Eugene H Trinh

47778237, Oct 18, 1988

Aug 20, 1987

7/087359

Martin B. Barmatz - Glendale CA
Mark S. Gaspar - Glendale CA
Eugene H. Trinh - Los Angeles CA

The United States of America as represented by the Administrator of the
National Aeronautics and Space Administration - Washington DC

G10K 1500

73505

A system is described for use with acoustic levitators, which can prevent rotation of a levitated object or control its orientation and/or rotation. The acoustic field is made nonsymmetrical about the axis of the levitator, to produce an orienting torque that resists sample rotation. In one system, a perturbating reflector is located on one side of the axis of the levitator, at a location near the levitated object. In another system, the main reflector surface towards which incoming acoustic waves are directed is nonsymmetrically curved about the axis of the levitator. The levitated object can be reoriented or rotated in a controlled manner by repositioning the reflector producing the nonsymmetry.

43911293, Jul 5, 1983

Mar 23, 1981

6/246774

Eugene Trinh - Los Angeles CA
Taylor G. Wang - Glendale CA

The United States of America as represented by the Administrator of the
National Aeronautics and Space Administration, - Washington DC

G01N 1302

73 644

An apparatus and method are described for measuring physical characteristics of a fluid, by placing a drop (16) of the fluid in a bath (14) of a second fluid and passing acoustic waves through the bath. The applied frequency of the acoustic waves is varied, to determine the precise value of a frequency at which the drop undergoes resonant oscillations. The resonant frequency indicates the interfacial tension of the drop (16) in the bath (14), and the interfacial tension can indicate physical properties of the fluid in the drop.

43937080, Jul 19, 1983

Oct 26, 1981

6/314929

Martin B. Barmatz - Glendale CA
Eugene H. Trinh - Los Angeles CA
Taylor G. Wang - Glendale CA
Daniel D. Elleman - San Marino CA
Nathan Jacobi - Pasadena CA

The United States of America as represented by the Administrator of the
National Aeronautics and Space Administration - Washington DC

H02N 1100

73505

A system is described for acoustically moving an object within a chamber, by applying wavelengths of different modes to the chamber to move the object between pressure wells formed by the modes. In one system, the object (96, FIG. 7) is placed in a first end portion of the chamber while a resonant mode is applied along the length of the chamber that produces a pressure well (86) at that location. The frequency is then switched to a second mode that produces a pressure well (100) at the center of the chamber, to draw the object thereto. When the object reaches the second pressure well and is still travelling towards the second end of the chamber, the acoustic frequency is again shifted to a third mode (which may equal the first mode) that has a pressure well (106) in the second end portion of the chamber, to draw the object thereto. A heat source (108) may be located near the second end of the chamber to heat the sample, and after the sample is heated it can be cooled by moving it in a corresponding manner back to the first end portion of the chamber. The transducers (88, 98, 110) for levitating and moving the object may be all located at the cool first end of the chamber.

48587176, Aug 22, 1989

Mar 23, 1988

7/172100

Eugene H. Trinh - Los Angeles CA
Judith L. Robey - Arlington VA

The United States of America as represented by the Administrator of the
National Aeronautics and Space Administration - Washington DC

G10K 1100

181 05

A small and simple system is provided for cooling or heating a small component by flowing air or other fluid over it, which does not require any macroscopic moving parts. The system includes a transducer and reflector that are spaced apart with the component between them, and with the transducer being operated at a frequency resonant to the spacing between it and the reflector. The resulting standing wave pattern produces acoustic streaming which results in the circulating of air or other fluid in the environment across the component. The system is especially useful in the reduced gravity environment of outer space because of the absence of any buoyancy-induced convection there.

43989250, Aug 16, 1983

Jan 21, 1982

6/341406

Eugene H. Trinh - Los Angeles CA
Daniel D. Elleman - San Marino CA
Taylor G. Wang - Glendale CA

The United States of America as represented by the Administrator of the
National Aeronautics and Space Administration - Washington DC

B01D 1900

55 15

A method is described for removing bubbles (14) from a liquid bath (12), such as a bath of molten glass to be used for optical elements. Larger bubbles are first removed by applying acoustic energy resonant to a bath dimension (H) to drive the larger bubbles toward a pressure well (30) where the bubbles can coalesce and then be more easily removed. Thereafter, submillimeter bubbles (50) are removed by applying acoustic energy of frequencies resonant to the small bubbles to oscillate them and thereby stir liquid immediately about the bubbles to facilitate their breakup and absorption into the liquid (16).