| QUANTUM DESIGN, INC. Patent applications |
| Patent application number | Title | Published |
|---|
| 20120117984 | VALVE ASSEMBLY ADAPTED FOR DYNAMIC CONTROL OF GAS-FLOW ABOUT A CRYOGENIC REGION - A valve assembly is provided for dynamically controlling the inlet and exhaust of refrigeration gas between a cryocooler coldhead and a remote compressor. The valve assembly is optimized to minimize friction, power consumption, and wear while providing complete flexibility as to the timing, duration, and amplitude of its inlet and exhaust actions. The valve assembly comprises two separate open-close sections for the inlet and exhaust functions. These are mounted along a single rod, the position of which is controlled by a linear motor. The two sections are configured so that only one is open at each the rod's travel and neither is open at the midpoint of travel. A microprocessor and appropriate drive circuits precisely control the position of the rod as a function of time, and of displacer position when used with a Gifford-McMahon (G-M) cooler. | 05-17-2012 |
| 20120011859 | GAS-FLOW CRYOSTAT FOR DYNAMIC TEMPERATURE REGULATION USING A FLUID LEVEL SENSOR - A gas-flow cryostat adapted for dynamic temperature regulation using a fluid level sensor; the cryostat further including one or more heaters coupled to various components of the cryostat. As fluid evaporates from a liquid coolant evaporation reservoir within the cryostat, the fluid level sensor and a feedback control unit are adapted to monitor and dynamically control the level of evaporating coolant by regulating the heaters. Accordingly, the cryostat is adapted to dynamically control temperature about a specimen region within the cryostat. The cryostat can be used in various applications, including analytical laboratory equipment for measuring various physical properties of samples. Temperature sensors are further incorporated for added control and optimization of the cryostat. | 01-19-2012 |
| 20110219785 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CONTROLLING TEMPERATURE IN A CRYOCOOLED CRYOSTAT USING STATIC AND MOVING GAS - A cryostat for providing temperature regulation, one purpose being measuring physical properties of materials, the cryostat employing a superconducting magnet assembly for generating variable magnetic field in the sample space and a cryogenic cooler for cooling the sample space. The cryogenic cooler chamber configuration provides for efficient heat exchange between different stages of the cryogenic cooler without the need for physical heat links. This construction enables selective delivery of cooling power from the cryogenic cooler to the desired areas within the cryostat without using flexible physical thermal links. A counter flow exchanger and ambient temperature valves facilitate efficient use of the cryogenic cooler stages. The removal of large heat load generated by the superconducting magnet while operating in the sweeping mode is achieved, in part, by employing a solid plate thermal coupling element between the cryogenic cooler chamber and the magnet assembly. | 09-15-2011 |
| 20100001821 | SUPERCONDUCTING QUICK SWITCH - A magnet system for generating a magnetic field may include a superconducting magnet, a switch, and a heater element thermally coupled to the switch. The superconducting magnet is structured to generate magnetic fields, and the switch includes a non-inductive superconducting current carrying path connected in parallel to the superconducting magnet. In general, the switch is structured to only carry a level of current that is a portion of the current required to obtain a full field by the superconducting magnet. | 01-07-2010 |
| 20090243723 | DIFFERENTIAL AND SYMMETRICAL CURRENT SOURCE - A controlled, symmetrical, stable current source that can power floating resistive loads, eliminates the need to connect the load directly to either a power supply or ground and protects the load against overpower should either or both sides of the load be shorted to ground. The current source includes two operational amplifiers for providing a current through the load that is proportional to an input voltage applied across the respective non-inverting inputs of the two operational amplifiers; two current sensing resistors for providing voltage drops that are proportional to the current through the load; and four summing resistors connected to the sensing resistors for providing to the inverting inputs of the operational amplifiers voltages that offset the sum of the voltage drops provided by the sensing resistors so that the current through the load is controlled by only the input voltage. | 10-01-2009 |
