Abstract: A sheet of mulch material and method of making the same are provided, the sheet of mulch material comprising a sheet of polymeric material having openings passing therethrough and opposed sides one of which is to face the ground on which the sheet of mulch material is to be disposed, and a sheet of fabric material being coextensive with and being secured to the one side of the sheet of polymeric material and overlapping the openings thereof to tend to prevent plant growth through the openings.

Abstract: A fuel control valve is provided between a fuel source and a burner. The main valve is supported in a housing on a lever in a biased open position and is operated by a manual actuator through a cam and cam follower. The housing includes a thermostatically controlled solenoid to hold the main valve closed under certain conditions.

Abstract: An expansion device for a refrigeration system, piston therefor and methods of making the same are provided, the expansion device comprising a housing having opposed ports for coupling the device in the system and being separated from each other by an internal valve seat of the housing, and a movable piston disposed in the housing and having a first end surface adapted to engage against the valve seat to tend to close the same when the piston is disposed in a first position thereof in the housing, the housing having an annular shoulder, the piston having a second end surface for engaging against the shoulder when the piston is disposed in a second position thereof in the housing, the piston having a passage passing therethrough and through the end surfaces thereof for interconnecting the opposed ports together in a restricted manner when the piston is in the first position thereof, the piston having an outer peripheral surface interconnecting the end surfaces together and being provided with a plurality of gr

Abstract: A burner construction and method of making the same are provided, the burner construction comprising a burner body having a chamber therein and having opposed ends one of which is open to the chamber and the other of which has structure for interconnecting a source of fuel to the chamber, and a removable cap closing the one end of the body, the cap having opposed sides and an annular peripheral edge interconnecting the opposed sides together, the burner construction having ports interconnecting the chamber to the exterior of the burner construction and through which the fuel can issue to burn externally to the burner construction, the cap having an annular groove in one of the opposed sides thereof and inboard of the peripheral edge thereof, the burner body having a projection disposed in the groove to hold the cap on the one end of the burner body in its closing position thereof.

Abstract: A pilot burner construction and method of making the same are provided, the pilot burner construction comprising a mounting section, a mixer tube section, a flame shield section and a sensing bulb holding section, the pilot burner construction having structure interconnecting all of the sections together to provide a self-contained pilot burner construction, the pilot burner construction comprising two one-piece homogeneous parts secured together to define the mixer tube section therebetween and to define the structure that interconnects the sections together, the two parts also defining the mounting section, the flame shield section and the sensing bulb holding section.

Abstract: A valve construction and method of making the same are provided, the valve construction comprising a housing provided with a chamber therein and with an inlet leading to the chamber and outlet leading from the chamber, a valve seat carried by the housing and leading to the outlet, a movable bimetallic lever carried by the housing and having an operating bimetallic part, a heater wire disposed in coiled relation about the operating part to heat the same when an electrical current flows through the heater wire, and a valve member carried by the bimetallic lever for opening and closing the valve seat under the control of the operating part of the bimetallic lever, the operating part of the bimetallic lever having a fastening unit operatively interconnected to the heater wire to tend to hold the heater wire in the coiled relation on the operating part of the bimetallic lever, the heater wire comprising a length of the wire doubled upon itself to define a looped end and pair of free ends adjacent each other with t

Abstract: A jet burner construction, a heating apparatus utilizing the jet burner construction and methods of making the same are provided, the jet burner construction comprising a burner body having a chamber therein and having an inlet leading to the chamber for directing fuel from a fuel source therein and an outlet leading from the chamber and defining an outlet opening through which the fuel is adapted to issue from the chamber to burn externally to the burner body, the outlet opening having a central opening part and a plurality of spaced apart opening portions interconnected thereto and radiating outwardly therefrom whereby flows of fuel respectively issuing out of the portions and the central part of the outlet opening merge together in a turbulent manner externally of the outlet opening.

Abstract: A cooking apparatus comprising a frame, a cooking chamber carried by the frame, a heating unit carried by the frame and being adapted to be actuated to heat clean the chamber, a switch for permitting the heating unit to heat clean the chamber only when the switch is actuated, a movable door carried by the frame for opening and closing the cooking chamber, a movable latch member carried by the frame and being movable between a non-latching position thereof that permits the door to be opened and closed and a latching position thereof that locks the door in its closed position if the door is in its closed position at the time the latch member is moved to the latching position thereof, and a drive unit carried by the frame and being operatively interconnected to the latch member to move the latch member between the positions thereof, the latch member being movable from the non-latching position thereof to a third position thereof by the drive unit when the drive unit tends to move the latch member from the non-la

Abstract: A fuel control device, system using the device and method of making the same are provided, the device comprising a housing having a passage therethrough for interconnecting a fuel source with a main burner, a throttle valve unit disposed in the passage for throttling fuel flow through the passage to the burner, and a selector operatively interconnected to the throttle valve unit to operate the same, the throttle valve unit comprising a pair of members one of which is substantially stationary and the other of which is rotatable relative to the one member, the one member having a face and having an aperture interrupting the face thereof and passing therethrough, the other member having a face disposed in sliding engagement with the face of the one member for controlling the effective opening of the aperture for fuel flow therethrough, the selector being operatively interconnected to the other member to rotate the same relative to the one member and thereby control the flow of fuel through the passage, the other

Abstract: A control system and methods of making and operating the control system are provided, the system comprising an RTD temperature sensor, an applying unit operatively interconnected to the sensor for applying a varying voltage across the sensor and thereby providing a certain current level through the sensor for each certain voltage value being applied across the sensor while the sensor is sensing a certain temperature, and a microcomputer operatively interconnected to the sensor and the applying unit for determining from the voltage being applied across the sensor the actual temperature being sensed by the sensor, the applying unit comprising a charge pump arrangement.

Abstract: A control device having a push to turn selector arrangement and method of making the same are provided, the control device comprising a support unit, a first selector member threadedly carried by the support unit so as to be rotatable and axially movable relative thereto, a second selector member rotatably carried by the support unit and being axially movable relative thereto, a coupling structure coupling the selector members together to cause the first selector member to rotate in unison with the second selector member when the second selector member is axially pushed inwardly and then rotated, and a spring unit disposed between the selector members to tend to maintain the second selector member axially away from the first selector member, the couping unit comprising a drive plate rotatably carried by the suport unit intermediate the selector members and having parts thereof respectively splined to the selector members to transmit rotatable movement of the second selector member to the first selector member

Abstract: An apparatus and method for removing liquid from liquid bearing material are provided, the apparatus comprising a pair of movable electrodes having portions thereof disposed adjacent each other and defining an inlet to the adjacent portions and an outlet from the adjacent portions, a moving unit for moving the electrodes so that adjacent portions thereof serially move in the same direction thereof from the inlet to the outlet, a unit for feeding the liquid bearing material into the inlet so that sections of the material serially move with the adjacent portions from the inlet to the outlet while being disposed between the adjacent portions, a unit for creating a voltage between the electrodes so as to create an electrostatic field arrangement between the adjacent portions of the electrodes for acting through the material that is disposed therebetween to remove liquid from the material that is disposed therebetween, and a unit for increasing the voltage between certain parts of the electrodes so that the intens

Abstract: An apparatus and method for removing liquid from liquid bearing material are provided, the apparatus comprising a pair of electrodes having portions thereof disposed adjacent each other and defining an inlet to the adjacent portions and an outlet from the adjacent portions, structure for feeding the liquid bearing material into the inlet, structure for moving the liquid bearing material from the inlet to the outlet so that sections of the material serially move from the inlet to the outlet while being disposed between the adjacent portions, and a unit for creating a voltage between the pair of electrodes so as to create an electrostatic field arrangement between the adjacent portions of the pair of electrodes for acting through the material that is disposed therebetween to remove liquid from that material, the unit providing different voltages between different parts of the pair of electrodes so that different intensities of the electrostatic field arrangement serially act through each section of the material

Abstract: A combination of a burner control device and electrical switch unit, parts therefor and methods of making the same are provided, the combination comprising a burner control device having a rotatable selector shaft and an electrical switch unit carried by the device and being operated by the selector shaft, the device having a cover secured thereto by a plurality of screws each having a head, the switch unit having a plurality of cavities therein respectively receiving the heads of the screws therein, at least one of the cavities having a snap-fit structure therein that is snap-fitted to its respective head to hold the switch unit to the device.

Abstract: An expansion device for a refrigeration system, piston therefor and methods of making the same are provided, the expansion device comprising a housing having opposed ports for coupling the device in the system and being separated from each other by an internal valve seat of the housing, and a movable piston disposed in the housing and having a first end surface adapted to engage against the valve seat to tend to close the same when the piston is disposed in a first position thereof in the housing, the housing having an annular shoulder, the piston having a second end surface for engaging against the shoulder when the piston is disposed in a second position thereof in the housing, the piston having a passage passing therethrough and through the end surfaces thereof for interconnecting the opposed ports together in a restricted manner when the piston is in the first position thereof, the piston having an outer peripheral surface interconnecting the end surfaces together and being provided with a plurality of gr

Abstract: A control device, refrigerator system utilizing the control device and methods of making the same are provided, the control device comprising a housing having a valve seat and having an inlet and an outlet interconnected together by the valve seat, a movable valve member carried by the housing and being adapted to open and close the valve seat by being respectively moved to an open position thereof and a closed position thereof, a coiled compression shape memory spring carried by the housing and being operatively interconnected to the valve member to move the valve member to one of the positions thereof by the spring axially expanding from a closed coil bound condition thereof upon the spring sensing a temperature above a first temperature and to move the valve member to the other of the positions thereof by the spring axially contracting into the closed coil bound condition thereof upon the spring sensing a temperature below a second temperature, and an electrically operated heater having at least a portion

Abstract: A control system and method of operating the control system are provided, the system having a supervisory circuit for detecting failure of the system and disabling a high energy control circuit of the system, the supervisory circuit having a capacitor therein for sustaining an on condition of a supervisory transistor that is in series with an output relay driver transistor of the high energy control circuit, and a temperature sensing unit that is disposed intermediate a microcomputer of the system and the supervisory circuit for continuing the charging of the capacitor only as long as the temperature sensing unit is sensing an output temperature effect of a heating unit of the system that is below a predetermined high temperature limit for the system and that terminates the charging of the capacitor when the sensed temperature is above the predetermined high temperature limit.

Abstract: An intermittent patient suction system, a self-contained control device therefor and methods of making the same are provided, the self-contained control device having a housing that contains two restrictor units therein for respectively controlling the "on" time and "off" time that the control device applies a vacuum and does not apply a vacuum through the output of the control device to the patient.

Abstract: A throttle valve adjustment construction, a throttle valve adjustment unit and methods of making the same are provided, the throttle valve adjustment construction comprising a support, a throttle valve adjustment arm movably carried by the support and having structure for tending to move the arm in one direction to a closed throttle condition thereof, and a temperature operated throttle valve adjustment unit carried by the support and being operatively associated with the arm to adjust the position of the arm at the throttle closed condition thereof, the throttle valve ajustment unit comprising a temperature responsive device that comprises a piston member and a cylinder member that are adapted to provide relative movement therebetween when the device senses certain temperatures.

Abstract: The combination of a heating element and a control unit therefor and methods of making and of operating the same are provided, the heating element normally being adapted to be operated by the continuous full wave pulses of a certain high voltage alternating current source and the control unit being operatively interconnected to the heating element for operatively interconnecting the heating element to a high voltage alternating current source, the control unit having an arrangement for operating the heating element with a certain repeating pattern of skipped full half-wave pulses of the source when the source has a higher voltage than the certain source.