Cy-Fair man receives U.S. patent for work on electric converter technology

A Cy-Fair man was part of a group that received a U.S. patent last week for its invention of a tool that could make converting alternating current (AC) electricity to direct current (DC) less expensive.

In the United States, power plants produce alternating current (AC) electricity that then is converted to direct current (DC) for use in home devices. According to the patent, previous devices to convert this electricity, called rectifiers, produced unwanted harmonic distortion that is passed back to power plants. Devices existed to solve the problem, but the inventors claim their rectifier is simpler and less expensive.

The team credited in the patent consists of John D. Kleinecke of the Cy-Fair area of Houston, Mike Daskalos of Magnolia and Takashi Morishita of Houston. The patent's official number is 7,876,586 and it was originally filed on April 7, 2008. Toshiba International Corp. is listed as the owner of the patent.

Toshiba is a multinational conglomerate corporation based in Tokyo that makes everything from components for electrical infrastructure to consumer devices like televisions and computers. Toshiba International Corp. is a division specializing in industrial products that is based in the Cy-Fair area of Houston at 13131 W. Little York Road.