TDG Aerospace, has announced that it has been awarded three patents by the United States Patent Office, all of which relate to its ground-breaking UFI(R) line of fault detection devices.
U.S. Patent No. 7,254,004 B2 (Systems and Methods for Fault Based Power Signal Interruption) was issued on August 7, 2007, for an innovative method device for detection of electrical power line faults. In March 2008, TDG was awarded U.S. Patent No. 7,342,763 B2 (Fuel System Safety Device for Run Dry Conditions) which covers TDG's UFI(R) fuel safety system device and in April 2008, TDG received U.S. Patent No. 7,352,550 B2 (Method for Detecting Run-Dry Conditions in Fuel Systems), for technology which detects run dry conditions in fuel systems. TDG's 757 and 737NG UFI(R) products embody the technology covered by these patents.
TDG began development of its UFI(R) devices after the much-publicized disaster involving TWA Flight 800 over Long Island Sound in New York. According to the NTSB report, the Flight 800 explosion occurred, in part, as a result of an electrical fault in the center fuel tank system.
To address this issue, the FAA issued SFAR 88, which identified three potentially dangerous ignition sources in the center fuel systems: (1) electrical faults in the fuel boost pump and related wiring, (2) failure to shut down the pump when the inlet is uncovered and (3) un-commanded pump operation. The TDG UFI(R) device is the only product of its kind which offers a comprehensive solution to all three issues called out in SFAR 88, in one, inexpensive and easy-to-install device. 'The feedback from our major airline customers with an installed base of UFI(R) devices on their 757 fleets has been extremely positive,' said Gerald Bench, CEO of TDG Aerospace. |
