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7614228 System and method of manufacturing actuator  
A system of manufacturing an actuator for driving a to-be-driven object by extension/contraction of a shape memory alloy, the system comprising: a mounting unit configured to mount the shape memory...
7608974 Diamond-like carbon devices and methods for the use and manufacture thereof  
Diamond-like carbon based devices and methods of making and using the same which have improved electron emission and increased reliability. The device can include an anode with a layer of...
7572973 Method of making devices for solid state thermal transfer and power generation  
A method of making a solid state thermal transfer device includes first and second electrically conductive substrates that are positioned opposite from one another. The solid state thermal transfer...
7569763 Solid state energy converter  
A solid-state energy converter with a semiconductor or semiconductor-metal implementation is provided for conversion of thermal energy to electric energy, or electric energy to refrigeration. In...
7567011 MEMS linear thermoelectric motor apparatus  
A thermoelectric actuator moves in a first direction and an opposite direction upon the application and removal of a current. An actuator means is driven by the thermoelectric actuator and includes...
7557487 Methods and apparatus for thermal isolation for thermoelectric devices  
Methods and apparatus for improved thermal isolation for thermoelectric devices are disclosed. In one embodiment, a thermoelectric device includes a first substrate having a first conductive pad, a...
7538470 Monolithic nanoscale actuation  
An apparatus including an actuator configured for controllable deflection, and also including a piezoresistive element integral to the actuator and having first and second piezoresistive portions...
7508110 Surface plasmon coupled nonequilibrium thermoelectric devices  
A surface-plasmon-coupled thermoelectric apparatus includes a first surface-plasmon substrate and a thermoelectric substrate electrically coupled to a plurality of electrodes. The substrates are...
7498507 Device for solid state thermal transfer and power generation  
A solid state thermal transfer device includes first and second electrically conductive substrates that are positioned opposite from one another. The solid state thermal transfer device also...
7479727 Apparatus and method for pyroelectric and piezoelectric power generation and thermoelectric heat transfer  
A roof system for a building is adapted to harness pyroelectric and piezoelectric effects to generate electric power. A roof system is provided wherein roof tiles, or other covering structure, are...
7456698 Mechanical self-reciprocating oscillator and mechanism and a method for establishing and maintaining regular back and forth movement of a micromachined device without the aid of any electronic components  
A mechanical self-reciprocating oscillator and mechanism and method for establishing and maintaining regular back and forth movement of a micromachined device without the aid of any electronic...
7456543 Closely spaced electrodes with a uniform gap  
An improved design for maintaining separation between electrodes in tunneling, diode, thermionic, and other devices is disclosed. At least one electrode is made from flexible material. A magnetic...
7451596 Multiple degree of freedom micro electro-mechanical system positioner and actuator  
A micro electro-mechanical system (MEMS) positioner, including an actuator and method for making the same, includes a stage formed within a first layer of semiconductor material, along with a...
7439651 Resonator  
A resonator which is capable of modulating frequencies has a main body having a vibrating body and an elastic supporting body supporting the vibrating body and a frequency modulating unit having a...
7400050 Quantum well thermoelectric power source  
A quantum well thermoelectric module providing very high conversion of heat energy in to electrical energy. In prefered embodiments the module provides electric power for monitoring, measuring or...
7339454 Tensile-stressed microelectromechanical apparatus and microelectromechanical relay formed therefrom  
A microelectromechanical (MEM) apparatus is disclosed which includes a shuttle suspended above a substrate by two or more sets of tensile-stressed beams which are operatively connected to the...
7256518 Shape memory alloy actuators  
Linear actuators comprised of a plurality of geometric links connected together in displacement multiplied fashion by a plurality of SMA wires. The links may have a trigon or chevron configuration....
7235912 Diamond-like carbon thermoelectric conversion devices and methods for the use and manufacture thereof  
Diamond-like carbon based thermoelectric conversion devices and methods of making and using the same which have improved conversion efficiencies and increased reliability. The device can include a...
7188473 Shape memory alloy actuator system using segmented binary control  
An architecture shape memory alloy (SMA) actuators is presented called Segmented Binary Control (SBC). Instead of controlling the phase transition of the entire SMA wire as a single plant, we...
7169006 Thermionic vacuum diode device with adjustable electrodes  
In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, a Gap Diode is disclosed in which a tubular actuating element serves as both a housing for a pair of electrodes ( 92 ) and as a means for...
7168249 Microelectrical mechanical structure (MEMS) optical modulator and optical display system  
A microelectrical mechanical out-of-plane thermal buckle-beam actuator is capable of providing transverse-plane movement of shutters. The actuator includes a pair of structural anchors secured to a...
7159397 Tensile-stressed microelectromechanical apparatus and tiltable micromirrors formed therefrom  
A microelectromechanical (MEM) apparatus is disclosed which includes a pair of tensile-stressed actuators suspending a platform above a substrate to tilt the platform relative to the substrate. A...
7129616 Thermionic electric converter  
A thermionic electric converter includes a cathode output enhancing laser ( 374 ) operable to direct a laser beam ( 376 ) to strike an emissive surface of a cathode emitter ( 321 ), to increase the...
7128093 MEMS fluid ejection device configured for detecting a fault condition  
A microelectromechanical fluid ejection device configured for detecting a fault condition is provided. The device comprises a mechanical actuator, drive circuitry and a switch device. The actuator...
7109408 Solid state energy converter  
A solid-state energy converter with a semiconductor or semiconductor-metal implementation is provided for conversion of thermal energy to electric energy, or electric energy to refrigeration. In...
7093817 Flow control assemblies having integrally formed shape memory alloy actuators  
In one embodiment of the present invention, a shape memory alloy (“SMA”)-actuated flow controller comprises a number of grille members, each having a long axis and being slideable relative to...
7081699 Thermoacoustic piezoelectric generator  
A thermoacoustic generator includes a housing with a thermoacoustic core supported in the housing. The core is operable to introduce acoustical power into the housing to thereby oscillate the...
7038355 Tunable microresonator on an insulating beam deformable by the difference in thermal expansion coefficients  
A device comprising a resonator formed of a piezoelectric layer sandwiched between two metal electrodes, the resonator being laid on a suspended beam, the device comprising means for deforming said...
7028474 Micro-electromechanical actuator with control logic circuitry  
A micro-electromechanical actuator includes a substrate. An elongate actuator arm has a fixed end portion that is fast with the substrate and a free end portion that is spaced from the substrate....
7019434 Deformable mirror method and apparatus including bimorph flexures and integrated drive  
An apparatus comprising a substrate; and a platform elevated above the substrate and supported by curved flexures. The curvature of said flexures results substantially from variations in intrinsic...
6983595 Fluid ejection device  
A device is formed from an integrated circuit which comprises a substrate; drive circuitry arranged on the substrate; and a plurality of micro-electromechanical devices positioned on the substrate....
6979933 Apparatus and method for charging and discharging a capacitor  
An apparatus for electrically stimulating a smart material includes a controllable power source for charging the smart material and/or switching circuitry for discharging the smart material. The...
6975060 Meso-to-micro-scaleable device and methods for conversion of thermal energy to electrical energy  
The present invention provides systems and methods for conversion of thermal energy to electrical energy. The devices and methods according to the invention allow for efficient conversion of...
6969944 High voltage generator, especially for using as a noise frequency generator  
A very compact interference frequency generator ( 11 ) which emits with an extremely wide band width and extremely powerfully is afforded by the combination of a mechanical pulse generator ( 25 )...
6946596 Tunneling-effect energy converters  
Tunneling-effect converters of thermal energy to electricity with an emitter and a collector separated from each other by a distance that is comparable to atomic dimensions and where tunneling...
6914329 Micro cooling and power supply structure  
A micro cooling and power supply structure is proposed, which includes an emitter end chip having an emitting surface, a collector end chip having a collecting surface that corresponds to the...
6906846 Micro-electro-mechanical system device and method of making same  
A MEMS device and a method for making a MEMS device are described. The MEMS device includes a support member, an optical device, and a flexible member. In one aspect, the flexible member is formed...
6906449 Hybrid thermionic energy converter and method  
The present invention embodies a solid state thermionic energy converter and is directed to a method and apparatus for conversion of thermal energy to electrical energy, and electrical energy to...
6888059 Photothermal power generation device and method  
A photothermal power generation device designed to heat an emitter receives a supply of fuel and air, burns the fuel to produce combustion gas, and converts light emitted from the emitter into...
6876123 Thermotunnel converter with spacers between the electrodes  
A thermotunneling converter is disclosed comprising a pair of electrodes having inner surfaces substantially facing one another, and a spacer or plurality of spacers positioned between the two...
6875983 Electron microscope and means to set observation conditions  
An object of the present invention is to provide an electron microscope that is capable of improving work efficiency when restarting sample observation. A control unit for controlling...
6851260 Shape memory alloy actuator  
A shape memory alloy actuator comprising a body ( 1 ) connected through an arm ( 5 ) with an activating member ( 15 ), the body ( 1 ) being arranged for rotation around a pivot ( 2 ) and connected...
6831221 System and method for power generation  
A method for powering a vehicle comprises, in one embodiment, receiving infrared radiation emitted as heat from a roadway surface, and converting energy of the infrared radiation to a form of...
6803697 Heat injected magnetically balanced engine  
Heat energy is converted into mechanical energy through the mobilization of electrical charges within a thermoelectric material. A plurality of plugs of thermoelectric material are mounted on a...
6802587 Micro electro-mechanical device having an integrated movement sensor  
A micro electromechanical device includes a support structure and an arm moveable relative to the support structure under the influence of a heat inducing electrical current flowing through a part...
6759787 Microelectromechanical apparatus for elevating and tilting a platform  
A microelectromechanical (MEM) apparatus is disclosed which has a platform that can be elevated above a substrate and tilted at an arbitrary angle using a plurality of flexible members which...
6753582 Buckling beam bi-stable microelectromechanical switch using electro-thermal actuation  
A microelectromechanical system (MEMS) that includes a first electro-thermal actuator, a second electro-thermal actuator and a beam having a first side and a second side. The first electro-thermal...
6739132 Thermal micro-actuator based on selective electrical excitation  
A thermal microactuator is provided that can be deflected in multiple positions. The actuator has a hot arm and a cold arm coupled together at their distal ends suspended above a reference plane of...
6735004 Rotatable counterbalanced actuator  
A counterbalanced actuator for steering a beam of light is disclosed. The actuator includes a rotatable actuator member coupled to a substrate, a movable portion of an actuator drive mechanism...
6734597 Thermomechanical in-plane microactuator  
A microactuator providing an output force and displacement in response to an increase in thermal energy is displosed. The microactuator may have a substantially straight expansion member with a...