Did You Know...
...that the inventor of the electric motor was a blacksmith named Thomas Davenport? Described as "a brilliantly unsuccessful inventor", Davenport invented the first rotary electric motor. In 1836 he headed out -- on foot -- from his Vermont home to file a patent application at the Patent Office in Washington, D.C. By the time he got there, he had squandered away his money and couldn't afford the $30 filing fee so he turned around and went home. When he later mailed in his application with money he'd raised, the Patent office was destroyed in a fire. He did finally get credit for his invention on Feb. 5, 1837.
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| Number | Title | Issue Date |
| 7301721 | Falling sensor and the information processing device making use of it A falling sensor is provided, which detects a falling of a magnetic disk drive or an information processing device installed with said magnetic disk drive and which is effective for avoiding physical damages of magnetic heads and magnetic disk media. The magnetic di... | 11/27/2007 |
| 7237316 | Method for fabricating a three-dimensional acceleration sensor According to the present invention, a method for fabricating a three-dimensional acceleration sensor, comprising: providing a semiconductor substrate having first and second surfaces; forming an insulating layer on the first surface of the semiconductor substrate; f... | 07/03/2007 |
| 7228739 | Precision flexure plate A precision flexure plate includes a flat disk positioned between two capacitor plates and supported by S-shaped beams. Deflection of the disk due to gravitational loads and resulting capacitance change is used to measure the accelerations in the direction perpendic... | 06/12/2007 |
| 7219549 | Accelerometer with cantilever and magnetic field detector An accelerometer for measuring the displacement of a magnet body using magnetic detecting elements is provided, the accelerometer having superior measurement accuracy by suppressing influence of a peripheral magnetic field. The accelerometer has detecting units each... | 05/22/2007 |
| 7185542 | Complex microdevices and apparatus and methods for fabricating such devices Various embodiments of the invention are directed to various microdevices including sensors, actuators, valves, scanning mirrors, accelerometers, switches, and the like. In some embodiments the devices are formed via electrochemical fabrication (EFAB™) ... | 03/06/2007 |
| 7178398 | Coplanar proofmasses employable to sense acceleration along three axes An apparatus in one example comprises a first proofmass employable to sense a first acceleration along a first input axis; a second proofmass employable to sense a second acceleration along a second input axis; and a third proofmass employable to sense a third accel... | 02/20/2007 |
| 7124634 | Single plate capacitive acceleration derivative detector A capacitance accelerometer includes a housing, and a plate fixed within the housing. A moveable plate is disposed in substantially parallel relation to the fixed plate and is coupled to the housing along at least an edge. The moveable plate and the fixed plate defi... | 10/24/2006 |
| 7121012 | Apparatus and method for measuring and controlling pendulum motion A magnetically damped inclinometer has a shaft with attached pendulum that rotates. The rotation causes an index member to rotate past one or a set of magnets or electromagnets that are connected to the load. The magnet or electromagnet may be mounted directly the l... | 10/17/2006 |
| 7111514 | Acceleration sensor An acceleration sensor comprises an acceleration sensor element having a mass portion in the center, a thick frame surrounding the mass portion and a plurality of elastic support arms bridging the mass portion and the thick frame, and an upper regulation plate cover... | 09/26/2006 |
| 7073391 | Force sensor A force sensor, in particular for detecting the forces on a vehicle seat, includes a force measurement cell (1) that has a Hall element. The force measurement cell (1) includes at least one bending bar (2, 3), which from the exertion of force to... | 07/11/2006 |
| 7038150 | Micro environmental sensing device A microelectromechanical (MEM) acceleration switch is disclosed which includes a proof mass flexibly connected to a substrate, with the proof mass being moveable in a direction substantially perpendicular to the substrate in response to a sensed acceleration. An ele... | 05/02/2006 |
| 7035167 | Seismic sensor A seismic sensor, has a case, a pre-charged, non-conductive membrane located between two plates that form a capacitor and accommodated inside the case, with one of the plates being immovable relative to the case and the other of the plates being movable relative to ... | 04/25/2006 |
| 7017411 | Apparatus with selected fill gas An inertial sensor has an interior filled with a relatively low viscosity fill gas. To that end, the inertial sensor has a housing forming the noted interior, and a movable component within the interior. The inertial sensor also has the noted fill gas within the int... | 03/28/2006 |
| 6995939 | Falling sensor and the information processing device making use of it A falling sensor is provided, which detects a falling of a magnetic disk drive or an information processing device installed with the magnetic disk drive and which is effective for avoiding physical damage of magnetic heads and magnetic disk media. The magnetic disk... | 02/07/2006 |
| 6798306 | High-frequency oscillation circuit and measuring device A high-frequency oscillation circuit incorporates a crystal resonator having a natural oscillation frequency in a high-frequency area within a closed circuit including one or more logic elements. Therefore, this circuit copes with an oscillation frequency of 1 MHz t... | 09/28/2004 |
| 6637255 | Damped paddle wheel for plasma chamber shock tube A damping gyrometer comprised of at least two and preferably four rotating paddles attached to a common central elevated low-friction pivot point via rising radial arms. A stand with a concave glass element provides a low-friction support as a pivot point... | 10/28/2003 |
| 5959207 | Star patterned accelerometer reed An arcuate reed for use with a capacitance type accelerometer proof mass. The reed includes grooves for improved gas damping and reduced latch-up without a reduction in damping effects.... | 09/28/1999 |
| 5644083 | Accelerometer and method of manufacture Accelerometer and method in which parts such as the seismic mass and force sensors are all fabricated of a single material such as crystalline quartz and bonded together in a manner which reduces the possibility of creep between them. Damping plates and s... | 07/01/1997 |
| 5085079 | Accelerometer with mounting/coupling structure for an electronics assembly A mounting/coupling structure for use in an accelerometer to mount the electronics assembly with respect to the case, and to electrically couple the electronics assembly to the acceleration sensitive structure. The mounting/coupling structure may be posit... | 02/04/1992 |
| 5027657 | Acceleration sensor with cantilevered bending beam An acceleration sensor essentially consists of a cantilevered laterally bending beam arranged in a housing. Because of its mass inertia the bending beam is deflectable relative to the sensor housing in the plane of the acceleration to be measured. The ben... | 07/02/1991 |
| 5023749 | Capacitive angle sensor improvement A capacitive angle sensor has a rotary capacitor plate mounted between two arallel stationary capacitor plates with groove means being provided for relieving the flow of air between the surfaces of the rotary capacitor plate and the stationary capacitor pl... | 06/11/1991 |
| 5008774 | Capacitive accelerometer with mid-plane proof mass A micromachined three-plate capacitive accelerometer incorporates a "sandwich" proof mass formed from two layers that are boron-doped to define hinges attached essentially to the midplane of the proof mass by being placed abutting a bonding interface regi... | 04/16/1991 |
| 4930042 | Capacitive accelerometer with separable damping and sensitivity A micromachined three-plate capacitive accelerometer incorporates hinges attached to top and bottom surfaces of the proof mass that are symmetric about X and Y axes and also about diagonal axes; passageways for gas film damping in the fixed members that d... | 05/29/1990 |
| 4928203 | Capacitive accelerometer with hinges on top and bottom surface A micromachined three-plate capacitive accelerometer incorporates hinges attached to top and bottom surfaces of the proof mass that are symmetric about X and Y axes and also about diagonal axes; passageways for gas film damping in the fixed members that d... | 05/22/1990 |
| 4882933 | Accelerometer with integral bidirectional shock protection and controllable viscous damping A micromachined accelerometer includes integral bidirectional shock protection and controllable viscous damping. The accelerometer includes a frame in which a seismic mass is disposed and coupled to the frame by one or more cantilever beams. Upper and low... | 11/28/1989 |
| 4881408 | Low profile accelerometer A compact, low g range accelerometer comprising a support (22), a proof mass (20), flexures (24, 26) for mounting the proof mass to the support, and a force sensing element (40). The proof mass has a single rotational degree of freedom about a hinge axis ... | 11/21/1989 |
| 4598587 | Surface acoustic wave accelerometer An accelerometer comprises a quartz beam 1 having on its upper and lower faces surface acoustic wave devices 2, 3 and 2', 3'. The beam is centrally mounted on quartz spacers 4, 5 which have metallized contacts for the lower SAW device. The spacers are car... | 07/08/1986 |
| 4517841 | Accelerometer with beam resonator force transducer An accelerometer includes a hinged proof mass constrained from movement by a beam resonator force transducer. To afford greater movement of the proof mass and greater latitude in positioning mechanical stops, one end of the force transducer is connected w... | 05/21/1985 |
| 4515016 | Elastic surface wave accelerometers An elastic surface wave accelerometer having a deformable structure, fixed at one end and providing at its free end a seismic mass. The deformable structure may be an open frame with a single post or a closed frame with two posts. The accelerometer can me... | 05/07/1985 |
| 4326559 | Fluidic force transducer A fluidic accelerometer and electromagnetic transducer formed from a plurty of vertical laminations having a nozzle, a pair of outlets for receiving nozzle fluid and a flexible member as an extension of one of the laminations which forms a vertical wall ... | 04/27/1982 |
| 4313346 | Accelerometers An accelerometer includes a thermocouple circuit which comprises a movable member and a second member which abuts the movable member, wherein the abutting parts of the members include a cutting portion and wherein said parts are composed of dissimilar met... | 02/02/1982 |
| 4129042 | Semiconductor transducer packaged assembly A semiconductor transducer chip is flip-chip bonded to a semiconductor interface chip, which is mounted on the ceramic package. Thermal coupling between the package and the transducer chip is minimized by the small contact area between the transducer chip... | 12/12/1978 |
| 3943776 | Fluidic acceleration sensor A fluidic G sensor for monitoring the acceleration or deceleration of a mile includes a hollow cylinder containing an inertial mass, e.g., a piston, which is supported by a diaphragm pressurized by gas. The gas pressure is supplied from an external sourc... | 03/16/1976 |
