Abstract: A lift for a watercraft has plastic reinforcing brackets which engage in pockets in the thin-walled plastic floatation tanks of the lift and which provide mounting flanges at the top surfaces of the floatation tanks for abutment with mounting pads which connect to the watercraft support frame. The brackets are engaged on the floatation tanks and the pads overlap and are bolted to the plastic brackets, so that the pads are locked against but not bolted to the floatation tanks. Thus, the integrity of the tanks is not compromised by assembly-associated openings through the tank walls. Furthermore, the bolts are above the tank waterlines so that no corrosive material is disposed below the waterlines.

Abstract: A VHF signal remitter is usable with a satellite system having a coaxial cable connected between the satellite dish and the satellite signal receiver to feed the VHF signal detected by the outer shield of the cable to the antenna input terminal of the receiver. A first coaxial cable is adapted for connection between the output end of the satellite cable and the satellite input terminal of the receiver. A second coaxial cable adapted at one end for connection to the receiver antenna input terminal has an exposed center conductor spliced to the outer shield of the first cable. A coil spring girds the splice and a clamp rigidly secures the first and second cables in juxtaposition with each other proximate the splice. Heat shrunk extruded plastic covers the coil spring and the clamp to protect the splice.

Abstract: A roller assembly facilitates travel of a watercraft hull on a floating dock having a longitudinal, keel-receiving valley with a pair of flanking ridges supporting opposite sides of the hull during docking and launching of the craft. Pockets in the ridges contain wheels mounted on circumferential planes parallel to the ridges for rotation on axles seated in the pockets. The upper portions of the wheels protrude above the crests of the ridges and the axle end bearing portions cooperate with the seats in the pockets to list the circumferential planes toward the valley and approximately perpendicular to the hull sides. For optimal performance, two or more roller assemblies can be arranged in-line and spaced apart longitudinally in each of the ridges. A brake stops the docking motion of the watercraft onto the dock. Multiple docks can be serially connected without use of special tools or underwater assembly steps.

Abstract: For indicating the absence of a drain plug from a boat drain when the boat is in a launch condition, a receptacle with a water flow passage and a cavity containing a Hall effect switch is mounted in the boat drain. A stopper has a magnet which operatively aligns with the Hall effect switch when the stopper plugs the passage. The Hall effect switch and a switch operated in response to a presence-of-water condition are components of a control circuit which drives a switch to connect and disconnect an audio alarm activation device to and from an electrical power source. The alarm will always be activated when the stopper is not in the drain and the presence-of-water switch has operated and will never be activated when the stopper is in the drain.

Abstract: A mask for use during painting shields those components of the contents of a wall box which will be exposed through a decorative plate used to cover the wall box after the wall is painted. The mask is a substantially flat thin sheet with an adhesive substance applied to its face along its outer perimeter for adhering the sheet to the wall. The substance may be continuous or may be spotted about the perimeter. A pad of identical masks can be temporarily held in stacked laminar relationship by the adhesive substance. The mask may also have a raised portion of perimeter, depth and location suitable for shielding any of the contents of the box which protrude from the box beyond the plane of wall surface. The raised portions may be tapered to facilitate nesting of identical masks in a pad temporarily held in stacked laminar relationship by the adhesive substance.

Abstract: A valve and trigger cyclically connect a vacuum and a blower to a filter. The valve box has three openings, the first connectable to the vacuum, the second connectable to the blower and the third connectable to the filter. A gate inside the box, biased by the blower and the vacuum toward closing the first opening, is held against the bias by a trigger outside the box to close the second opening. The external trigger intervally operates to release the interior gate to close the first opening and open the second opening. The blower operates only if the trigger is operating. The gate is released once for approximately 1/12 of a cycle interval during each trigger operating interval. A plurality of valves can be combined in a system with one trigger for cyclically sequentially connecting a plurality of filters to the vacuum and the blower.

Abstract: A bedclothes support assembly maintains bedclothes in an elevated condition over the feet or other part of a person's anatomy. An upper member which extends across the mattress is supported at both ends above the selected part of the anatomy by upright members whose lower ends are supported by one of a variety of structures. The supporting structure may, for example, be a horizontal tongue extending from a horizontal member and abutting against the lower surface of the mattress, a floor mounted base or tubular cross-members with lengthwise slots for engagement on the frame of the bed. The upper horizontal member supports the bedclothes high enough to provide clearance between the bedclothes and the mattress for the selected portions of the anatomy.

Abstract: A disposable lid for a cup has an annular clamp which is adapted to be seated on the rim of the cup and to grip the interior and exterior walls of the lip of the cup so as to firmly fix the lid to the cup and a frustoconical spout which extends upwardly from the rim to a liquid discharge port at the apex of the spout, the spout having a truncation in the shape of a horizontal plane tangent to the bottom wall of a horizontal cylinder and a base of inside diameter equal to the top inside diameter of the clamp so as to permit an unobstructed, non-turbulent flow of liquid from the cup to the discharge port. Preferably, the clamp has a circular rim with inner and outer edges and a bottom face adapted to be seated on a rim of the cup and an inner inverted frustoconical serrated lip extending downwardly from the inner edge and an outer frustoconical nodulous lip extending downwardly from the outer edge which cooperate to grip the lip of the cup therebetween.

Abstract: A machine for scraping a floor covering from a floor has rear drive wheels and a forward blade assembly. Arms which each rotate independently on the frame at one end are connected to the blade assembly which independently rotate on their other ends. Thus, the blade is able to float and follow the contour of the floor even if the wheels and blade are riding on an uneven surface. The pitch and elevation of the blade assembly can be changed individually or simultaneously without inhibiting the floating motion of the blade assembly.

Abstract: A tool for use by a machinist in testing the accuracy of a workpiece has an edge to be abutted against the workpiece to be tested and an encased light source connected by a plurality of passages extending within the member to conduct light emitted from the source to an array of apertures spaced at intervals in a bevel of the edge. The array of apertures directs the light at the workpiece on one side of the edge so that defects in accuracy are illuminated to the machinist viewing the workpiece from the other side of the edge. Preferably, a plurality of fiber optic cords extend in the passages from the light source to the apertures.

Abstract: Rope is made from one or more rolls of film. The rolls of film are loaded onto spindles and tension is applied to the free end of the film of each roll to dispense the films. The dispensing films are each constricted at a common focal point of tension to create substantially triangular portions defined by the line of departure of the film from its roll and the focal point of tension. The triangular portions of each film are continuously simultaneously preconditioned, as by heat or humidity, as the films are dispensed. The rolls are also continuously rotated during dispensation about a common axis which is skewed in relation to the dispensation axes of the rolls, causing the preconditioned films to twist at the focal point of tension into a strand of rope. The strand of rope is then rounded and post-conditioned, perhaps by water or air cooling, and coiled for storage.

Abstract: A clamp for attaching a pipeline tracer wire to a pipeline riser has an elongated riser grip which is resiliently flexible to snap onto the riser. An elongated conduit with a V-shaped groove extends integrally along the outer wall of the riser grip. The conduit receives the tracer wire therein. At least one tap screw is engagable in the groove and radially into the conduit to lock the tracer wire between the screw and the opposite inner wall of the conduit. Alternatively, a tap screw may be threadedly engaged in the upper end of the conduit to lock the tracer wire between the screw and the opposite inner wall of the conduit. Preferably, the clamp is made of non-metallic, fire retardant material such as a high density thermoplastic.

Abstract: A vacuum cleaning machine has a cannister with an inlet port and at least two outlet ports. At least two filters are disposed inside of the cannister, one in pneumatic communication through each of the outlet ports. At least two valves are disposed outside of the cannister. Each valve is in pneumatic communication between a vacuum source and an outlet port so as to permit air to be drawn by the vacuum source from the inlet port simultaneously through the filters. A controller operates the valves to switch the filters from the vacuum source to ambient air so as to permit ambient air to be sequentially intermittently drawn through corresponding valves and filters into the cannister. Preferably, the controller includes a timing mechanism for setting the delay time of the sequential valve operation and a timing mechanism for setting the intermittent time of connection of each filter to ambient air.

Abstract: A dynamically variable spectral matrix surround system decodes two-channel stereo into multi-channel surround. In one embodiment, the true stereo signal is present in left and right front and left and right surround channel outputs. When a dominant center channel signal appears, the system subtracts center channel audio from the critical voice band only. The higher frequency portion of the spectrum will remain true stereo at all times. In another embodiment, the front center signal bandwidth is determined. A dynamically variable portion of the audio spectrum is inverted and added to the opposite channel, thereby dynamically subtracting the bandwidth of the front center signal from the left front, left surround, right front and right surround channels but leaving the portion of the audio spectrum that does not contain front center information unaltered. The input is divided into two frequency bands.

Abstract: A machine for scraping a floor covering from a floor has rear drive wheels and a forward blade assembly. Arms which each rotate independently on the frame at one end are connected to the blade assembly which independently rotate on their other ends. Thus, the blade is able to float and follow the contour of the floor even if the wheels and blade are riding on an uneven surface. The pitch and elevation of the blade assembly can be changed individually or simultaneously without inhibiting the floating motion of the blade assembly.

Abstract: The thermal foot cover is an article of footwear to be worn when the wearer's foot is subjected to cold temperatures. The thermal foot cover has an upper cover portion attached to a bottom panel to define a cavity for insertion of a wearer's shoe-encased or boot-encased foot or a wearer's foot. The upper cover portion and the bottom panel are made from a material comprising an outer covering, a radiant barrier and a inner covering where the radiant barrier is sandwiched between the outer cover and the inner cover. The radiant barrier is the insulation system of the thermal foot cover, which reflects the wearer's body heat back inside the footwear and keeps the wearer's feet warm. The thermal foot cover is flexible, lightweight and readily washable due to the use of the radiant barrier as the insulation system.

Abstract: An improved dynamics processing control system clamps a level detected control signal at a level equal to a predefined threshold point. In one embodiment, a clamped level detected signal feeds a filter with very slow response characteristics. By comparing the difference between the input and the output of the system a differential control signal generated. The differential control signal is used to provide a continuously variable, program dependant output signal when the input signal drops below a threshold point. In another embodiment of the invention, both the attack and release times of the system are varied in response to a differential control signal.

Abstract: A disposable plug has a mask with an orifice aligned at the entry into the ear canal when the plug is inserted into the ear. A sealed envelope has a leading elastic tip that extends forward of the orifice into the ear canal and a trailing reservoir that extends rearward of the orifice. A super-cooled liquid salt substantially fills the envelope. The envelope is sized to contain a sufficient quantity of the liquid salt to deliver heat to the inner ear at a predetermined temperature for a predetermined time period. A convex disk in the reservoir can be manually popped to concave after the tip of the envelope has been inserted into the ear canal to shrink the reservoir and expand the tip into deeper extension into and compliance with the ear canal and to activate solidification of the liquid salt to generate heat into the ear canal.