form a thin-walled, collapsible material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 25, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 17, 2013
    Assignee: Velico Medical, Inc.
    Inventors: Dennis Brian Hubbard, Jr., Michael Haley, John Charles Rosenfelder, George T. Perivolotis
  • Patent number: 8474152
    Abstract: A method for determining an empty load in a clothes dryer having a drying chamber with an air inlet, an air outlet and operable according to a predetermined cycle of operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 2010
    Date of Patent: July 2, 2013
    Assignee: Whirlpool Corporation
    Inventors: Ryan R. Bellinger, David M. Williams, Christopher J. Woerdehoff
  • Patent number: 8468717
    Abstract: A method for determining an end of cycle in a clothes dryer having a drying chamber with an air inlet, an air outlet and operable according to a predetermined cycle of operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 2010
    Date of Patent: June 25, 2013
    Assignee: Whirlpool Corporation
    Inventors: Ryan R. Bellinger, David M. Williams, Christopher J. Woerdehoff
  • Patent number: 7176415
    Abstract: A heating method and apparatus for a band-shaped body transported in a constant conveying direction in a heating zone so as to heat the band-shaped body is provided. The method includes detecting whether a portion of the band-shaped body at which width and/or thickness changes is passing through the heating zone setting a first supplied heat quantity, and supplying heat with the first supplied quantity to the band-shaped body in the heating zone; and setting a second supplied heat quantity, and supplying heat with the second supplied quantity to the band-shaped body in the heating zone. The method also includes increasing or decreasing at least one of air flow rate or temperature of the heated air stream. The apparatus includes an air flow ratio changing unit which maintains a constant sum of introduced air stream flow rate and bypass air stream flow rate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 3, 2004
    Date of Patent: February 13, 2007
    Assignee: Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Kiyoshi Kamitani, Kenji Hayashi
  • Patent number: 7162811
    Abstract: A method for completely drying polished nails without any smudging or nicking. The method utilizes first warm air and then very cold air followed by a brief return to warm air. The warm air of the inital step uses air at a temperature of approximately eighty-five degrees Farenhit for approximately four minutes. The very cold air has a temperature of approximately thirty-five degrees and is blown for approximately two minutes. The last step utilizes the intial heating temperature of eighty-five degrees Farenheit but for only fifteen seconds.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 16, 2003
    Date of Patent: January 16, 2007
    Inventors: Diane E. Delaney, Cornelia A. Arndt
  • Patent number: 7020982
    Abstract: A method for controlling a clothes dryer is disclosed to precisely dry clothes on the basis of a load amount according to moisture contained in clothes in the clothes dry and a temperature change according to proceeding drying of clothes. The method includes: detecting a load amount detect signal corresponding to an amount of moisture contained in clothes in a drum; setting a heater exit temperature range of the clothes dryer to pre-set first and second temperature ranges on the basis of the load amount detect signal, and first drying clothes in the drum within the pre-set first temperature range; second-drying clothes in the drum within the pre-set second temperature range; and cooling clothes in the drum when the first and second-drying processes are completed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 6, 2004
    Date of Patent: April 4, 2006
    Assignee: LG Electronics Inc.
    Inventors: Dae-Yun Park, Kyung-Seop Hong, Young-Hwan Park, In-Cheol Jeong, Soo-Young Oh, Si-Moon Jeon
  • Patent number: 6946571
    Abstract: Process for drying moist, solid adipic acid using at least two drying stages in which moist solid adipic acid is progressively dried by contacting it in at least two successive stages with a nonreactive gas, the temperature of the first stage being lower than the temperature in any of the subsequent stages.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2003
    Date of Patent: September 20, 2005
    Assignee: Invista North America S.A.R.L.
    Inventor: Bhagya Chandra Sutradhar
  • Patent number: 6877249
    Abstract: A method of drying a lactulose solution comprises introducing the solution into a vacuum chamber at elevated temperature and at reduced pressure so that the solution forms a foam, drying the foam under reduced pressure, and milling or grinding or breaking the dried foam into powder.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 1999
    Date of Patent: April 12, 2005
    Assignee: Relax Limited
    Inventors: Alan Kenneth Greenwood, Anthony Christopher Allen, Jaap Van Dijk
  • Patent number: 6199300
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for controlling the heat input of a dryer where the initial heat input to a clothes load is set at full power until a first predetermined temperature or time condition occurs. The heat input of the dryer is then reduced to in order to reduce power consumption while effectively removing moisture from the clothes load. When the moisture content of the clothes load falls below a predetermined amount, full heat input is once again applied to remove remaining moisture in the clothes load.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 1, 2000
    Date of Patent: March 13, 2001
    Assignee: Whirlpool Corporation
    Inventors: Timothy E. Heater, Shawn Richard Oltz, Gregory J. Markert, Mark F. Kendall
  • Patent number: 6122840
    Abstract: A clothes dryer includes a control system for determining the drying time for a partial load in a clothes dryer. The system includes a humidity sensor, a signal processor, and a fuzzy logic control system. The humidity sensor generates a humidity signal representative of the humidity of air flowing through the trap duct. The humidity sensor transmits the humidity signal to the signal processor, and the signal processor determines a drying span utilizing the humidity signal. The fuzzy logic control system then utilizes the drying span to estimate the clothes load.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 18, 1998
    Date of Patent: September 26, 2000
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Nicolas Wadih Chbat, Vivek Venugopal Badami
  • Patent number: 5893218
    Abstract: An automatically controlled seed dryer of the present invention is adapted to efficiently and precisely dry seed by automatically controlling the temperatures directions and air flow rate; of air flow through the seed within the bin. The invention includes an upper plenum for supplying a source of hot airs a lower plenum for supplying a source of ambient air, and a mixing plenum for mixing various proportions of hot and ambient air from the upper and lower plenums. The mixing plenum has upper and lower supply doors formed between the mixing plenum and the bin for supplying the mixed air to the bin either above or below the seed. Upper and lower exhaust doors are formed in the bin above and below the seed such that by controlling the operation of the supply and exhaust doors, the direction and air flow rate of the mixed air through the seed can be precisely controlled by an electronic controller. A plurality of linear actuators control the operation of the doors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 15, 1997
    Date of Patent: April 13, 1999
    Assignee: Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc.
    Inventors: James L. Hunter, Cyrille Precetti, Paul Chicoine
  • Patent number: 5659975
    Abstract: In order to dry boards, the boards are guided on racks through a drier and brought into contact with drying air in two stages. In a stage A with a higher drying power, the drying air is supplied at a higher temperature and with an at least average humidity, and in the other stage B, it is supplied at an average temperature and with a low humidity. The waste heat of the outgoing air from stage A is used for preheating the drying air. This process should reduce the consumption of primary energy. For that purpose, a process is known that consists of also using the outgoing air condensation heat. This has the inconvenience, however, of requiring substantially more secondary energy, as important air mass flows are required to transfer heat because of the low condensation temperature. Primary energy should be reduced by using condensation heat without substantially increasing secondary energy requirements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 25, 1996
    Date of Patent: August 26, 1997
    Assignee: Babcock BSH AG
    Inventors: Friedrich Bahner, Manfred Braun, Karl-Friedrich Lang, Gerhard Lehn, Karl Maurer, Manfred Schmidt, Josef Steinkuhl
  • Patent number: 5649372
    Abstract: A drying cycle controller for a garment dryer. The drying cycle is controlled to have a decreasing temperature and humidity profile which avoids the removal of moisture at a rate which will cause shrinkage and wrinkling of the garment. The drying cycle temperature profile is controlled by continuously sensing the humidity within the drying chamber, and decreasing the drying temperature each time the relative humidity drops to one of a plurality of set points. Once the humidity has reached the final set point, the dryer enters a cool down cycle for a predetermined cool down time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 1996
    Date of Patent: July 22, 1997
    Assignee: American Dryer Corporation
    Inventor: William J. Souza
  • Patent number: 5394622
    Abstract: A dryer with zone temperature controls for drying thick polymer-solvent layers on a substrate. The dryer is formed with several heating elements located in an air duct. The cool air is heated a specific amount as it passes each heating element. The heated air is then applied to the polymer-solvent solution on the substrate in a continuous fashion so that the polymer-solvent solution slowly heats up as it passes through the drying apparatus. The preferred design is to ensure a zone residence time of less than 10 seconds and a web heating rate of 10.degree. F./second or less. Most preferred design is a zone residence time less than 5 seconds and a heating rate less that 5.degree. F./second. The dryer is designed to have a continuous temperature gradient, especially in the critical later stages of drying when the solvent content of the film is less than 20%.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 15, 1993
    Date of Patent: March 7, 1995
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventors: Kent J. Evans, Warren R. Smith, Robert F. Dunham, Timothy J. Leenhouts, Barbara D. Ceglinski, Richard A. Cairncross
  • Patent number: RE37557
    Abstract: In order to dry boards, the boards are guided on racks through a drier and brought into contact with drying air in two stages. In a stage A with a higher drying power, the drying air is supplied at a higher temperature and with an at least average humidity, and in the other stage B, it is supplied at an average temperature and with a low humidity. The waste heat of the outgoing air from stage A is used for preheating the drying air. This process should reduce the consumption of primary energy. For that purpose, a process is known that consists of also using the outgoing air condensation heat. This has the inconvenience, however, of requiring substantially more secondary energy, as important air mass flows are required to transfer heat because of the low condensation temperature. Primary energy should be reduced by using condensation heat without substantially increasing secondary energy requirements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 1999
    Date of Patent: February 26, 2002
    Assignee: Babcock BSH AG
    Inventors: Freidrich Bahner, Manfred Braun, Gerhard Lehn, Karl Maurer, Manfred Schmidt, Josef Steinkuhl, Karl-Friedrich Lang