The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Mar. 02, 2021
Filed:
Apr. 29, 2019
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc., Plano, TX (US);
Ryohei Tsuruta, Ann Arbor, MI (US);
Taewoo Nam, Ann Arbor, MI (US);
Eric Smith, Northville, MI (US);
Umesh N. Gandhi, Farmington Hills, MI (US);
Deborah Bumgardner, Garden City, MI (US);
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc., Plano, TX (US);
Abstract
A body can be configured to be selectively morphable. The body can be at least partially hollow. The body can include a surface. A shape memory material member, such as a shape memory alloy wire, can extend along the surface. The shape memory material member can include a first region, a second region, and a central region located between the first region and the second region. The first and second regions of the shape memory material member can be constrained on the surface, such as by stitches. The central region of the shape memory material member can be unconstrained on the surface. When activated, the shape memory material member can contact, causing the body to bend in the central region due being constrained in the first and second regions. Thus, the body can be morphed into an activated configuration.