Abstract: A heat recovery device is disclosed which is adapted for use in the drain conduit of standard shower installations having a hot water line, a cold water line, means for mixing water from both lines to deliver water at a suitable temperature to a shower head, and a drain conduit for disposing of waste water passing through the shower installation, the heat recovery device transferring heat from the waste water to cold water flowing to the cold water line. The heat recovery device has a first conduit connected into the drain conduit of the shower installation, and a second conduit connected into the cold water line leading into the shower installation and either wrapped around or inserted within the first conduit so that the second conduit is in operative heat transfer relationship with warm waste water passing through the first conduit, so that the incoming cold water is preheated by heat recovered from the waste water and transferred to the cold water.

Abstract: An article dispensing and positioning device is disclosed in which a plurality of rectangular articles such as dominos or the like are placed on a flat surface in a plurality of parallel rows and in evenly spaced relationship with each other in each row. In one embodiment, the device includes a plurality of article dispensing assemblies mounted in a unitary housing which is capable of being propelled along the flat surface, preferably by motor mounted in the housing. In another embodiment, each article dispensing assembly is an integral unit, a plurality of which can be removably attached together to form a plurality of rows of dominos or the like.

Abstract: A thermally insulated floating beverage container holding device is disclosed which has an elongate body member having a peripheral side wall and a bottom wall closing the side wall to form a chamber for receiving a typical round bottle or aluminum can beverage container therein. The side wall has an upper portion that is substantially thicker than the remaining portion of the side wall to provide floation for the holding device, and a weight is suitably secured to the bottom of the holding device to proide sufficient stability that the device holds a beverage container upright both when immersed in water so that neither will beverage spill from the container nor will water get into the container to contaminate the beverage, and when the device is placed on a dry surface.

Abstract: A wide angle rear view mirror assembly for a motor vehicle has a supplemental optically flat wide angle mirror element mounted in a frame which in turn is mounted on the main rear view mirror assembly of a motor vehicle in juxtaposition with the main frame of the main rear view mirror assembly. The wide angle rear view mirror assembly is an after market device in one embodiment and is adapted to be mounted directly on the main mirror element of the main rear view mirror assembly, but can also be integrally built into the housing of the main rear view mirror assembly so as to constitute a feature of the automobile as manufactured. Either way, the wide angle rear view mirror assembly substantially increases the driver's rear view angle of vision utilizing an optically flat mirror, and also has provision for changing the vertical position of the angle of reflection of the wide angle mirror to accommodate different driving circumstances which affect what the driver sees in the wide angle mirror.

Abstract: Disclosed is an apparatus and method for modifying standard semiconductor wafer tranfer apparatus and method to permit the standard semiconductor wafer transfer apparatus and method to function with wafers that are extremely thin and flexible and are warped sufficiently out of planar configuration that it is impossible to establish a sufficient vacuum between the lower surface of the wafer and the upper surface of the transfer instrumentality. A positive gaseous medium pressure is applied to the upper surface of the wafer around the periphery thereof to cause those areas that are flexed upwardly to flex downwardly and contact the upper surface of the transfer instrumentality so that a sufficient vacuum can be established between the lower surface of the wafer and the upper surface of the transfer instrumentality to cause the wafer to be firmly secured to the transfer instrumentality to be transferred thereby from one location to another.

Abstract: A door opening and closing device for a handicapped person dependent on a wheel chair and or crutches for mobility is disclosed, which includes a housing generally sized for a person to hold in his hand, the housing having a peripheral opening. A reel is rotatably mounted within the housing, and an elongate flexible member is would on the reel and extends through the peripheral opening. A resilient member in the housing is interconnected between the housing and the flexible member such that it is stressed when the flexible member is withdrawn from the housing such that it will retract the flexible member back into the housing with the withdrawing force is removed. A grasping member is connected to the free end of the flexible member which has a configuration such that it will easily grasp the shaft housing of a conventional door knob and not slip off when the flexible member is pulled to open or close the door.

Abstract: A high security gun lock device is disclosed which has an elongate gripping and locking assembly that is inserted into the muzzle end of the barrel of a revolver or pistol type hand gun and which is then connected to a dummy round located in a cylinder chamber of the revolver or the firing chamber of the pistol. The dummy round has a bulbous head which is grasped by a plurality of expandable gripping fingers mounted on the inner end of the gripping and locking assembly to lock the latter to the former. An axially slidable actuating mechanism is manually operable to cause the gripping fingers to release the bulbous head of the bullet, and a spring biased interposer is normally operable to prevent movement of the actuating mechanism until a locking mechanism is set to a predetermined condition to permit operation of the interposer.

Abstract: A key depression inhibitor device for a computer keyboard is disclosed which is intended to prevent accidental or inadvertent manual depression of a certain key or combination of keys on a computer keyboard. The device has top, side and end walls which form a generally hollow cover adapted to fit over a single key or certain combinations of key in the "F" key section, page control key section and cursor control key section of a computer keyboard. The device is constructed to fit snugly over the key or combination of keys which it is intended to cover and to be readily removable therefrom, so that it can be installed and removed at will as needed.

Abstract: A flying disk toy is disclosed which includes a generally flat, circular body member surrounded by a radially curved annulus, such as in a typical FRISBEE.TM. toy, and which includes a liquid reservoir on the body member, and endless conduit around the body member in the curvature of the annulus, conduits connecting the reservoir to the endless conduit, and a plurality of pairs of radially aligned apertures in the endless conduit and the annulus, with the result that liquid stored in the reservoir flows through the radially extending conduits into the endless conduit and out through the radially aligned opening in response to centrifugal force imposed on the liquid by a spinning motion imparted to the disk toy when it is thrown into a flight pattern.

Abstract: A high security gun lock device is disclosed which has an elongate gripping and locking assembly that is inserted into the muzzle end of the barrel of a revolver or pistol type hand gun and which is then connected to a dummy round located in a cylinder chamber of the revolver or the firing chamber of the pistol. The dummy round has a bulbous head which is grasped by a plurality of expandable gripping fingers mounted on the inner end of the gripping and locking assembly to lock the latter to the former. An axially slidable actuating mechanism is manually operable to cause the gripping fingers to release the bulbous head of the bullet, and a spring biased interposer is normally operable to prevent movement of the actuating mechanism until a locking mechanism is set to a predetermined condition to permit operation of the interposer.

Abstract: A machine for accumulating and for stacking a plurality of documents in a first plane so that the leading end of the documents are in a shingled relationship. Upon actuation of a system of first and second pairs of feed rollers, the documents in a stack are fed along a path leading to an angularly disposed, first buckle chute of a folding device. While traveling within the first buckle chute, the first and second pairs of feed rollers cause the leading end of the stack of documents to become aligned in relationship, thereby providing squarely folded groups of documents when the folds are made in a folding device within the machine.

Abstract: A simplified sheet folding and envelope inserting machine is disclosed for folding and inserting of the folded sheets into envelopes. The machine is designed so that immediate access is gained when the top half is pivoted open. When opened, the first buckle chute is automatically opened, and access to another buckle chute is achieved by pivotally raising the upper wall of the other buckle chute. Jam access to the envelope filling station is immediate, since the sheet inlet guide is positioned over the inserting station, and the inlet guide raises with the top half of the machine.

Abstract: In a mail processing machine, there is at least one mail piece separating and feeding device for handling vertically oriented mail pieces to assure that only one mail piece at a time is fed into the mail processing machine. A feeding roller is positioned in a feed path defined by guide plates to keep the mail pieces in a vertical orientation, and a separator belt is mounted on a plurality of rollers mounted on a bell crank, one of the rollers being a drive roller. The bell crank is resiliently urged toward an adjustable stop member so that, a predetermined minimum gap is maintained between the outer surface of the belt and the adjacent surface of the feeding roller regardless of the extend of wear on the belt.

Abstract: A tape feeding apparatus is provided for preventing the feeding of successive strips of tape unless and until the manual activator for the tape feeding mechanism has been allowed to return to its manual in operative position. There is a tape feeding apparatus, a drive apparatus for driving the tape feeding apparatus, and a clutch interposed there between. A latching mechanism normally maintains the clutch disengaged to prevent the driving apparatus from driving the tape feeding apparatus. A second clutch is interposed between the latching mechanism and a manually movable actuator for normally engaging and providing a direct connection between the movable actuator and the latching mechanism so as to disable the latching mechanism when the actuator is moved to the actuating position, and thus allowing the first clutch to engage and cause the driving apparatus to drive the tape feeding apparatus.

Abstract: Sheet processing machinery including a bursting machine and a folding machine has a sheet conveying apparatus disposed there-between. The sheet conveying apparatus is pivotably mounted to allow service to an area adjacent to the input end of the following machine. A drive apparatus connected to the sheet processing machinery is disengaged to allow upward pivoting of the sheet conveying apparatus from a horizontal position to a retracted position, whereupon the service access may be achieved.

Abstract: A xerographic copying machine is adapted to receive toner supplied from an inverted toner supply bottle having a frangible seal member covering its outlet. The toner bottle is inserted by an operator through an access receptacle within the copier which normally covers a toner developing apparatus and toner supply container. During insertion, mutually engaging components of the toner bottle and a cooperating connecting apparatus are aligned to enable operative association of the components when the toner bottle is manually turned. In addition, during insertion the frangible seal member normally sealing the toner bottle dispensing opening is punctured by a piercing member associated with an actuating device including a cutting device rotatably mounted on the connecting apparatus. When the bottle is turned, the piercing member is caused to rotate within the neck opening of the bottle, thereby helping the toner to be dumped through the toner loading apparatus and into the toner supply container.

Abstract: A document stacking and conveying apparatus has a plurality of document stacking and conveying units which are disposed at one end of a third elongate document stacking and conveying apparatus. The third unit has a conveyor for moving a stack of documents while a compressing device holds another stack which is stationary upon the conveyor deck of the third unit so that the moving stack of documents can be added to the downstream stack.

Abstract: A method and associate apparatus for providing a scanner interface circuit for a universal multi-station document inserter having a plurality of document feeder stations has a central processor which stores a supervisory program and scanner interface circuits associated with at least some of the feeder stations. Each scanner interface circuit has a unique address, a portion of which is shared with that of its associated feeder station and a distributed processor which stores a scanner program containing instructions for scanning coded documents. The scanner circuit, in response to address signals received from the central processor, scans the coded document and provides document present and end of collation signals to the central processor. A programmable counter is provided in the scanner circuit to provide timing signals for reading codes on coded documents.

Abstract: An envelope stacking machine has a conveyor for feeding envelopes in a substantially vertical orientation along a predetermined path of travel. There is an elongate envelope stacking support for receiving envelopes directed to the support from a transfer device which pushes the envelopes against an envelope abutment member having a force converting apparatus attached thereto for maintaining a substantially uniform resisting force against the incoming stream of envelopes. The force converting apparatus contains resilient and flexible devices which operate in conjunction with a rotary displacement device to achieve the substantially uniform resisting force.

Abstract: A printing machine such as a postage meter has the capability of printing value indicia on material by means of a printing device having a plurality of selectably positioned printing wheels with a plurality of spaced apart numerical printing members arranged about the periphery of each wheel. The printing wheels are mounted for rotation on a common axis and each wheel has a concentrically located gear mounted on one side. The number of gear teeth in each printing wheel gear corresponds to the number of printing members and tooth spaces located in drivem members which mesh with the printing wheel gears in a predetermined synchronous relationship associated with the drive members. The printing wheel gears further have non-disfigured gear teeth as well as at least one disfigured gear tooth which meshes with correspondingly shaped spaces on each drive member so that any forced change in the synchronous relationship will render the postage meter inoperative.