Gm Global Technolgoy Operations, Inc.

Other

Robert E Steele

Gregory David Miller

Kurt L Jennings

Joseph Howard Gladd

Robert G Plyler

Andrew Frank Rodondi

John A Yurtin

Victor Mendez

Timothy N Tackett

Kenneth P Cope

Mark Edwin Burns

Theodore Raymond Schmidt

Jeffrey S Steele

Christopher C Chandler

David M Felden

David Allen Robinson

Ronald P Albanese

Laura K Diliello

A screen enclosure lighting system includes a housing mounted to the framework of the enclosure. The housing has a base for supporting a light source. The housing also includes a back portion attached to the base and supporting a top cover above the base. A curved window interconnects the base, the back portion and the top covering for projecting light from the light source through of an angle of approximately 180&#xb0;. Exterior electrical wiring interconnects the light fixtures to an alternating current source.

Screen enclosure lighting system

A farm equipment hitch comprises a hitch frame, a lift linkage, a lift cradle, a ram and a plurality of locking mechanisms.

Farm equipment hitch

An electrical/electronic system architecture for a vehicle includes a plurality of regions partitioning the vehicle, with each region having a regional electrical/electronic controller (REEC) and at least one local network partitioning each region, with each local network having an electrical/electronic device. The electrical/electronic system architecture includes a global power distribution network that distributes power from a power source to the REEC within each region and a regional power distribution system that distributes the power from the REEC to the local network. The electrical/electronic system architecture also includes a global communication network that provides serial data communication between the REECs in the regions and a regional communication network communicating with the global communication network, such that the regional communication network provides data communication between the REEC and the local network within the region.

Electrical/electronic system architecture

A vehicle foot peg is disclosed for use with a motorcycle, ATV, or similar vehicle. The vehicle foot pegs are used in pairs and attached to the supplied foot peg brackets on the vehicle. The vehicle foot pegs are configured such that the outer ends of the pegs are angled rearward allowing the rider to rest the feet on the pegs in a natural and comfortable position with the toes slightly outward.

Vehicle foot peg

A fault tolerant automotive serial communication network includes a central communication node directly connected to a plurality of automotive electronic devices through corresponding interface circuitry including fault tolerant circuitry for detecting a serial communication fault in the corresponding device and for rapidly and substantially unintrusively removing the device from the network for the duration of the detected fault to minimize the impact of the fault on network operation.

Automotive fault tolerant serial communication

A fiber optic star and transmission assembly for transmitting optical signals from a plurality of input optic fibers to a plurality of output optic fibers. The assembly comprising a female connector body retaining and positioning a plurality of input and output optic fibers, a convergence connector body having a pair of central cavities with a semi-circular grooves, and wedge means having semi-circular recesses which is inserted in to the cavities to define passageways. The optic fibers are inserted through the passageways which guide the jacketed and stripped ends of the optic fibers into a linear slot at the forward end of the convergence connector. The female connector is slidably connected to the convergence connector. A ribbon retainer housing and a hollow cover means complete the star assembly.

Fiber optic star and transmission assembly

A fiber optic connector attaches a fiber optic harness having a plurality of jacketed optic fibers to an optical device that has a flat rectangular contact surface. The connector comprises an outer member that has a plural number of non-linearly arrayed, grooves that receive individual jacketed optic fibers of the harness. An inner member wedge in the rear end of the outer member guides and holds individual jacketed optic fibers in the respective grooves. Each groove converges toward and communicates with a slot at the front end of the connector. The slot receives stripped end portions of the optic fibers and holds them in an abutting linear array for engagement with the flat rectangular contact surface of the optical device. The connector may also include latches for retaining the optic fibers individually and springs for biasing each individual optic fiber into engagement with the flat contact surface of the optic device.

Fiber optic connector for connecting a fiber optic harness to an optical

Portable apparatus is provided for terminating a plastic fiber optic cable mounted in a terminal connector by melting the fiber ends to form a smooth, flat end surface on each. The apparatus comprises a housing having a pistol grip, a holder for positioning a connector with the fiber ends protruding therefrom, and a heater. A polished plate is mounted on a trigger-operated holder for movement between a biased position normally engaging the heater and a position engaging the fiber ends. A heater switch energizes the heater; a temperature detector senses when the heater has reached a predetermined high temperature and illuminates an L.E.D. The operator then actuates the trigger to move the plate into engagement with the fiber ends to melt them. When the plate has cooled to a predetermined low temperature, indicating that the fiber ends are solidified, the L.E.D. extinguishes and the trigger can be released. A spring then moves the plate back into contact with the heater and the connector can be removed.

Plastic fiber optic terminator

A fiber-optic connection system comprises three interfitting plastic parts. A two-piece cable terminal includes a cable receiving body and a terminal body. The terminal body has two spaced projections which mount the fiber ends and has a pair of converging cable guide walls. The cable receiving body has walls with gripper teeth complementary to the guide walls. When two cable strands are introduced and the bodies are interconnected to form the terminal connector, the walls trap the cables. The fiber ends are finished by hot plate melting. The terminal connector is inserted into a header having pockets to mount electro-optical devices. The pockets have integral spring rails to force the devices into contact with the projections containing the fiber ends upon assembly. A series of integral lock tangs and shoulders retain the component parts interconnected to prevent inadvertant disassembly.

Fiber optic connection system and method

A star coupler comprises a flexible optical ribbon curved so that input and output fibers attach to the same side of the coupler. A connector mates a linear array of fibers to each end of the ribbon. The side walls of the ribbon are rounded to match the contour of the outboard fibers of each array. The ribbon thickness is about 91% of the fiber diameter to minimize insertion loss.

Fiber optic star coupler

A pair of PTC elements, preferably of the barium titanate variety, are mounted in a container to sense liquid level, for example oil level in an engine crankcase. The elements have the same resistance, mass and switching point but different thermal loss coefficients which have one value in air and another in liquid. In one embodiment, the elements are both positioned at the set liquid level and are electrically energized at the same moment. When the elements are in liquid, one of them will heat to the switch point before the other and change to a much higher resistance. When the elements are in air, the other element reaches the switch point first. When the elements are connected in series across a power source, the switching causes the circuit to latch in that state even though the liquid level condition changes. The junction of the elements provides a convenient signal output indicating liquid level. In a second embodiment, one PTC element is at the set liquid level and the other is in air above that level. Again, the liquid level determines which PTC element wins the race when electrically energized.

Thermal liquid level detector

A lamp monitor for detecting the failure of headlamps and other lamps on an automotive vehicle includes a failure detection circuit coupled to the lamp circuit to produce an output whenever the lamp circuit is operating and a failure occurs. A latch circuit responsive to the detector output and powered from the vehicle battery latches into a failure state when a lamp failure is detected and maintains that state even though the lamp circuit or the vehicle ignition circuit is switched off. The latch output triggers an indicator circuit to reveal an indication or warning when the vehicle ignition switch is turned on even though the lamp circuit is turned off and the ignition switch has been opened subsequent to the detected failure. Upon correction of the failure, the detector resets the latch circuit when the lamp circuit is actuated to disable the display.

Lamp monitor with latch circuit

An optical fiber having a square or rectangular cross section provides one mode of optical signal transmission comprising reflection between one pair of parallel sides and a second mode between a second pair of parallel sides perpendicular to the first pair so that two separate channels are obtained in a single optical fiber. A transmitter and a receiver are coupled to each end of the optical fiber so that full time two-way communication can occur without substantial interference.

Duplex communication on a single optical fiber

A short duration timer for use in an electronic circuit such as a diesel engine glow plug control includes a first PTC resistor energized by an electric power source and stabilized in the exponential portion of its resistance-temperature curve. A second PTC resistor in thermal contact with the first is energized at time zero from the electric power source and substantially immediately stabilizes at a temperature higher than that of the first, resulting in heat flow from the second PTC resistor to the first, and therefore an increase in the resistance of the first, at a rate which is substantially independent of variations in ambient temperature and supply voltage of the electric power source. A signal ending the time duration is generated when the resistance of the first PTC resistor has changed by a predetermined percentage. In a preferred embodiment, a third PTC resistor having a resistance-temperature characteristic substantially identical with that of the first is at least partially thermally isolated therefrom and connected in electrical series therewith to stabilize similarly. In this embodiment the end of the time duration is signalled when the resistance ratio of the first and third PTC resistors equals a predetermined value. The resulting time duration is substantially independent of variations in ambient temperature and supply voltage.

Short duration PTC resistor timer

An indicating lamp and a PTC thermistor are connected in series across an electric power source by an ignition switch which simultaneously actuates apparatus to intermittently energize a diesel engine glow plug. Further apparatus is effective to make and break a low resistance shunt path around the indicating lamp in response to deenergization and energization of the glow plug. The indicating lamp and PTC thermistor both are electrically energized to self heat and both have electrical resistances increasing sufficiently with temperature to drop substantially most of the supply voltage when hot and prevent energization of the cold other. The indicating lamp heats much faster than the PTC thermistor and so energizes during the initial energization of the glow plug to signal the vehicle operator to not attempt starting of the engine. However, upon the first making of the low resistance shunt path, the PTC thermistor increases its resistance to drop substantially most of the supply voltage and maintains this condition through further cycling to prevent further energization of the indicating lamp.

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Cortland, OH, United States of America

Robert E Steele