Patents by Inventor Andrew Thornton

Andrew Thornton has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 9101680
    Abstract: An absorbent article to be worn by a wearer having a skin-contacting sheet such as a topsheet, a backsheet, an absorbent core and a colored hydrophilic lotion, that not only helps to reduce the adherence of the menses or feces to the skin, thereby improving the ease of menses or bowl movement (BM) clean up, but that also may serve as a wetness indicator. The absorbent articles may be infant (baby) diapers, including training pants, adult incontinence articles and the like.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 15, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 11, 2015
    Assignee: The Procter & Gamble Company
    Inventors: Mark Andrew Thornton, Cornelia Beate Martynus, Ekaterina Anatolyevna Ponomarenko, Victor Nicholas Vega, Brandon Ellis Wise, Donald Carroll Roe
  • Patent number: 9078509
    Abstract: A hand carried transport assembly is described and which includes a carriage that has a supporting base and a handle removably attached thereto; a transporting vessel that defines an internal cavity, and which releasably mates with the supporting base portion; and a product receiving insert for accepting products and which is sized so as to substantially nest within the internal cavity of the transporting vessel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 26, 2013
    Date of Patent: July 14, 2015
    Assignee: ZAK DESIGNS, INC.
    Inventors: Andrew Thornton, Oliver Breit
  • Publication number: 20150182012
    Abstract: A hand carried transport assembly is described and which includes a carriage that has a supporting base and a handle removably attached thereto; a transporting vessel that defines an internal cavity, and which releasably mates with the supporting base portion; and a product receiving insert for accepting products and which is sized so as to substantially nest within the internal cavity of the transporting vessel.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 26, 2013
    Publication date: July 2, 2015
    Applicant: ZAK DESIGNS, INC.
    Inventors: Andrew Thornton, Oliver Breit
  • Patent number: 8874888
    Abstract: Techniques and systems for managed boot are described. A described technique includes creating, at a server system, a boot image based on one or more user-specified parameters associated with virtual machine booting, providing a first virtual drive that includes the boot image, booting a virtual machine using the boot image on the first virtual drive, and providing a second virtual drive to the virtual machine, where the virtual machine mounts the second virtual drive as a root file system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 5, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 28, 2014
    Assignee: Google Inc.
    Inventors: Joseph S. Beda, III, Sanjeet Singh Mehat, Robert H. Earhart, III, Andrew Thornton, David T. McWherter, Evan K. Anderson, Frank Berreth
  • Patent number: 8646952
    Abstract: A ride-on mower with a mower unit attached to a frame unit includes a headlight housing extending in a transverse direction of the vehicle body over the width of the frame unit and fixed to the frame unit forwardly of a front end of the mower deck. A right and left pair of headlight units are housed in the headlight housing. Light passage portions are formed in opposite end portions of the headlight housing for directing light coming from each of the headlight unit to the side and/or to the rear toward a direction of the front end of the mower deck.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 5, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 11, 2014
    Assignee: Kubota Corporation
    Inventors: Robert Walden, Andrew Thornton
  • Publication number: 20140007551
    Abstract: A ride-on mower with a mower unit attached to a frame unit includes a headlight housing extending in a transverse direction of the vehicle body over the width of the frame unit and fixed to the frame unit forwardly of a front end of the mower deck. A right and left pair of headlight units are housed in the headlight housing. Light passage portions are formed in opposite end portions of the headlight housing for directing light coming from each of the headlight unit to the side and/or to the rear toward a direction of the front end of the mower deck.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 5, 2012
    Publication date: January 9, 2014
    Applicant: KUBOTA CORPORATION
    Inventors: Robert WALDEN, Andrew THORNTON
  • Patent number: 8380987
    Abstract: This document describes tools capable of making a portion of operating-system memory associated with a protection agent unalterable or inaccessible from an operating-system privilege mode. In some embodiments, these tools are capable of creating a protection-agent privilege mode by requesting that a virtual machine monitor protect this portion of operating-system memory. In other embodiments, these tools are capable of creating the protection-agent privilege mode by virtualizing a physical processor into multiple virtual processors, at least one of which is a protection-agent virtual processor designed to run the protection agent. By making this portion of operating-system memory unalterable or inaccessible from the operating-system privilege mode, the protection agent may be less vulnerable to attacks by entities operating within the operating-system privilege mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 25, 2007
    Date of Patent: February 19, 2013
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Eric Traut, Forrest Foltz, Andrew Thornton, Suyash Sinha
  • Publication number: 20120185688
    Abstract: Implementations of the present disclosure are directed to a method, system and computer-readable medium for operating a processor in a data processing apparatus in a first processing mode; setting one or more control bits of a control register of the processor to configure the processor to operate in a different second processing mode; providing a virtual register in a virtual machine executing on the data processing apparatus, the virtual register having one or more locking bits corresponding to the control bits of the control register; setting a value of the one or more locking bits of the virtual register; and in response to setting the value of the one or more locking bits, preventing the processor from being configured to operate in the first processing mode.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 9, 2012
    Publication date: July 19, 2012
    Applicant: GOOGLE INC.
    Inventors: Andrew Thornton, Jung-Ik Lee
  • Patent number: 8104803
    Abstract: A latching system for securing two members together includes a housing, a pawl that is pivotally attached to the housing, a locking member, an actuating mechanism, and a rocker switch. The pawl is movable between a closed configuration and an open configuration. The rocker switch is used to control the actuating mechanism. The rocker switch includes an outer housing, an inner housing, a printed circuit board, and a button. The pawl is provided with a torsion spring member that biases the pawl toward the open or disengaged configuration. Energizing the electrical actuating mechanism retracts the locking member out of engagement with the pawl, thus allowing the pawl to rotate under spring bias to the open configuration.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2006
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2012
    Assignee: Southco, Inc.
    Inventors: Richard Horton, Andrew Thornton
  • Publication number: 20120006165
    Abstract: A foodstuff slicer includes a support frame carrying a support with a support surface and a slicing blade including a cutting edge situated above the support surface, whereby a foodstuff article may be slid along the support surface into contact with the cutting edge to cut a slice from it. A guard member including at least one guard limb is guided to move transversely to the support surface between an operative position, in which it extends in front of and adjacent to the cutting edge and prevents access to the cutting edge, and an inoperative position, in which it permits access to the cutting edge. A release member is guided to move parallel to the support surface and includes at least one release limb. One of the guard limb and the release limb includes a ramp formation and the other of the guard limb and the release limb includes a follower cooperating with the ramp formation, whereby movement of the release member results in movement of the guard member between the operative and inoperative positions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 8, 2011
    Publication date: January 12, 2012
    Inventor: Andrew Thornton
  • Publication number: 20100206971
    Abstract: A condiment grinder comprises a hollow body constituting a reservoir for a condiment to be ground, the body having an opening at its lower end, in which a female grinding member defining an aperture is received and an opening at its upper end. One end of an actuating rod is connected to a male grinding member rotatably received in the aperture and the other end of the actuating rod passes through the upper opening in the body. A rotatable actuating knob removably closes the upper opening in the body and is non-rotatably secured to the other end of the actuating rod. The grinder further includes a condiment filling aid comprising a tubular sleeve having a first end whose cross-sectional area is less than that of its second end. The first end is connected to the upper end of the body around the upper opening.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 5, 2010
    Publication date: August 19, 2010
    Inventor: Andrew Thornton
  • Publication number: 20100049670
    Abstract: Methods for communicating the relevance and benefits of a diaper product comprising a wearable structure and a replaceable component, to members of a market segment. Particular examples comprise the steps of: providing a tangible medium containing visual content comprising one or more photographic images of an adult, a child and a diaper product in at least partial view, and, either, the adult appearing to be engaged in the act of changing the replaceable component while the child is wearing the wearable structure, or, the diaper appearing to include a wearable structure and a removable or replaceable component; and causing the visual content to be made available for viewing by members of the public.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 24, 2009
    Publication date: February 25, 2010
    Inventors: Fama Francisco, Thomas Henrich, Kristin Herrmann-Ratz, Monica Jean Mohlenkamp, Mark Andrew Thornton, Sue Ann Mills
  • Patent number: 7523969
    Abstract: A latch has a latch bolt mounted on a rack and a top gear which engages the rack. The top gear can be driven by an idle gear which is disengageable from a drop gear which in turn is engaged with a lockable drive gear upon rotation of a cam disc. Initial rotation of the cam disc disengages the drop gear. Further rotation of the cam disc moves the top gear so as to permit the rack to move the bolt to the unlatched position. The latch can be operated from one side by the rotation of a lock plug in the drive. The other side of the latch has a turnhandle on the cam disc which unlatches the latch even when the drive gear is locked from the outside.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 23, 2007
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2009
    Assignee: Southco, Inc.
    Inventors: Andrew Thornton, Jack O'Byrne
  • Publication number: 20080287900
    Abstract: This invention is directed to an absorbent article to be worn by a wearer comprising a skin-contacting sheet such as a topsheet, a backsheet, an absorbent core and a colored hydrophilic lotion, that not only helps to reduce the adherence of the menses or feces to the skin, thereby improving the ease of menses or bowl movement (BM) clean up, but that also may serve as a wetness indicator. Absorbent articles may be infant (baby) diapers, including training pants, adult incontinence articles and the like.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 15, 2008
    Publication date: November 20, 2008
    Applicant: The Procter & Gamble Company
    Inventors: Mark Andrew Thornton, Cornelia Beate Martynus, Ekaterina Anatolyevna Ponomarenko, Victor Nicholas Vega, Brandon Ellis Wise, Donald Carroll Roe
  • Publication number: 20080184373
    Abstract: This document describes tools capable of making a portion of operating-system memory associated with a protection agent unalterable or inaccessible from an operating-system privilege mode. In some embodiments, these tools are capable of creating a protection-agent privilege mode by requesting that a virtual machine monitor protect this portion of operating-system memory. In other embodiments, these tools are capable of creating the protection-agent privilege mode by virtualizing a physical processor into multiple virtual processors, at least one of which is a protection-agent virtual processor designed to run the protection agent. By making this portion of operating-system memory unalterable or inaccessible from the operating-system privilege mode, the protection agent may be less vulnerable to attacks by entities operating within the operating-system privilege mode.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 25, 2007
    Publication date: July 31, 2008
    Applicant: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Eric Traut, Forrest C. Foltz, Andrew Thornton, Suyash Sinha
  • Publication number: 20080169657
    Abstract: A latching system for securing two members together is disclosed that includes a housing. A pawl is pivotally attached to the housing and is movable between a closed or engaged configuration and an open or disengaged configuration. The pawl is provided with a torsion spring member that biases the pawl toward the open or disengaged configuration. An electrically actuated locking member is supported by the housing. A lug projecting from the pawl is engaged by the locking member to retain the pawl in the closed configuration. When latched, the pawl captures the keeper to secure the latch to the keeper. Energizing the electrical actuating mechanism retracts the locking member out of engagement with the lug of the pawl, thus allowing the pawl to rotate under spring bias to the open configuration.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 4, 2006
    Publication date: July 17, 2008
    Applicant: SOUTHCO, INC.
    Inventors: Richard Horton, Andrew Thornton
  • Patent number: 7387267
    Abstract: A foodstuff crusher/blender has a hollow body defining a closed elongate cavity. An access device, such as complementary screwthreads on respective ends of two portions of the body, enables the introduction and removal of foodstuff into and from the cavity. A crushing/blending ball is accommodated in the cavity. The cavity is of circular shape along its length in transverse cross-section. One end of the cavity is of substantially part-spherical shape with a diameter not substantially greater than that of the ball. The other end of the cavity is of substantially part-spherical shape with a diameter substantially greater than that of the ball. The diameter of the cavity increases progressively over at least a part of the distance between the two ends of the cavity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 8, 2005
    Date of Patent: June 17, 2008
    Assignees: William Levene Limited, Fresh Crush Limited
    Inventors: Andrew Thornton, Jamie Trevor Oliver
  • Patent number: 7339591
    Abstract: intercepted in order to determine if the modification will result in an aperture memory address mapping to a region of trusted memory. If it is determined that the GART modification will not result in a mapping to a portion of trusted memory, then the GART modification is allowed. If it is determined that the GART modification will result in a mapping to a portion of trusted memory, then the modification is not allowed and an alarm is raised in the system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 10, 2005
    Date of Patent: March 4, 2008
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventor: Andrew Thornton
  • Patent number: D630477
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 5, 2010
    Date of Patent: January 11, 2011
    Assignee: DKB Household UK Limited
    Inventor: Andrew Thornton
  • Patent number: D651868
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 3, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2012
    Assignee: DKB Household UK Limited
    Inventor: Andrew Thornton