Patents by Inventor Steven W. Claussen

Steven W. Claussen 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: 6047901
    Abstract: A support assembly supporting a spray boom assembly from a liquid supply assembly. Spaced support arms have opposite ends pivotably mounted on frames of the liquid supply assembly and the boom assembly to afford movement of the spray boom assembly between raised and lowered positions by a changeable length assembly such as a hydraulic piston, and shocks or bouncing action transmitted from the liquid supply assembly are damped by an assembly comprising an elongate shaft, an elongate tube around the shaft, resiliently elastic shock absorbing strips disposed between the shaft and the tube that with surfaces of the shaft and tube are shaped to restrict rotation of the tube around the shaft without resilient compression of the shock absorbing strips. Either the shaft or tube is fixed to the frame or the support arms, the other has an activating arm fixed to and projecting from it, which activating arm is pivotably attached to one end of the changeable length means.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 4, 1998
    Date of Patent: April 11, 2000
    Assignee: C. A. P., Inc.
    Inventors: Randy J. Pederson, Steven W. Claussen, Robert L. Claussen
  • Patent number: 6006951
    Abstract: A tank with spin molded unitary polymeric walls. An upper portion of the walls have graduations indicating the amount of liquid required to fill the tank to each of the graduations, and the walls are sufficiently light transmissive to afford visual observation of the level of the liquid in the upper portion of the tank. The tank has a generally funnel shaped portion adjacent its lower end decreasing in area from its upper portion to its lower end, a liquid passage opening at its lower end, a transverse wall at said upper end, and an air passage opening adjacent its upper end. A frame is provided for supporting the tank on a horizontal surface with its upper end uppermost.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 1997
    Date of Patent: December 28, 1999
    Assignee: C.A.P. Inc.
    Inventors: Michael D. O'Dougherty, Steven W. Claussen, Robert L. Claussen
  • Patent number: 5607080
    Abstract: A liquid chemical measuring system including an elongate translucent or transparent polymeric tank having an upper portion with graduations indicating the amount of liquid required to fill the tank to each of the graduations when said tank is vertically disposed, and a generally funnel shaped portion adjacent its lower end. The tank has a liquid passage opening through its lower end, and an air passage through a transverse wall at its upper end. A frame supports the tank with its upper end uppermost, a liquid valve is attached to the tank across its liquid passage opening, and an air pump is coupled to the air passage opening of the tank by a valve operated by a single lever so that it can alternatively cause vacuum or pressure in the tank, thereby allowing liquid to be drawn into the tank to measure it using the graduations and then to be forced out of the tank.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 30, 1994
    Date of Patent: March 4, 1997
    Assignee: C.A.P. Inc.
    Inventors: Michael D. O'Dougherty, Steven W. Claussen, Robert L. Claussen
  • Patent number: 5520335
    Abstract: An assembly adapted for use to spray liquids toward the ground while the assembly limits the drift of such sprayed liquids. The assembly has a frame including a supported portion adapted to be mounted on a mobile unit adapted to transport the frame along the ground, and a hood support portion including a first elongate hood support member. A plurality of separate hoods each having spaced diverging opposite front and rear side walls projecting from opposite sides of a top wall are attached along the elongate hood support member with their side walls generally parallel to said elongate hood support member and depending downwardly from said top walls of said hoods. A liquid distribution system including spray nozzles within the hoods can direct liquid spray toward the ground, whereupon the top and side walls will limit the drift of such liquid spray.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 6, 1994
    Date of Patent: May 28, 1996
    Assignee: C.A.P., Inc.
    Inventors: Steven W. Claussen, Thomas J. Gorres, Michael D. O'Dougherty, Dean W. Weckwerth
  • Patent number: 5371969
    Abstract: A polymeric spray shield assembly adapted to be connected to a support frame moved over plants growing in spaced rows from the earth and to be moved along the earth between the rows of plants while liquids such as herbicides not intended for contact with the plants in the rows are sprayed onto weeds between the rows of plants. The spray shield assembly comprises a polymeric spray shield having an inner surface defining a channel opening through an open side and front and rear ends of the spray shield, a top wall portion being adapted to have means attached thereto for suspending the spray shield from the support frame and through openings adapted to receive connector assemblies through which liquids are sprayed into the spray shield, and dependent opposite side wall portions. Stiff polymeric slotted end closure sheets are attached across the open front and rear ends of said channel to help retain the spray.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 1993
    Date of Patent: December 13, 1994
    Assignee: C. A. P., Inc.
    Inventors: Steven W. Claussen, Michael D. O'Dougherty
  • Patent number: 5319988
    Abstract: An assembly including a tray-like member having a multiplicity of parallel adjacent elongate troughs. Each of the troughs has a major portion adjacent a first edge, and a minor portion adjacent a second edge; and the assembly includes a transparent polymeric sheet sealed over the minor portions of the troughs to define receptacles for liquid. After the major portions of the troughs are positioned beneath the spray zone at a specific distance from the nozzles with the troughs extending transverse of the elongate spray zone and after liquid is sprayed through the spray nozzles upon its upper surface, the assembly can be tipped so that the liquid collected in the troughs will run into the receptacles and the comparative resultant levels of liquid the receptacles will provide a visual indication of the uniformity of the amount of liquid being delivered by the nozzles along the spray zone at the specific distance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 13, 1992
    Date of Patent: June 14, 1994
    Assignee: C.A.P., Inc.
    Inventors: Steven W. Claussen, Michael D. O'Dougherty
  • Patent number: 5195873
    Abstract: A system adapted for use to transfer desired volumes of liquid chemicals from supplies of the liquid chemicals to a container. The system includes a reversible D.C. motor driven pump for moving liquid in either of two opposite directions, a counting system for counting part revolutions of the pump, and a calibrated chamber. The pump is operated for a predetermined number of part revolutions, the volume of liquid delivered by those part revolutions is determined using the calibrated chamber, and entered into a computer which then determines the amount of liquid delivered by each part revolution of the pump. In response to appropriate inputs, the computer then determines the number of pump part revolutions needed to deliver a needed amount of liquid to a container, and activates the pump for that number of part revolutions to deliver the needed amount of liquid to the container.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 13, 1992
    Date of Patent: March 23, 1993
    Assignee: C.A.P., Inc.
    Inventors: Steven W. Claussen, Michael D. O'Dougherty
  • Patent number: 5155933
    Abstract: An elongate polymeric spray shield adapted to be connected to a support frame moved over plants growing in spaced rows from the earth to temporarily enclose the plants. The spray shield has opposite arcuate side wall portions along its axis and nozzle anchor portions along each of the side wall portions that are recessed inwardly of the spray shield from the side wall portions along which they are positioned. Each nozzzle anchor portion has a generally planar anchor part having a generally centered through opening adapted to receive a liquid outlet nozzle assembly with the axis of a nozzle in the assembly oriented at a right angle to the surfaces of the anchor part and the outlet end of the nozzle adjacent the inner surface of the side wall portion oriented at a predetermined relationship relative to the side wall portions to direct spray from the nozzle in a desired pattern.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 2, 1991
    Date of Patent: October 20, 1992
    Inventors: Steven W. Claussen, Robert L. Claussen
  • Patent number: 4947581
    Abstract: A spray shield assembly adapted to be moved over row crops to temporarily enclose the crops when liquids are sprayed onto them or the ground around them, which assembly includes a liquid distribution system for distributing liquid to outlet nozzles, and a polymeric shield defining a channel opening through one side and front and rear ends of the shield for receiving the crops. The shield has a converging leading portion for directing portions of plants into the channel, and a semi cylindrical portion in which the nozzles are mounted, with two of the nozzles in one of an array of openings in opposite sides of the shield, which arrays of openings allow adjusting the location of the nozzles to accommodate the portion of the plants desired to be sprayed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 23, 1989
    Date of Patent: August 14, 1990
    Assignee: C.A.P., Inc.
    Inventors: Steven W. Claussen, William A. Schwendemann, Jr.
  • Patent number: 4562863
    Abstract: A flow indicator that can visually indicate to an implement operator whether or not there is an equal flow rate of liquids through multiple liquid outlet lines on the implement. The flow indicator includes wall portions defining a manifold adapted to be connected in the system to receive liquid output from a pump, and transparent generally parallel closely spaced tubular members having similarly sized through openings communicating with the manifold, increasing in diameter from their inlet ends, and having outlet ends coupled to the outlet lines. Normally, liquid is pumped into the manifold and flows out the tubular members with equal flow rates so that similarly sized indicating members visible in the tubular members will be horizontally aligned. If the operator observes one indicating member out of alignment, this will indicate that one of the outlet lines is obstructed and in need of attention.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 27, 1984
    Date of Patent: January 7, 1986
    Inventors: Robert L. Claussen, Steven W. Claussen
  • Patent number: D356629
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 1993
    Date of Patent: March 21, 1995
    Assignee: C.A.P., Inc.
    Inventors: Steven W. Claussen, Michael D. O'Dougherty
  • Patent number: D372298
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 6, 1994
    Date of Patent: July 30, 1996
    Assignee: C.A.P., Inc.
    Inventors: Steven W. Claussen, Michael D. O'Dougherty
  • Patent number: D379490
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 30, 1994
    Date of Patent: May 27, 1997
    Assignee: C.A.P. Inc.
    Inventors: Michael D. O'Dougherty, Steven W. Claussen