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:
Feb. 02, 2010
Filed:
Jun. 08, 2005
Alan L. Browne, Grosse Pointe, MI (US);
John A. Cafeo, Farmington, MI (US);
Nancy L. Johnson, Northville, MI (US);
Alan L. Browne, Grosse Pointe, MI (US);
John A. Cafeo, Farmington, MI (US);
Nancy L. Johnson, Northville, MI (US);
GM Global Technology Operations, Inc., Detroit, MI (US);
Abstract
A method comprising disposing an active device comprising a shape memory polymer upon a first surface; wherein the active device is operative to change at least one physical attribute in response to a thermal activation signal; activating the active device with a thermal activation signal to substantially decrease its modulus, contacting and compressing the active device with a second surface, and cooling the device to set a compressed geometry. In another embodiment, a method comprising disposing an active device comprising a shape memory polymer in a gap between two opposing surfaces; wherein the active device is operative to exhibit a memorized shape in response to a thermal activation signal; activating the active device with a thermal activation signal to increase a dimension of the active device; filling the gap between the opposing surfaces, and cooling the device to set a new gap filling dimension.