Abstract: Methods of completing a subterranean well provide access to a portion of a parent wellbore which has been closed off by a lateral wellbore liner. In a preferred embodiment, a method includes the steps of depositing cement in the lateral wellbore liner and then drilling through the cement and liner utilizing a bent motor housing conveyed on coiled tubing. The cement provides lateral support for a cutting tool while it is milling through the liner.

Abstract: To reduce undesirable scrap wastage in fabrication thereof, the rectangular metal frame section of a supply air register is formed from four separate side and end stampings having generally U-shaped cross sections along their lengths, and overlapping corner sections joined at both inner and outer peripheral portions of the frame structure to provide it with enhanced strength and rigidity. Side portions of the side and end stampings form in the frame structure an integral rectangular base section in which the flow rate adjustment damper blade and directional adjustment vane portions of the register are directly mounted to avoid the necessity of a separate support frame structure for these portions of the overall supply air register assembly.

Abstract: A fuel-fired fireplace insert has a compact combination heat exchanger/draft hood structure extending interiorly along its top side and opening outwardly through an upwardly extending flue gas outlet and a dilution air inlet disposed on a top front side portion of the insert. During insert operation, hot combustion gas generated within its fire box portion flows upwardly into the interior of the heat exchanger/draft hood structure, is cooled by room air entering the dilution air inlet, and is discharged through the flue gas outlet. At the same time, room air enters the insert through an opening on a lower front side thereof, is heated by being passed externally along the fire box and the combination heat exchanger/draft hood structure, and is then discharged from the insert back into the room through openings adjacent the dilution air opening.

Abstract: An abrasive slurry delivery apparatus and associated method of using permit repeated and/or extended use of the apparatus in a subterranean wellbore and reduces abrasive wear of the casing during fracturing operations without requiring the disposal of expensive items of equipment after each fracturing operation. In a preferred embodiment, an abrasive slurry delivery apparatus has a tubular crossover member with an internal flow passage and side wall outlet openings, and a tubular protective member with outlet openings aligned with, but axially and circumferentially smaller than, the crossover outlet openings, coaxially disposed within the crossover.

Abstract: To determine the tensile breaking force of a selected rod/wrap member weld joint in a metal screen of a tubular sand screen assembly used in downhole oil and gas recovery operations a test specimen, including a single rod segment and arcuate segments of the wrap member welded thereto, is removed from the screen. The removed test specimen is supported between base and cover portions of a specially designed test fixture, and a compressive force is exerted on the fixture to forcibly move the base and cover portions thereof toward one another. Representatively, the fixture is operatively positioned in a conventional spring test machine that exerts such compressive force on the fixture. The base and cover portions of the test fixture are configured such that the compressive force is converted to a tensile force exerted on a selected single rod/wrap weld joints in the specimen, with the spring test machine recording the tensile force exerted on the weld joint at its breakage.

Abstract: A tank type toilet has a water saving, vacuum-assisted flushing system that incorporates a diverter valve disposed in the tank portion of the toilet. During the flushing of the toilet, pressurized water is discharged from a ballcock valve assembly in the tank and delivered to the diverter valve which creates from the received water a water jet that is used to create a vacuum area within the diverter valve. The vacuum area is communicated with an uppermost interior portion of the bowl trapway to facilitate a main flushing action in the bowl that requires less flushing water. At the same time, the water jet entrains tank water therein, through water inlet openings in the diverter valve body, and delivers the jet and entrained water to the rim flushing passage of the bowl to augment the vacuum-assisted main flushing action.

Abstract: A thermally actuated deflector structure for automatically varying the air discharge pattern of a ceiling diffuser in response to a sensed change in the temperature of air being delivered to the diffuser includes a multi-bladed damper assembly positioned over a central outlet portion of the diffuser and having a frame portion secured to the diffuser. The blades in the damper assembly are drivable between a cooling orientation in which they block the central diffuser portion and preclude supply air flow downwardly therethrough, and a heating orientation in which they uncover the central diffuser portion and permit supply air flow downwardly therethrough. A coiled bimetallic actuating strip is positioned above the damper assembly and has an inner end anchored to the damper frame, and an outer end secured to a drive member linked to the damper blades.

Abstract: A battery charging/data transfer structure is provided for use in conjunction with a handheld computer to charge its battery and serve as an infrared data exchange interface between the handheld computer and a data input/output device such as a desktop computer. The structure includes a support housing having an inset well area configured to receive and releasably hold a portion of the handheld computer in a docked orientation. With the handheld computer in this docked orientation a battery charging contact member in the well area contacts a charging area on the received computer portion and transfers battery-charging electrical energy thereto.

Abstract: To facilitate the registered connection between a BGA package and an associated multi-tiered circuit board, a spaced series of vias are formed transversely through the board substrate between its opposite first and second sides. A spaced series of relatively shallow, circularly cross-sectioned socket areas, offset from the vias, are also formed on the first side of the circuit board. The sockets have diameters slightly larger that those of the generally ball-shaped leads of the BGA package, and are positioned on the same centerline pattern as the leads. After the vias and sockets are formed, a metal plating material is deposited on their interiors and around their open ends on the first board side, with the plating being extended across the first board side between associated socket and via pairs.

Abstract: Using a relatively simple four piece conversion kit consisting of a replacement control bracket, and vertically enlarged top housing portion, drive bay and expansion card cage replacement structures, a relatively small frame personal desktop computer is converted to a larger frame computer having upgraded expansion card and drive installation capacities. The upgrading process is effected simply by removing the existing top housing portion, drive bay, expansion card cage and control panel bracket, installing the replacement drive bay, expansion card cage and control panel bracket on the existing bottom side portion of the computer, and then operatively connecting the vertically enlarged top housing portion to the existing housing base wall. Other than the four components of the conversion kit, all of the components in the original computer are reused in the resulting upgraded computer.

Abstract: In a retrievable packer adapted for service under high temperature and pressure conditions, improved sealing is provided by a seal element prop surface which is radially offset with respect to the seal element support surface of the packer body mandrel. At least one seal element is supported on the elevated prop surface and is subjected to a radial squeeze in the set configuration, even though the lowermost seal element may be subject to longitudinal separation. The split level seal element support arrangement provides an annular pocket into which the seal elements can be retracted upon release and retrieval of the packer, thereby providing clearance for unobstructed retrieval. Upon release of the packer, a retainer collar is shifted away from a lower metal backup shoe, thereby providing an annular pocket into which the metal backup shoe is deflected, so that it does not obstruct the drift clearance as the packer is retrieved.

Abstract: A computer is provided with a pair of internal PCMCIA card connection chambers opening outwardly through a pair of housing side wall slots through which PCMCIA cards may be inserted into and withdrawn from the chambers. To facilitate the disconnection and withdrawal of the inserted cards each chamber is provided with a mechanically leveraged card ejector mechanism positioned within a thin space between the facing sides of the inserted card and a housing wall portion of the chamber, and disposed essentially entirely within the peripheral footprint of the inserted card. Each ejector mechanism includes a manually operable actuating plate slidably disposed on the outer side of the computer housing, a card receiving/ejection plate overlying the actuating plate within the housing, and a lever plate sandwiched between the actuating plate and receiving/ejection plate and pivotally connected to the housing.

Abstract: To facilitate a grounding connection between a circuit board and a chassis upon which it is to be mounted, a spaced series of unlined mounting holes are formed through the substrate portion of the circuit board between its top and bottom sides, and spaced series of grounding vias are formed through the substrate and positioned in a circular arrays around each of the mounting holes. Annular layers of a metallic plating material are formed on the opposite sides of the circuit board substrate, around the top and bottom ends of the unlined mounting holes, with the plating material being extended along the interior side surfaces of the vias between associated top and bottom annular plating material layers.

Abstract: Using a specially designed push-on coupling structure the facing end portions of two tubular well completion structures, such as a length of coil tubing and a tubular coupling member, are fixedly and sealing connected to one another simply by pushing one of the end portions into the other end portions. The coupling structure includes an O-ring seal member carried by one of the end portions for creating a fluid tight seal between the telescoped end portions; a radial projection carried by one of the end portions and receivable in a side wall slot in the other end portion for preventing appreciable relative rotation between the telescoped end portions; and an axially split locking ring member coaxially threaded onto one of the end portions and having a gripping thread section disposed thereon and operative to engage the other end portion in a manner permitting the two end portions to be initially telescoped with one another but precluding their subsequent axial separation.

Abstract: A webbed boss is integrally formed on and projects outwardly from the nominal surface of a wall portion of an injection molded plastic part and has a specially designed cross-section along its length that increases the strength of the boss, in both bending and twisting modes, without increasing the tendency of creating a sink mark on the cosmetic side surface of the wall portion beneath the boss. Representatively, along its length the boss has a generally cross-shaped cross section defined by four webs that meet, at inner cross-sectional ends thereof, at a square junction area of the boss. Each boss has an outer side edge portion with a thickness at the nominal wall side surface of about 60% of the wall portion thickness. From such outer side edge portion, the opposite sides of each of the bosses taper inwardly to the junction area in a manner such that the maximum thickness of the junction area parallel to the nominal side surface is about 60% of the wall portion thickness.

Abstract: To improve the serviceability, manufacturability and uptime for a computer file server a specially designed planar/riser card assembly is mounted on the computer chassis and includes a card cage structure in which a riser card is secured. Carried on the riser card are I/O card edge connector sockets into which all of the system I/O cards may be plugged. The riser card is hard connected into the system and itself has an edge connector portion. The system planar board is carried on a mounting plate which is screwed to an outer side of the cage structure. A socket connector carried on the planar board receives the edge connector portion of the riser card, thereby electrically coupling the planar board to the riser card. The riser serves as a wiring plane containing only the signals which the planar board would normally provide to the I/O cards through "on planar" connectors.

Abstract: To facilitate the registered connection between a ball grid array package and an associated multi-tiered circuit board, a spaced series of vias are formed transversely through the board substrate between its opposite first and second sides. A spaced series of relatively shallow, circularly cross-sectioned socket areas, offset from the vias, are also formed on the first side of the circuit board. The sockets have diameters slightly larger that those of the generally ball-shaped leads of the BGA package, and are positioned on the same centerline pattern as the leads. After the vias and sockets are formed, a multi-layer metallic coating is deposited on their interiors and around their open ends on the first board side, with the coating being extended across the first board side between associated socket and via pairs.

Abstract: A printed circuit board is mounted on the inner side of a conductively coated plastic computer housing wall using a screwless retention and grounding system molded integrally with the housing wall and including a spaced series of upstanding hook plate portions extendable through a series of elongated slots in the circuit board body and positioned in spaced, facing relationships with corresponding contact tab portions. The board is releasably mounted by pressing it inwardly against the tabs in a manner causing the hook plates to extend through the board slots, and causing the board to depress a resilient latch member formed on the housing wall. The board is then slid along the tabs until the latch pops up and releasably locks the board to the contact tabs with the outer ends of the hook plates overlying the board.

Abstract: A longitudinally spaced series of tubular nipple structures are installed in a well flow conductor operatively extended through a subterranean well bore. Each nipple structure has a thinned-wall, increased interior diameter longitudinal section through which a plurality of fluid flow openings laterally extend, and an interior side surface annular tool locator recess, with each such recess having a profile different than those of all of the other tool locator recesses. The thinned-wall longitudinal sections of the nipples facilitate the formation of the flow openings therein. To seal off the flow openings in any selected one of these longitudinal nipple sections, a radially expandable tubular metal patch is supported on a setting tool which is lowered into the well flow conductor. A locator member complementarily and lockably receivable by the locator recess of the selected nipple is also supported on the tool.