Covidien LP

Hewlett-packard Company

Agilent Technologies, Inc.

Dean C Buck

Mark A Johnston

Edward L Brannan

Steven G Henry

Jerry L Bybee

James A Gilbert

David E Smith

Ronald K Kerschner

Michael J Steinle

Ronald Shane Fazzio

Greg A Degi

Tom E McMunigal

Aaron Mattmiller

Tracy Eliasson

David J Rustici

Richard E Warren

Gary E MacIndoe

Anthony C Turner

An electrosurgical generator includes a radio frequency output stage configured to output at least one radio frequency waveform and a sensor for sensing current. The sensor includes a current sensor coil having: an outer coil, an inner coil coupled to and disposed within the outer coil, and at least one shielding member disposed over the outer coil. Each of the at least one shielding member and the outer coil define an opening therethrough. The generator also includes at least one active lead coupled to the radio frequency output stage and passing through the current sensor coil. The current sensor coil is configured to output a signal indicative of a current within the at least one active lead.

Electrosurgical generators and sensors

The disclosed apparatus relates to an apparatus for sensing current that includes a Rogowski coil assembly and a circuit board. The Rogowski coil assembly has a housing, a slot in the housing configured to receive a conductor through the slot, a Rogowski coil formed within the housing, and a connector. The circuit board has a substantially planar substrate, which has a slot through the substrate configured to receive the Rogowski coil assembly. A complementary connector of the circuit board is configured to receive the connector of the Rogowski coil assembly. The Rogowski coil assembly is positioned through the slot of the substrate, and the complementary connector of the circuit board couples with the connector of the Rogowski coil assembly. In various embodiments, the conductor can be a conductive trace on the substrate of the circuit board, and the Rogowski coil is configured to detect a current through the conductive trace.

Apparatus having a Rogowski coil assembly

A measurement circuit measures a waveform of electrical energy generated by a generator. The measurement circuit includes a sensor configured to sense a waveform having a first range of amplitudes, first and second circuits configured to filter the sensed waveform. Each circuit includes an attenuator configured to amplify an amplitude of the waveform by multiplying the waveform by an attenuation factor, an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) configured to digitally sample the amplified waveform, which has a second range of amplitudes, to obtain digital samples, a gain element configured to multiply the digital samples by a gain factor, and a factor adjustor configured to adjust the attenuation factor and the gain factor. The measurement circuit further includes a controller configured to calculate voltage and current of the waveform based on the digital samples and to control the generator based on the calculated voltage and current. The first range includes and is larger than the second range.

Systems and methods for improving the range of sensor systems

An electrosurgical generator includes a radio frequency output stage, a sensor for sensing current, and an active lead. The radio frequency output stage is configured to output at least one radio frequency waveform. The sensor includes a current sensor coil including an outer coil including an opening therethrough and an inner coil coupled to and disposed within the outer coil. The active lead is coupled to the radio frequency output stage and passes through the current sensor coil opening. The current sensor coil is configured to output a first signal indicative of a current within the active lead.

A sensor for sensing current includes a current sensor coil and at least one active lead and at least one return lead. The current sensor coil includes an outer coil and an inner coil coupled to and disposed within the outer coil. The at least one active lead and the at least one return lead pass through the current sensor coil opening. The current sensor coil is configured to output a differential signal indicative of a current within the at least one active lead and the at least one return lead.

In accordance with one aspect of the present disclosure, a current sensor configured to measure an AC current of a first conductor includes an outer coil having a first portion and a second portion. Each of the first and second portions are disposed about the first conductor passing through a center of the outer coil. The current sensor further includes an inner conductor disposed within the first and second portions of the outer coil and connected to each of the first and second portions of the outer coil.

System and method for voltage and current sensing

The systems and methods of the present disclosure use measurement circuitry that includes first and second circuits, a selecting circuit, a determination circuit, and a setting circuit. Each of the first and second circuits measures voltage or current sensed by a sensor. The selecting circuit selects the first circuit to provide the measured voltage or current values. The determination circuit determines whether the measured voltage or current values reach a predetermined level. The setting circuit changes a setting of the second circuit from a first setting to a second setting if the measured voltage or current values reach the predetermined level. The selecting circuit selects the second circuit to provide the measured voltage or current values when a first predetermined time elapses after changing the setting of the second circuit. The selecting circuit also changes a setting of the first circuit from the first setting to the second setting after selecting the second circuit.

An x-ray inspection system. The x-ray inspection system includes an x-ray source, an on-axis x-ray sensor, at least one off-axis x-ray sensor, a fixture, and an accumulation circuit. The on-axis x-ray sensor is configured to capture on-axis images of radiation from the x-ray source. The x-ray source is displaced from the on-axis x-ray sensor, and the x-ray source and the on-axis x-ray sensor are positioned on an axis conceptually drawn between the x-ray source and the on-axis x-ray sensor. At least one off-axis x-ray sensor is configured to capture off-axis images of radiation from the x-ray source, wherein each off-axis x-ray sensor is positioned off the axis. The fixture is configured to maintain an article between the x-ray source and the on-axis and off-axis x-ray sensors, and the accumulation circuit is configured to receive and accumulate images captured by the on-axis and off-axis x-ray sensors.

X-ray inspection system having on-axis and off-axis sensors

The present invention provides an apparatus and method for viewing a depiction of an object (for example a solder joint) in a multi-dimensional manner, morphing the object's depiction using a graphical user interface to upper and lower acceptable tolerance limits and storing the tolerance limits for use in a test/inspection apparatus. The invention relates to the translation of human visual inspection-analysis of an object into physical quantifiable parameters used in an inspection device via a graphical user interface.

Method and apparatus for extracting measurement information and setting specifications using three dimensional visualization

A system and method for capturing and communicating caller information for a digital communication device are disclosed. In a preferred embodiment, a caller ID device captures caller information from inbound and/or outbound calls. Thereafter, the caller ID device can communicate captured caller information to a digital communication device, such as a digital sender or fax machine, wherein the digital communication device can then communicate data to a destination indicated by the caller information. In a preferred embodiment, the caller ID device can also communicate control signals to the digital communication device to control how the device responds upon receiving caller information from the caller ID device. For example, in a preferred embodiment, the caller ID device can communicate a control signal to the digital communication device that activates the device to communicate data to a destination indicated by the communicated caller information. As another example, in a preferred embodiment, the caller ID device can communicate a control signal to the digital communication device that causes the device to program the caller information into the digital communication device's memory for future use. Thus, in a preferred embodiment, a user may select caller information that has been captured by the caller ID device to be communicated to the digital communication device, and the user may easily cause such caller information to be programmed in the digital communication device and/or activate the digital communication device to send data to the destination indicated by such caller information.

Method and system for programming a digital sender via caller ID

A power supply circuit limits the voltage on a filter capacitor driven by rectified half-cycles of an input AC waveform. A FET switch in series with the current charging the filter capacitor is opened as soon as the charge on the filter capacitor is adequate. A voltage triggered latch circuit is responsive to the rectified AC input applied through a decoupling diode to the filter capacitor, and supplies a control signal to the FET switch. A further sensing circuit can monitor the current charging the filter capacitor, and can trigger the latch to open the FET switch as needed to limit initial in-rush current during the initial application of AC power. The decoupling diode decouples the rectified peaks provided by the rectifiers from the voltage on the filter capacitor. This allows the filter capacitor to charge whenever the rectified input has an instantaneous voltage greater than the capacitor's (and the FET switch is closed), but also allows the output waveform from the rectifier to fall to zero during the zero crossings of the input waveform. That in turn resets the latch, and the process of gating the charge to be accepted by the filter capacitor is then repeated during the next half-cycle of the input AC waveform.

Method and apparatus for power supply with gated charge filter

A scanning apparatus having a linear photosensor, an imaging assembly, and a scanning displacement assembly adapted for producing relatively constant rate linear displacement between an imaged object and the imaging assembly to cause scan line portions of the object to be sequentially imaged on the linear photosensor device and an image registration holding assembly associated with the scanning displacement device to cause an image from each different scan line portion on the object to be temporarily held in registration with the linear photosensor.

Color optical scanner with image registration holding assembly

A color optical scanner for generating data representative of a color image of an object which is scanned including: a linear sensor array located on an image plane for generating a data signal indicative of the intensity of light impinged thereon and having sensor sampling intervals of a predetermined length; an imaging assembly for imaging a moving scan area on the object containing a plurality of scan lines on an image plane and for defining an imaging light path extending from the scan area on the object to the image plane; a color wheel positioned along the imaging light path and having an axis of rotation extending transversely of the light path and having a plurality of faces adapted to be sequentially rotated into intersecting relationship with the light path; a plurality of the faces including a plurality of filter portions of different spectral range transmissibility which are sequentially rotated into intersecting relationship with the light path during different color imaging intervals having durations equal to the sensor sampling interval.

Color optical scanner with rotating color filter assembly

An image processor for converting an input matrix of input pixels into an output matrix of output pixels, where the number of input pixels differs from the number of output pixels. From the input matrix, the image processor generates an intermediate resolution matrix. The number of pixels in a particular dimension of the intermediate resolution matrix is an integer multiple of the desired number of output pixels in the same dimension. This enables the image processor to select from the intermediate resolution matrix output pixels which are evenly space from one another in the same dimension.

Growing community of inventors

Loveland, CO, United States of America

Dean C Buck