Fogal patent, repost 0/11
Bjoern Lundberg
Well, after a couple of weeks with a VERY slow news-server, it seems
as though it's been fixed.
Last time I tried, I only managed to post 4 of the 11 pages, but I mailed the
complete set to all who asked for it by mail.
So, this is a new attempt to send the document.
If it fails, I'm sorry for the waste of bandwidth, if it succeeds, I hope it
was worth it!
Regards
Björn
Marshall Jose
remarkable. Is the patent the focus of a discussion that I missed?
I don't get alt.sci.physics.new-theories, so I don't know if that's
where the discussion is.
The patent looks too mundane to be fake. I'm really quite dismayed
that anyone could be granted a patent for such a (patently) unoriginal
idea. Could someone fill me in on the particular details on this?
Thanks,
--
Marshall Jose, WA3VPZ
jos...@aplmail.jhuapl.edu
Bjoern Lundberg
|>
|>I obtained all pages of the patent and read them; they are at least
|>remarkable. Is the patent the focus of a discussion that I missed?
|>I don't get alt.sci.physics.new-theories, so I don't know if that's
|>where the discussion is.
|>
|>The patent looks too mundane to be fake. I'm really quite dismayed
|>that anyone could be granted a patent for such a (patently) unoriginal
|>idea. Could someone fill me in on the particular details on this?
|>
There has only been some short discussions on this topic on alt.sci.physics.new-theories
probably because it's too much electronics. However, one reply I got when I tried to
post this the last time was that it's very important to use SMD components and solder
the capacitor (Ta SMD type recommended) as close as physically possible to the transistor
base and emitter.
I tried the circuit with ordinary 'legged' components, but didn't get any results
(surprise, surprise!), but I haven't had any time yet to test the SMD version.
I also agree with you that it seems remarkable that you can get a patent on a design
like this (doesn't it look exactly like a normal signal bypass capacitor?).
But I wonder if the patent office really demands that the invention works!? (flame-bait)
Regards
Björn
bj...@quark.lu.se
Jim Wall
I haven't read this patent, but have been involved in many other patent
analysis (on both sides). It is not amazing at all what is granted. There
are many patents that are clearly invalidated by prior art. But unless
the patent investigators were aware of that prior art, they will grant
the patent. There are many patents that have never (ever) been used to
try to restrict other companies because the patent owners know that it
will be overturned.
The only time you really have to worry is when a patent survives a
chanllange, or if you are the first company to bring about the challange.
Other companies and experts don't have a chance to object when the patent
is applied for, only when it is challanged. If you can build a case that
this particular patent was obvious to a knowledgable person using the
current technology (at the time of filing), or there was prior examples
or uses of the patent idea, then it would almost certainly be overturned
if it is challanged. Consult a patent attorney if this is a serious
issue to you or your company.
ALso as a side note, unless you are experienced at reading patents, you
could easily think they have been granted a wide, sweeping patent, when
if fact they have only been granted a very narrow specific implimentation
of a broader idea.
-Jim
Gary Steckly
>From: jos...@aplmail.jhuapl.edu (Marshall Jose)
>Subject: Re: Fogal patent
>Date: Mon, 12 Sep 1994 17:20:50 GMT
>I obtained all pages of the patent and read them; they are at least
>remarkable. Is the patent the focus of a discussion that I missed?
>I don't get alt.sci.physics.new-theories, so I don't know if that's
>where the discussion is.
>The patent looks too mundane to be fake. I'm really quite dismayed
>that anyone could be granted a patent for such a (patently) unoriginal
>idea. Could someone fill me in on the particular details on this?
someone posted something to sci.physics.fusion a while back on this, and since
everything on that conference ins archived at sunsite.unc.edu in
fusion-digest.src, it was easy to dig up, so I did.
This thing has some rather incredible consequences if it is for real...excerpt
from the fusion archives follows...
----------------------------excerpt begins--------------------------
------------------------------
1994.07.06 / S Publications / Spectacular Claims for Unlimited Energy
Originally-From: supe...@cnj.digex.net (Superconductivity Publications)
Newsgroups: sci.physics.fusion
Subject: Spectacular Claims for Unlimited Energy
Date: 6 Jul 1994 16:49:28 GMT
Organization: Superconductivity Publications, Inc., Somerset, NJ USA
[ Article crossposted from sci.physics ]
[ Author was Superconductivity Publications ]
[ Posted on 6 Jul 1994 16:00:25 GMT ]
The following article appears in the June 1994 monthly technical
edition of Superconductivity News (Vol. 6, No. 42).
William Jay Fogal, president of Quick Chek Industries (Martinez, GA)
has invented and patented an electronic device for which he has made
very broad claims. Others learning about the device have further
extrapolated the claims to the point that if real, the device means
the end of power utilities, the rendering useless of the entire
electrical power grid, the demise of manufacturers of electrical
generators and electrical cable, and a dramatic reduction in the
activities of hundreds of thousands of ancillary service providers.
Most industries will have to change or die. The infrastructure
alterations will be the most profound the world has ever witnessed.
While the odds are stacked against it being real, the staff of
Superconductivity News (SN) believes it is important to report the
events as they occur.
Fogal is not claiming he has invented a room temperature
superconductor. What he has invented is either completely fatuous or
it is astounding in that it strikes at the very core theoretical
underpinnings of electromechanics. Fogal told SN that his device grew
out of his efforts to fix a broken car radio in the mid 1970s. As he
got past the wiring and the circuits and into the semiconductors
actually running the radio, he made changes that greatly improved the
audio quality. He then let his ideas lay idle for more than a decade
before finally returning to the research in the late 1980s.
Fogal says his charged barrier semiconductor device allows electrons
to flow without resistance (i.e., as in superconductors) at room
temperature. He claims the device demonstrates a very high AC voltage
and AC current gain. His charged barrier device is on a bipolar
design that can be incorporated in (MOS) metal oxide semiconductor
designs, as well as multiple gate devices. It operates on a hall
effect electromagnetic field internal device. The hall effect
magnetic field forces electron flow and angular spin of the electrons
in the same direction to the top of the conduction bands in the
crystal lattice on semiconductor devices, unlike (SOI) silicon on
insulator devices that force electron flow to the surface of the
semiconductor lattice. "Unlike superconductors which generate an
external field, my semiconductor creates a self-regulating magnetic
field internal to the device," Fogal said.
-- Fogal's Description of His Device --
Charged barrier semiconductor devices incorporate a base plate member
of a semiconductor crystal. Also incorporated with the base plate
member is a dialectic material and a second base plate member. The
combination of the two base plate members constitutes an electrolytic
capacitor. The first base plate member will create a transverse
electric field that is known as a hall effect in the base plate member
of the semiconductor crystal. The ratio of the transverse electric
field strength to the product of the current and the magnetic field
strength is called the hall coefficient, and its magnitude is
inversely proportional to the carrier concentration on the base plate
member. The product of the hall coefficient and the conductivity is
proportional to the mobility of the carriers when one type of carrier
is dominant. Since the base plate member is tied directly to the
emitter junction of the semiconductor, the hall coefficient comes into
play with the creation of a one pole electromagnet in the base plate
member.
The hall effect of the electrolytic capacitor, in relation to the
position on the crystal lattice, will force electron angular spin in
the same direction and electron flow to the top of the conduction
bands in the lattice. The magnetic flux and the density of the
carriers on the electrolytic capacitor plate are in direct proportion
to the magnetic flux and carrier concentration on the emitter junction
on the semiconductor crystal.
Since the angular spin and the flow of the electrons are in the same
direction, due to the influence of the electromagnetic field, the
electron lattice interaction factor does not come into play. The
electron wave density is greater and the mobility of the electron flow
is faster. The device does not exhibit frequency loss in the wave.
The base or gate of the semiconductor is more sensitive to input
signal. These devices will typically turn on with an input to the
junction in the area of 0.2 MV to 0.4 MV with an output at the
collector junction of 450 MV at 133.5 UA of current.
-- Electron Wave Function In Charged Barrier Technology --
Think of the conduction bands in a crystal lattice as a highway.
Electrons in the free state will move along this highway. The only
difference is the electron angular spin can be in different
directions. With the electrons spinning in different directions, the
electrons would travel on different lanes of the highway and
collisions can occur. The scattering and the collision of the
electrons can cause friction and resistance to the flow. The
resistance to the flow and the friction can cause semiconductors to
run hot.
In semiconductor devices, this is called lattice scattering or
electron lattice interaction. If we could make the electrons move in
one direction, and also spin in the same direction, then we could have
more traffic electrons (on the highway) without having the resistance
or the collisions. We could put a barrier between the lanes on the
highway. But, the electrons could still spin in different directions.
But, what if we could charge this barrier?! Turn this barrier into an
electromagnetic field! An electromagnetic field in one direction. A
one pole electromagnet! A hall effect magnetic field. This one pole
electromagnetic field would make almost all of the electrons spin in
the same direction. Because the electrons are a negative charge and
the electromagnetic field has a negative charge, the electrons travel
in unison and then we could have more electrons on the highway, and
the electron travel could be faster.
The orientation of the spin of the electrons in the crystal lattice,
due to the electromagnetic field, has a direct impact on the formation
of the wave. If the orientation of the spin of the electrons are in
unison, there will be no loss in the wave nature, and the density of
the wave will be greater, and the frequency of the wave will be
complete. If the spin of the electrons in the lattice are in
different directions, the wave nature will be affected and there will
be a loss in the density of the wave. And, there will be a gap in the
frequency of the wave.
-- Patent Issued --
Fogal filed an application for a US patent covering the design on
March 1, 1991 and awarded No. 5,196,809, titled "High gain, low
distortion, faster switching transistor," on March 23, 1993. The
patent includes figures, diagrams, and several data plots, e.g. output
signal vs. input signal (vac) for the Fogal device vs. a standard
transistor. The patent was Fogal's first, but he has since
received a second patent, No. 5,311,139, covering a fuse testing
device that has nothing to do with the semiconductor. Another US
patent application covering improvements to the semiconductor was
filed in January of this year. The patent abstract and claim 1
follow.
-- Patent Abstract --
A transistor in which the emitter terminal is coupled to ground
through a filter capacitor. The filter capacitor has a capacitance of
from about 0.2 uf to about 22 uf and can be connected either by itself
or in parallel with a resistor, depending upon the circuit in which it
is used. The incorporation of a filter greatly of such a capacitance
level provides greatly improved gain and less distortion of the input
signal, to permit a high output to be achieved in fewer amplifier
stages and with less current draw and heating than in conventional
transistor amplifier stage circuits. Additionally, the transistor can
be provided in a unitary structure by incorporating the filter
capacitor directly on the transistor chip, and can also be provided by
incorporating the transistor and a resistor within the casing of a
filter capacitor.
Claim 1
a) a substrate;
b) one of a NPN and a PNP transistor integrally formed on the
substrate, the transistor having a base, a collector, and an
emitter;
c) a parallel resistor and filter capacitor network coupled with
the emitter and mounted on the transistor, to form an integral
part of the integrated circuit, the filter capacitor including
an outer casing; and
d) base, collector, and emitter terminals on the substrate and
coupled with the base, the collector, and the emitter,
respectively, to permit the integrated circuit to be connected
with an electronic circuit, wherein the integrated circuit is
contained within the filter capacitor outer casing.
-- Prototypes Fabricated --
Fogal told SN that he has made six prototypes of his device.
Prototype radios and computer modems have been fabricated employing
the device for demonstration purposes. Fogal emphasizes the noise
reduction aspects of his semiconductor.
Through the help of a colleague, Allan Ames of Advanced Scientific
Applications (Houston, TX), one of Fogal's semiconductors will be
tested by scientists at the Texas Center for Superconductivity at the
University of Houston. This is being arranged through Wei-Kan Chu.
SN discussed the situation with Chu and he confirmed that testing will
be done after the documents he had received were reviewed. SN's
editor-in-chief reviewed what the device might mean with Chu. Clearly
Chu had not had the opportunity to give the matter much thought.
Thomas E. Bearden (Huntsville, AL) believes Fogal's semiconductor
represents a true overunity electrical device. "Electromagnetics is
over 100 years old; many of its assumptions are flat wrong," Bearden
told us. He relates the way the Fogal semiconductor works to the way
heat pumps function, but says it takes it one step beyond. A Fogal
semiconductor simply stops electrons from flowing and passes the pure
potential energy from the now-free electrons with the circuit blocking
the drift current. Unlike superconductors, pairs of electrons are not
needed to pass the current along without resistance.
Bearden added that, based on endurance load tests on the Fogal
semiconductor, they are led to the firm conclusion that the chip
actually stops the longitudinal flow of electrons, strips them of
their energy, and passes the pure energy along without resistance. In
this regard he says it behaves like a heat pump but goes one step
beyond to pull energy from the vacuum.
-- SN Analysis and Comment --
It is important to note that the device does not violate the rules of
thermodynamics involving the conservation of energy. It does not make
energy from nothing. One end of a Fogal circuit would provide
electricity for work such as running a light bulb or a computer, and
the other end will draw energy from the environment and get quite cold
in the process.
The best aspect of this story is that either a Fogal semiconductor
works or it doesn't. There is nothing sophisticated in its
construction and there are no mysterious materials fabrication steps
involved. There should not be any gray or cloudy areas. Testing
should be straightforward.
Q: What are the odds of its being real?
A: If it is real, you will hear more about it soon enough. If it
isn't, think how much fun you have had reading this article.
Q: Are there any intrinsic limitations if the device is real?
A: None we can foresee.
Q: What does it mean to me?
A: It is a black or white situation. If the device is real and
Beardon's extrapolation is accurate it means:
- the end of the superconductivity industry as we know it within
a few years.
- the immediate obsolescence of all engine, machinery, and
electronics equipment designs.
- the beginning of a long-term scaleback by electrical utilities.
- a massive reorganization of industry and commerce.
- bankruptcy for millions of businesses that are unable to adapt.
- widespread unemployment forcing retraining on a scale never
before witnessed.
- hyperinflation in economies that do not prepare for the changes.
- the price of precious metals and real estate rising rapidly.
- a potential shift in the world balance of power.
Of course, it might not be real . . . and nothing will happen.
Are we having fun yet? :)
--
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-------------------------------excerpt ends--------------------
take all this with a grain of salt, (not to infer claims like this shouldn't
be investigated though...just in case) since the patent office has granted
some pretty strange patents recently. For example, I just saw one that covers
a process to tap the energy stored in the earths rotational inertia.(issued
may 24, 1994, patent no.05313850) Dont worry, according to the patent
abstract, there is enough stored energy to supply the worlds needs for the
next 100 million years...and only slow the earth slightly. Apparently, after
tapping that much energy for that period of time, the length of our days would
be extended to 34 hours. What a scheme to get more leisure time eh? ;-)
Gary