ALEXANDRIA, Va., July 16 -- United States Patent no. 12,672,252, issued on June 30, was assigned to Beckhoff Automation GmbH (Verl, Germany).
"Automation platform" was invented by Udo Melzer (Gutersloh, Germany) and Daniel Siegenbrink (Bielefeld, Germany).
According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "A base module has a base connection surface with a projection formed around a first opening. A functional module has an engagement element arranged at a second opening having a recess with an edge forming a stop. A sealing socket runs around the second opening. A cap structure includes a frame running around the second opening, a plug-in receptacle connected to the frame and having a latching hook, and a soft co...