Abstract: An improved contact element on a 3-way bulb that inhibits the bulb from loosening is disclosed. A special annular washer replaced the standard annular washer commonly used to connect the electrical source to the low wattage element. Rather than being a smooth washer it has a surface designed to allow the contact to move easily over the surface of the socket contact with being screwed into the socket but will provide greater friction when unscrewing the light bulbs. This will permit the user to use the light bulb until its element(s) are burned out without having to re-tighten or discard it early, mistakenly believing the low wattage element to have burned out. The new design annular contact will also create adequate friction on the socket contact's small area to clean this surface of non conductive oxides that may form over time, thereby extending the useful life of the socket switch unit.

Abstract: An efficient dual-use toilet that provides a simple, easy-to-use and reliable solution to the problem of wasted toilet flush water is disclosed. The improved toilet provides a two-compartment toilet bowl, wherein the main bowl is used for solid waste and a hydrophobic secondary bowl is used for liquid waste. When only the secondary bowl is used, the toilet does not require flushing. When the toilet is flushed for solid wastes, water simultaneously cleanses the secondary bowl. Importantly, the drain line for the secondary bowl is configured such that during the flush cycle air is prevented coming back through the sewer system and into the household. The system is fully automatic and provides a very easy-to-learn “flush and forget” solution for the user. The amount of water flushed to the sewer system is greatly reduced, and consequently so is the burden on fresh water supply systems as well as the energy cost in required to deliver water.

Abstract: A blast media recovery system is provided that recycles reusable blasting media from spent blasting materials. The system includes several different separators which classify the recovered materials by either specific gravity or size. After the materials have been classified by size and the low density materials have been removed, the bulk recycled materials are directed towards a dense particle separator that is arranged to separate any high density materials from the usable blasting media. The dense particle separator includes a frame having a plenum coupled thereto. A porous stone is placed within the plenum and the recycled materials to be cleaned are delivered into the plenum over the top surface of the porous stone. Compressed air is then passed into the plenum through the porous stone to form a fluidized bed. As more material enters the plenum, the lower density materials (i.e. the reusable blasting media) pile over the higher density materials and spill from the plenum into a media chute.

Abstract: An improved control apparatus of a motor grader for maintaining the grader blade relative to a reference line has a biasing element connected to an actuating wand and associated with the reference line for urging the reference line toward the actuating wand of the controls at a preselected force for damping undesirable vibrations of the wand.