Abstract: A nut, threaded onto the end portion of a bolt receives a cup shaped cover having an internal radial groove receiving an O-ring therein. The O-ring frictionally holds the cover on the nut. The nut is octagonal, hexagonal or square.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for producing spherical objects is disclosed, the apparatus having a reservoir filled with a relatively dense molten material, the reservoir being heated and hydraulically pressurized to maintain the molten state of the dense material. A second molten liquid, of lesser density and higher melting point is injected into the reservoir, the pressure and surface tension acting to force the injected material into a spherical form and the melting point difference acting to solidify the injected material.

Abstract: An adjustable desk-top assembly is disclosed having upper, lower, and inner side panels, the upper and lower panels being spaced apart for forming a compartmentalized enclosure. The desk-top has an adjustable work surface capable of assuming a slope and a centralized cut-out portion therein for extending in a semi-circle around the user of the desk. The inner or door panels, are releasably secured and can be removed for accommodating any of a number of suitable components. The slope imparted to the work surface can be adjusted to an optimum level for the particular task and, by imparting greater slope and covering the components therein, a security measure is also provided.

Abstract: A method and device for supporting a carcass or carcass portion of slaughtered poultry for the purpose of performing processing operations thereon, said carcass or carcass portion being clamped in position by means of support members forming an acute angle, in such a manner that, with a view to performing such operations, the carcass and portions thereof are externally freely accessible, said support members acting on carcass portions located in the vicinity of the neck opening.

Abstract: An apparatus and process for producing cheese straws and the like is disclosed, the apparatus including a mixing and extruding device from which the mixed dough is forced through a die having a plurality of outlets. The dough is received on a conveyor where it is cut into segments and baked. The process involves mixing flour, cheese, margarine and seasonings in specific proportions, the apparatus and process being capable of producing approximately eighteen hundred dozen cheese straws per hour.

Abstract: An apparatus for combining fluids having a piston assembly which controls both the flow rate and the mixture ratio. The piston assembly is carried in a housing having two inlet ports and an outlet port or mixing chamber. The housing and piston assembly also define first and second piston chambers. A first passageway permits the communication of the dominate gas port and the one piston chamber and a second passageway similarly permits the communication of the mixing chamber and the another piston chamber. The relative pressures in the first and second piston chambers influences the axial position of the piston which controls flow rate. Rotation of the piston controls mixture ratio.

Abstract: A rock breaking device adapted to be coupled to the lifting arms of a tractor or similar vehicle is disclosed, the device having an upstanding guide tube with a hammer, chisel, and anvil disposed therein. The hammer can be raised within the guide tube by frictional engagement with a drive member and is then allowed to fall by gravitational force to impact the chisel and/or the chisel and anvil, thereby driving the chisel into the surface to be broken. The device has a shock absorber to minimize the force of impact and as a safety feature, cannot be made operational until actually positioned on the surface to be broken.

Abstract: A bed mattress is constructed so that its opposite sides have marginal inclined surfaces which converge to form a relatively shallow truncated rectangular wedge portion on each side of the mattress for self-centering nested engagement in a similarly tapered cavity of a foundation for the mattress. The mattress may be of the innerspring type or may consist of a foam rubber slab. The mattress foundation can be framed and padded or may be formed from rigid foam plastics material.

Abstract: A double door rural type mailbox having a door actuating mechanism which extends between and is connected to the two doors to insure that only one door is open at any one time. The door mechanism also permits the opening and closing of each door independent of the opposite door when the opposite door is in its closed position.

Abstract: A fire extinguishing composition including potassium carbonate, a boron-containing compound, and water. In another embodiment, the fire extinguishing composition, in addition to the above, includes a potassium salt of an organic acid having from 1 to 6 carbon atoms. The fire extinguishing composition is non-corrosive to metals.

Abstract: A feminine urinary device which permits women, both adults and children, to urinate in a standing position. The urinary device is a disposable substantially flat flexible pad having a hingedly attached flap with expandable side walls to permit the flap to move from a collapsed flat configuration downwardly to an open expanded configuration, forming a conduit for the passing of urine when the pad is held firmly in place by the user and the conduit is aligned with the opening of the urethra. The urinary device can also be constructed by forming an aperture in the pad and attaching thereto an expandable spout to form the conduit.

Abstract: A spherical motor particularly adapted for robotic control. The motor comprises a stator housing defining a semispherical socket having an opening of generally polar cap form with a spherical rotor rotatably received in the socket for rotation therein about three axes intersecting at the center of the rotor with one of the axes projecting through the opening and the other two axes being orthogonal thereto. A motion transmitter is carried by the rotor and aligned generally along one axis to project through the opening, and windings are carried by the stator housing in encompassing and in opposed relation to the rotor for rotating the rotor about the axis. A polyphase control selectively controls relative phase and energization of the windings to rotate the spherical rotor a substantially unlimited amount about one axis and in limited amounts about the other axes so as to maintain the motion transmitting member within the confines of the opening.

Abstract: A concrete pile installation apparatus and method is disclosed wherein a device penetrates the soil to produce an opening for the formation of the pile. Fill material, such as grout, is introduced into the opening and a potential vacuum void created in the formation of the pile is vented to the atmosphere to prevent the pulling of surrounding soil into the opening and thereby causing the formation of a defective pile.

Abstract: An efficiency monitoring device determines the efficiency of a machine and operator where the machine is turned off and on by the operator. Efficiency is determined by first monitoring the cycle speed of a machine by means of a light source, a reflective tape, and a photoelectric cell which produces a signal from which a digital computer can continuously calculate the instantaneous cycle speed. The computer maintains a continuous time base, and then plots the cycle speed as a function of time to produce an efficiency profile for the machine and operator.

Abstract: A carpet tile assembly which resists lateral movement and a process of producing the same are disclosed, the carpet tiles having a tufted carpet layer or similar surface and a second layer of elastomeric material vulcanized to the carpet layer. The second layer has a plurality of protrusions formed therein and a plurality of spikes on the protrusions which together engage a base layer which may be either a mirror image of the second layer or a needle-punched or felt-like fiber mat to resist lateral movement of the applied tiles. The process involves tufting carpet yarn into a substrate and then vulcanizing the second, elastomeric or resilient layer to the substrate. In the vulcanization process, heat and pressure are applied to soften the elastomeric material and force the material through cavities in a perforated sheet to form the protrusions.

Abstract: Cooling-bladder assembly for installation around the mixing chamber of a sandmill or the like is provided having a pair of semi-circular bladder halves with inner and outer walls for defining an enclosure. Inlet and outlet ports connected to a suitable pump circulate coolant fluid through the enclosure, the bladder halves being secured together at the opposed vertical edges. Spacers in the form of hollow pipe section are connected to the inner and outer walls of the bladder for maintaining the integrity of the enclosure and for creating turbulence in the coolant fluid. A heat transfer or conductive paste may be applied to the outer wall of the mixing vessel or to the adjacent inner wall of the bladder to facilitate the transfer of heat from the sandmill mixing vessel to the bladder assembly.

Abstract: An apparatus for cutting an elongated workpiece of indefinite length into articles of predetermined length, in continuous fashion. The apparatus includes drive rollers to feed the workpiece, horizontal and vertical straightener rollers, and a movable carriage assembly which moves in a parallel path of travel to the workpiece. The free end of the workpiece contacts the carriage assembly and imparts movement to the assembly. The carriage assembly includes a cutter assembly for severing the workpiece, a stripper assembly for breaking the article from the workpiece, and a kick-out for sending the article to a storage bin.