Abstract: A fastener device attached to the shoulder strap of a foundation garment, such as a brassiere, for securing the undersurface of an overlying outer garment worn over the shoulder straps to conceal the shoulder strap from view.

Abstract: An apparatus for continuously filling and preparing pots for receiving plants including an endless conveyor chain supporting a plurality of pot receiver elements and for continuously carrying pots from a pot loading station through a filling station for filling the pots with potting soil, and through a pot drilling station for drilling holes in the soil for receiving plants and a pot ejector station. The pots are loaded, filled, drilled, and ejected while the pots move continuously through the various stations. The pot drilling mechanism includes a rotary turret supporting a plurality of circumferentially spaced rotating drills which are adapted to reciprocate vertically as they revolve about the rotary axis of the turret, so that each drill will be lowered into a pot for drilling a hole in the soil while moving at the same speed and direction as the pot.

Abstract: A phonetic alphabet in script form called soundwriting was first adapted to English with thirty-seven letters, each representing a separate speech sound. The script uses no silient letters or other learning blocks. Spelling is made regular using soundwriting. It is adapted to a keyboard.By adding additional letters to represent new sounds the script has been expanded to include sounds of French, Spanish, Italian and German with only forty-six symbols. The spelling of these languages in soundwriting is also completely phonetic which eliminates spelling difficulties in these languages. New letters to expand soundwriting are on the keyboard. A temporary letter is used when adapting a new language to soundwriting until a permanent letter is designed for it and placed on the keyboard. Soundwriting provides a simpler and easier way of learning the vocabularies of languages to which it is adapted.

Abstract: A breast receptor for a breast pump having means for creating a vacuum within the breast receptor in which the wall thicknesses of the flexed portions of the receptor engaging the nipple and areola are reduced in order to produce optimum lactating conditions, including optimum responsiveness to the external touch stimulus, and which will most nearly simulate the mouth of a suckling infant.

Abstract: A light-weight, shoulder-firable, armor-penetrating gun characterized by a recoiling barrel confined to coaxial movement by a pair of longitudinally spaced bushings within the gun housing, the recoiling barrel being adapted to carry rearward the elongated bolt carrier containing the bolt for compressing the recoil spring, and a stop mechanism associated with the barrel and the housing for limiting the rearward travel of the barrel for early disengagement between the barrel and the bolt carrier, and a barrel spring in the front of the housing for returning the barrel to its normal battery position.

Abstract: A cloth feed apparatus particularly adapted for feeding a heavy cloth roll mounted on a cloth spreading machine. The cloth feed apparatus includes a pair of freely rotatable transverse support rollers in a cloth support frame for supporting substantially the entire weight of a heavy cloth roll transversely of the spreading machine. A cloth feed roller element, in tangential engagement with the outer surface of the cloth roll without supporting any substantial part of the weight of the cloth roll, is driven to feed cloth from the roll. The feed roller element may include a plurality of transversely cleated gripping members and a plurality of transversely spaced belt members entrained about the feed roller element.The cloth feed apparatus also preferably includes a front dancer roller for controlling the speed of the cloth feed roller element and a rear retainer roller movable betweeen a lower loading position and an upper retaining position, to facilitate loading the cloth roll on the support rollers.

Abstract: An emergency landing system for an aircraft, particularly a helicopter, in which a plurality of rocket members are mounted on the fuselage of the aircraft and directed downward about the center of gravity of the fuselage. The rocket members are activated to direct upward reactive forces by the energization of a proximity switch located on the fuselage and adapted to sense the ground level when the fuselage has descended within a predetermined elevation above the ground level so that the downward movement of a disabled aircraft is substantially decelerated to provide a soft landing for the aircraft. The landing system may be adapted for use on a fixed wing aircraft by directing the rocket members to exert reactive forces rearward as well as upward to retard the forward as well as downward movement of a disabled fixed wing aircraft.

Abstract: A money clip, including a base clip member and an operative clip member in which the operative clip member has a pair of legs terminating in opposed journals pivotally mounted in bearings to provide offset parallel pivotal axes for the operative clip member. The operative clip member is adapted to move through an over-center position between a closed, clamping position and an inoperative, open position.

Abstract: A looper apparatus for a multiple needle tufting machine in which the bill of each cut pile hook is shaped to have a rear straight cutting portion and a free end portion transversely offset from the cutting portion to seize a loop from a corresponding needle and guide the loop along a path offset from the normal longitudinal row of stitching in order to extend the side of the loop on the cutting side of the hook so that, when the loop is cut, the legs of the cut pile tuft will be substantially equal.

Abstract: An apparatus for dispensing frusto-conical pots, such as nursery or plant pots, including a pair of pivotally connected arm members arranged for movement toward and away from each other on opposite sides of a stack of pots to be dispensed. Each arm member, or each set of arm members, supports a plurality of feed cylinders, each having a spiral groove in its cylindrical surface, adapted to engage opposite sides of the stack of pots and adapted to be rotated in a direction to cause the lowermost pot or pots to separate and drop from the upper pots in the stack. An adjustment mechanism is included for moving the arm members toward and away from each other in order to accommodate stacked pots of different diameters. An overhead conveyor may be provided for feeding stacks of pots to the dispensing position between the arm members.

Abstract: An apparatus for treating the marginal edge portion of a shoe sole, including a longitudinally reciprocable carriage supporting a template having an opening or cavity of generally the same profile as and smaller than, a sole to be treated, whereby the sole is supported on the template covering the opening. A suction is created within the covered opening to draw the central portion of the sole down into the opening while the marginal edge portion of the sole is supported on the top of the pattern member. The carriage is driven longitudinally beneath a transverse pressure roller at an elevation to cause a transverse knife to engage only the supported marginal edge portion of the sole to split the same, while passing over the depressed central portion of the sole. After the sole has been split, the vacuum is removed to facilitate discharge of the cut sole.

Abstract: A method of increasing the whiteness of a mineral filler, such as limestone, having a natural yellow tint, including the grinding of the limestone to a pulverulent size and introducing into the limestone, preferably while it is being ground, a blue pigment in an amount sufficient to optically transform the natural yellow tint to a predetermined degree of whiteness.

Abstract: A needle plate member for a staggered needle tufting machine in which the rear free edge of the needle plate is provided with transversely spaced notches therein for receiving the passage of the front needles while supporting the base fabric being stitched by the front needles and a plurality of rearward projecting forked finger members alternating with the notches and projecting rearward of the rear free edge of the needle plate for receiving the passage of the vertically reciprocable rear needles while supporting the portions of the base fabric stitched by the rear needles. The needle plate member is particularly adapted for use with a separate mechanism for laterally shifting the base fabric in a staggered needle tufting machine to produce dense tufted pile fabric and particularly pile fabric having multiple rows of stitching transversely spaced less than the needle gauge.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for positioning a rear trailer relative to a front trailer in a tractor-trailer tandem assembly in order to facilitate the connection of the rear trailer to the front trailer. The method includes laterally shifting a rear trailer to a connecting position behind a pre-positioned front trailer and tractor combination by placing the rear trailer upon a moveable platform, capable of being moved laterally from an initial position offset from the linear path of the tandem assembly, to a connecting position immediately behind the front trailer of the tandem assembly. The tandem assembly is then moved slightly rearwardly in order to automatically connect the connector member on the rear of the front trailer with the front end of the rear trailer.

Abstract: A process and an apparatus for rinsing a chemically treated or plated article by sequentially moving the article initially over a chemical solution bath and subsequently over a plurality of rinse baths, in which the article is sprayed as it rises from each successive bath with a less concentrated rinse solution from the next succeeding bath.

Abstract: A power module for an electrostatic air cleaner in which an electronic power supply circuit and its components are enclosed within a relatively small modular housing having an AC voltage input in the form of plug-in blades particularly adapted to be inserted within a standard or conventional AC electrical outlet, and a cable for transmitting the high-voltage DC output from the housing to the air cleaner.

Abstract: An elongated unitary tie-down rail adapted to fit the top ledge of the sidewall of a truck bed, including a bottom flange and an upright flange formed at an acute angle. The top portion of the upright flange terminates in an enlarged elongated rod portion, and a plurality of longitudinally spaced slots are formed in the upright flange immediately below the rod portion to receive tie-down members for securing a load within the truck bed.

Abstract: Living quarters for a space vehicle including a rotary cylindrical module enclosing a living compartment for human occupancy, and means for rotating the module about its longitudinal central axis to create a force of approximately 1 G within the module adjacent the outer wall, and an entrance opening formed within one end wall of the cylindrical module to permit the passage of a human coccupant from the zero-gravity space within a space vehicle into the artificial-gravity environment of the living compartment. An inside ladder is mounted within the living compartment, extending radially from the entrance opening to the outside wall of the cylindrical housing to permit the occupant to move from a zero-gravity environment gradually toward the 1 G environment. A platform, such as an outside ladder, is preferably rotatably mounted outside the module adjacent the entrance opening to permit an occupant standing upon the platform to easily pass through the entrance opening into the living compartment.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for dehydrating a metal hydroxide sludge, including depositing the concentrated metal hydroxide sludge containing approximately 60-80% water into a feed hopper, breaking up the concentrated sludge with rotary beaters and preferably a rotary breaker bar, then transferring the broken sludge through a feed auger to an elongated dehydrater chamber in which the sludge is conveyed longitudinally along the dehydrater chamber by a dryer auger continuously in contact with a longitudinally flowing hot gas. The moisture-laden hot gas is exhausted from the outlet end of the dehydrater chamber while the dryed sludge is deposited through a discharge port.

Abstract: A lawn mower hitch assembly including a leading hitch device and a trailing hitch device secured to a respective leading mower vehicle and a trailing mower vehicle, and operatively connected to each other for free pivotal movement about a substantially vertical axis, whereby one or more lawn mower vehicles can be towed in tandem and in offset lateral relationship by a leading tractor vehicle.