Patent application number | Description | Published |
20080205577 | Systems for aligning and handling fuel rods within a nuclear fuel bundle - In a spent fuel pool of a nuclear power plant, there is provided a system for aligning a nuclear fuel bundle and handling selected fuel rods within the fuel bundle. The bundle includes water rods, full-length and part-length fuel rods extending through a plurality of fuel spacers provided between top and bottom ends of the bundle, each spacer having a plurality of cells accommodating corresponding fuel and water rods. The system includes a bundle alignment system for aligning the fuel rods and water rods, a rod grapple tool to extract selected part-length rods from the bundle, and a fuel rod guide block slidable onto the top end of the bundle for protecting an uppermost fuel spacer of the bundle, and for aligning fuel rods within individual cells of all the fuel spacers in the fuel bundle | 08-28-2008 |
20100232564 | SYSTEMS FOR ALIGNING AND HANDLING FUEL RODS WITHIN A NUCLEAR FUEL BUNDLE - In a spent fuel pool of a nuclear power plant, there is provided a system for aligning a nuclear fuel bundle and handling selected fuel rods within the fuel bundle. The bundle includes water rods, full-length and part-length fuel rods extending through a plurality of fuel spacers provided between top and bottom ends of the bundle, each spacer having a plurality of cells accommodating corresponding fuel and water rods. The system includes a bundle alignment system for aligning the fuel rods and water rods, a rod grapple tool to extract selected part-length rods from the bundle, and a fuel rod guide block slidable onto the top end of the bundle for protecting an uppermost fuel spacer of the bundle, and for aligning fuel rods within individual cells of all the fuel spacers in the fuel bundle. | 09-16-2010 |
20100246742 | SYSTEM FOR ASSEMBLING OR DISASSEMBLING A SEGMENTED ROD - An embodiment of the present invention takes the form of a system that allows for simultaneously assembling or disassembling multiple segmented nuclear fuel rods (hereinafter “segmented rods”). An embodiment of the present invention, may receive, secure, and move the segmented rods into a position that allows for performing the tasks of either assembly or disassembly, allowing for an operator to use a tool to complete the aforementioned tasks. | 09-30-2010 |
20110069802 | CONTROL ROD DRIVE OUTER FILTER REMOVAL TOOL - An outer filter removal tool for a boiling water reactor control rod drive that uses a mechanical advantage obtained through the use of lead screw threads to pull the outer filter off of the control rod drive. Fingers on the tool are closed around the upper flange of the outer filter by sliding a collar over the outwardly biased fingers. A shaft extending through the tool is rotated which in turn extends a push plate against the control rod drive index tube causing the fingers to pull against the upper flange on the outer filter until the filter is freed from the control rod drive. The tool will hold the filter in place until affirmatively released for proper disposal. | 03-24-2011 |
20110219609 | UNDER VESSEL LOCAL POWER RANGE MONITOR EXCHANGE TOOL - A tool for use in servicing an LPRM assembly of a nuclear reactor vessel includes a structural member having a first bore that is structured to receive an LPRM device associated with the LPRM assembly, a headpiece provided at a first end of the structural member, and a nut engaging assembly slideably mounted on the structural member. The headpiece has a plurality of projections structured to mate with a plurality of bores provided in a seal of the LPRM assembly to enable the seal to be removed, and the nut engaging assembly has a housing that defines a second bore and that has first and second nut engaging portions. The nut engaging assembly is free to slide along the structural member and over the headpiece to a position wherein the engaging portions extend beyond the headpiece so that they may be used to remove the assembly nut. | 09-15-2011 |
20110274231 | DUAL DRIVE WINCH AND NUCLEAR REACTOR VESSEL MAINTENANCE APPARATUS EMPLOYING SAME - A dual drive winch having a drive assembly having a first shaft that is selectively movable between a first engaged position and a first disengaged position, and a second shaft that is selectively movable between a second engaged position and a second disengaged position. When the first shaft is in the first engaged position and the second shaft is in the second engaged position simultaneously, rotation of either the first shaft or the second shaft will, through a coupling mechanism, cause rotation of the other of the first shaft and the second shaft. | 11-10-2011 |
20120039428 | METHOD FOR ALIGNING AND HANDLING FUEL RODS WITHIN A NUCLEAR FUEL BUNDLE - A method of aligning a nuclear fuel bundle and handling selected fuel rods within the fuel bundle located in a spent fuel pool of a nuclear power plant. The bundle includes water rods, full-length and part-length fuel rods extending through a plurality of fuel spacers provided between top and bottom ends of the bundle, each spacer having a plurality of cells accommodating corresponding fuel and water rods. The method includes insertion of a rod grapple tool into a top end of a fuel bundle and down to a desired location within the bundle. A guide pin retrieval tool inserts into a side of the fuel bundle to remove a guide pin from a distal end of a gripper of the rod grapple tool, allowing the guide pin retrieval tool to grip a part-length fuel rod within the fuel bundle. | 02-16-2012 |
20120069947 | SYSTEM FOR EXCHANGING A COMPONENT OF A NUCLEAR REACTOR - A system for installing or removing a component of a nuclear reactor, such as a CRDM, includes a riser apparatus having a lift assembly structured to hold and support the component and a first drive assembly coupled to the lift assembly and structured to selectively move the lift assembly and the component along a length of the riser apparatus, and a transition cart movable along an under vessel area of the nuclear reactor and having a pivot mechanism, wherein the riser apparatus is selectively engageable with the pivot mechanism and the pivot mechanism is structured to selectively rotate the riser apparatus from a horizontal position to a vertical position. The riser apparatus may also include a second drive assembly structured to selectively move the riser apparatus relative to the transition cart in a direction parallel to a longitudinal axis of the riser apparatus. | 03-22-2012 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20090231492 | SMART SLATE - Techniques used for movie, video, or television production, including: generating production information about recorded data of one of: (1) audio sequence; (2) video sequence; and (3) audio and video sequences; tagging the generated production information with timing information; displaying the generated production information on a display; recording the tagged production information, wherein a clapstick of a slate is used to initiate the recording automatically; and associating the tagged production information with corresponding recorded data. | 09-17-2009 |
20100158473 | CAMERA EVENT LOGGER - A camera event logger device coupled to a motion picture camera, including: a data port configured to receive control signals to manage the logger device including a particular receive frequency; a radio-frequency receiver configured to receive time signal of the particular receive frequency to enable fine adjustment of a timecode; a timecode manager including a plurality of timecode readers and at least one timecode generator, a first timecode reader of the plurality of timecode readers configured to receive the time signal from the radio-frequency receiver and make the time signal available to the at least one timecode generator, wherein the at least one timecode generator is configured to generate the timecode by conditioning the time signal, the timecode manager configured to receive camera timecode from the motion picture camera, and to send back adjusted camera timecode adjusted in accordance with the conditioned timecode; a processor configured to receive camera status information from the motion picture camera and the conditioned timecode from the timecode manager, wherein the camera status information is tagged with the conditioned timecode and processed to generate metadata files; and a storage unit configured to store the metadata files. Keywords include logger, timecode, and slate. | 06-24-2010 |
20110249128 | CAMERA EVENT LOGGER - A camera event logger device coupled to a motion picture camera, including: a data port configured to receive control signals to manage the logger device including a particular receive frequency; a radio-frequency receiver configured to receive time signal of the particular receive frequency to enable fine adjustment of a timecode; a timecode manager including a plurality of timecode readers and at least one timecode generator, a first timecode reader of the plurality of timecode readers configured to receive the time signal from the radio-frequency receiver and make the time signal available to the at least one timecode generator, wherein the at least one timecode generator is configured to generate the timecode by conditioning the time signal, the timecode manager configured to receive camera timecode from the motion picture camera, and to send back adjusted camera timecode adjusted in accordance with the conditioned timecode; a processor configured to receive camera status information from the motion picture camera and the conditioned timecode from the timecode manager, wherein the camera status information is tagged with the conditioned timecode and processed to generate metadata files; and a storage unit configured to store the metadata files. Keywords include logger, timecode, and slate. | 10-13-2011 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20090081512 | Micromachined electrolyte sheet, fuel cell devices utilizing such, and micromachining method for making fuel cell devices - A sintered electrolyte sheet comprising: a body of no more than 45 μm thick and laser machined features with at least one edge surface having at least 10% ablation. A method of micromachining the electrolyte sheet includes the steps of: (i) supporting a sintered electrolyte sheet; (ii) micromachining said sheet with a laser, wherein said laser has a wavelength of less than 2 μm, fluence of less than 200 Joules/cm | 03-26-2009 |
20100126133 | Coated Particulate Filter And Method - A particulate filter is provided having a filter body with at least one porous wall, and a porous coating on the wall, the coating having a median pore diameter less than 20 microns and a coating pore size deviation of less than 3 times the coating median pore diameter, and the coating having an average thickness of less than 50 microns. A method of manufacturing a particulate filter is also disclosed which includes providing a filter body with at least one porous wall, and depositing particles onto the wall, the particles having a mean particle diameter of less than about 30 microns. | 05-27-2010 |
20100140330 | Conductive Coatings, Sealing Materials and Devices Utilizing Such Materials and Method of Making - According to one embodiment t of the present invention a method of manufacturing metal-to-ceramic seals comprising the steps of: (a) providing a ferric stainless steel part selected from the group consisting of high temperature stainless steels and high temperature superalloy; (b) providing a ceramic part; (c) providing a braze material in between the ferric stainless steel part and said ceramic part, the braze containing Ag and metal oxide wetting agents; and (d) heating said ferric stainless steel part, braze material, and ceramic part in an oxidizing atmosphere. | 06-10-2010 |
20100297534 | Seal Structures for Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Devices - Disclosed are seals and seal structures for use in electrochemical devices such as solid oxide fuel cell devices. Exemplary seal structures are configured such that at least a portion of the interface between the seal and electrolyte sheet deviates from planarity by extending either (i) upwardly and inwardly (ii) or downwardly and inwardly, toward the active portion of the electrolyte sheet surface where one or more device electrodes are deposited. By angling the seal portion of the electrolyte sheet, the sharpness of any resulting bends or deformations that may occur during use can be reduced, thus reducing the likelihood of any cracks forming in the typically high stress regions of the electrolyte sheet. Further, preferably at least a portion of the electrolyte sheet contacting the seal composition, the seal-electrolyte interface may deviate from planarity by at least 0.1 mm from the seal-electrolyte interface, where the deviation from planarity extends normal to the seal or inwardly toward the active surface region of the electrolyte sheet. Also disclosed are methods for manufacturing the inventive seal structures and electrochemical device assemblies comprising same. | 11-25-2010 |
20110033779 | Insulation for SOFC Systems - The invention is directed to insulating compositions for use in solid oxide fuel cells. Such compositions can be used to prevent seal damage and increase the electrical and ion efficiency. | 02-10-2011 |
20110041469 | Ceramic Radial Wall Flow Particulate Filter - The present disclosure relates to radial wall flow particulate filters comprised of ceramic material. The filters include a filter body that has a plurality of adjacent troughs circumferentially arranged around a longitudinal axis. | 02-24-2011 |
20120243853 | Micromachined Electrolyte Sheet, Fuel Cell Devices Utilizing Such, and Micromachining Method For Making Fuel Cell Devices - A sintered electrolyte sheet comprising: a body of no more than 45 μm thick and laser machined features with at least one edge surface having at least 10% ablation. A method of micromachining the electrolyte sheet includes the steps of: (i) supporting a sintered electrolyte sheet; (ii) micromachining said sheet with a laser, wherein said laser has a wavelength of less than 2 μm, fluence of less than 200 Joules/cm | 09-27-2012 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20140105545 | GRADED COMPOSITION FOR OPTICAL WAVEGUIDE FERRULE - A ferrule for optical waveguides includes an exterior and an interior of the ferrule. The interior of the ferrule has a bore defined therein that is configured to receive an optical waveguide. Material of the ferrule is such that the material changes from the interior to the exterior of the ferrule, where the thermal expansion coefficient of the material transitions from less than 30×10−7/° C. at the interior of the ferrule to greater than 70×10−7/° C. at the exterior of the ferrule. The thermal expansion coefficient of the material may change by way of discrete layers in the material between the interior and exterior of the ferrule. | 04-17-2014 |
20140105546 | FERRULE SYSTEM FOR FIBER OPTIC CONNECTORS - An optical waveguide ferrule includes a body and a low-expansion material on one end of the body. The body of the ferrule is formed from a first material and has a bore extending lengthwise therethrough. The bore is configured to receive an optical fiber along a central axis of the ferrule. The low-expansion is configured to be heated without damaging the body. | 04-17-2014 |
20140105547 | FERRULE WITH STRESS-ISOLATION FEATURE - A ferrule for optical waveguides includes an exterior of the ferrule, an interior of the ferrule, and a stress-isolation region between the interior of the ferrule and the exterior of the ferrule. The interior of the ferrule has a bore defined therein that is configured to receive an optical waveguide. The material of the stress-isolation region has an elastic modulus that is less than the elastic modulus of material of the interior and exterior of the ferrule, whereby the stress-isolation region limits communication of stresses therebetween. | 04-17-2014 |
20140150386 | SUBSTRATE WITH SINUOUS WEB AND PARTICULATE FILTER INCORPORATING THE SAME - Described herein is a substrate including a central longitudinal axis, a first support web, and a second support web. A sinuous web may be positioned between the first support web and the second support web. The sinuous web may include transverse web portions and bridging web portions, where the bridging web portions alternatively connect ends of adjacent transverse web portions. The sinuous web may be connected to the first support web by support legs extending between bridging web portions and a surface of the first support web. The sinuous web may be connected to the second support web by support legs extending between bridging web portions and a surface of the second support web. A support leg length to distance between transverse web portions ratio may be from about 1.0 to about 4.0. | 06-05-2014 |
20140150413 | TROUGH FILTER WITH INTEGRATED THERMOELECTRIC GENERATOR, VEHICLE INCLUDING TROUGH FILTER, AND METHOD OF TREATING EXHAUST GAS - A trough filter integrated with a thermoelectric generator includes annular filter modules having a support structure at its inner circumference, a filter element, and a support structure at its outer circumference. The filter elements may be configured to form troughs. An annular exhaust gas outlet channel or gas inlet channel may be formed between filter modules. The thermoelectric generator may be positioned in the exhaust gas outlet or inlet channel. A vehicle includes the trough filter integrated with a thermoelectric generator downstream from an internal combustion engine. A method of treating exhaust gas uses a trough filter with an integrated thermoelectric generator. | 06-05-2014 |
20150219860 | METHODS OF SECURING ONE OR MORE OPTICAL FIBERS TO A FERRULE - A method of securing an optical fiber to a ferrule involves heating the ferrule to cause thermal expansion. A ferrule bore of the ferrule increases in diameter as a result of the thermal expansion, and an optical fiber is inserted into the ferrule bore. The ferrule is then cooled so that the ferrule bore decreases in diameter and forms a mechanical interface with the optical fiber. Finally, the optical fiber is fused to the ferrule by irradiating the optical fiber and the ferrule with laser energy. | 08-06-2015 |