Patents Represented by Law Firm Peterson, Palmatier, Sturm & Sjoquist
  • Patent number: 4515145
    Abstract: A gas-fired, condensing mode, hot air furnace has an exhaust passage for carrying the products of combustion from a gas burner to an exhaust flue. A heat exchanger is provided in the exhaust passage for extracting heat from the products of combustion. An air passage is provided for carrying a flow of air over the heat exchanger and a blower causes a flow of air through the air passage. The gas burner is enclosed and fires into the heat exchanger. A fresh air duct communicates with the burner enclosure for admitting fresh air thereto. A condenser is provided in the exhaust passage for removing water from the products of combustion, the condenser being exposed to the air passage. A second blower is provided in the exhaust passage for causing fluid flow therein from the fresh air inlet duct through the enclosure and the exhaust passage to the exhaust flue.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 3, 1983
    Date of Patent: May 7, 1985
    Assignee: Yukon Energy Corporation
    Inventors: William R. Tallman, Steven C. McDevitt, Warren H. Delancey
  • Patent number: 4486126
    Abstract: A pneumatic conveying apparatus for silage and haylage, including long conveying ducts to carry the air stream with haylage and silage entrained therein. A positive displacement pump produces a flow of significant quantities of air to an air lock. The air lock has a rotor with blades traveling around the cylindrical peripheral wall and end wall defining traveling air lock compartments, the peripheral wall has an opening at its upper portion defining a feed throat receiving silage and haylage from a raised hopper. A high speed rotary impeller rotor at one side of the feed throat propels the silage-haylage into the air lock compartment. The rotor has sharp edged blades wiping along the edges of the air lock rotor blades and a boundary edge of the feed opening of the air lock.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 11, 1982
    Date of Patent: December 4, 1984
    Assignee: John Hellerman
    Inventor: John Hellerman
  • Patent number: 4485699
    Abstract: The hand tool includes a drive shaft formed with axially spaced cylindrical portions has a work engaging member thereon. A bearing assembly comprised of two oppositely acting clutch units slideable within a tubular handle to engage one or the other of the cylindrical portions on the drive shaft to determine the direction in which the drive shaft rotates. When the clutch units are engaged with both cylindrical portions, then the tubular handle is coupled directly to the drive shaft so that the shaft is rotated in whichever direction the handle is twisted.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 12, 1982
    Date of Patent: December 4, 1984
    Inventor: Kevin S. Fuller
  • Patent number: 4484546
    Abstract: The variable valve operating mechanism comprises lower and upper rocker arms. The lower rocker arm is mounted for pivotal movement about a fixed axis and the upper rocker arm is mounted for pivotal movement about a shiftable axis. The free end of the lower rocker arm engages the valve to be actuated and the free end of the upper rocker arm engages various portions of the first rocker arm when the shiftable axis is spaced relatively far from the fixed axis. When the shiftable axis is moved toward the fixed axis, the valve lift starts to increase. By means of a curved cam surface, the duration or time that the valve remains open can be controlled. Provision is made for lubricating parts of the mechanism and provision is also made for adjusting certain parts of the mechanism so as to provide a specified amount of valve lash.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 22, 1982
    Date of Patent: November 27, 1984
    Assignee: Investment Rarities, Incorporated
    Inventor: Corliss O. Burandt
  • Patent number: 4484558
    Abstract: A pivotal air door or velocity blade provides a carburetor and injection action which transitionally changes back and forth in accordance with the door's angular position. The angular position of the air door or velocity blade is controlled by the movement of an upper rocker arm relative to a lower rocker arm. A cam unit acts on a contoured follower surface on the upper rocker arm, and the free end of the upper rocker arm acts against a contoured follower surface on the lower rocker arm, the lower rocker arm in turn acting on the inlet valve of an internal combustion engine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 5, 1983
    Date of Patent: November 27, 1984
    Assignee: Investment Rarities, Incorporated
    Inventor: Corliss O. Burandt
  • Patent number: 4481561
    Abstract: A flashlight for bore sighting a long barreled shotgun or rifle including a cartridge case with an ejector rim and a primer opening in the base, and a sidewall defining an open front end; a battery and a light bulb within the case; a switch pin slidable in the primer opening to complete the circuit for illuminating the bulb, a spring normally urging the switch pin outwardly and a metallic bulb holder adjacent the front of the case; in a shotshell case, the bulb holder having a frame shank extending along the battery and to the base thereof, the shank having an apertured flange at the base of the battery, spaced from the battery by an insulator and the hole in the flange aligned with the switch pin.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 1, 1983
    Date of Patent: November 6, 1984
    Assignee: Site-Lite, Inc.
    Inventor: Charles T. Lanning
  • Patent number: 4480155
    Abstract: A diaphragm type magnetic speaker with conductor runs on the diaphragm, the conductor runs having a multiplicity of conductors arranged in a band in each run which confronts portions of two magnetized strips with front faces of opposite polarity and the space between such magnetized strips. The width of the band of conductors exceeds the width of the space between adjacent magnet strips and traverses the entire transverse portions of both of the adjacent magnetized strips from which the magnetic field for the conductor run emanates.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 1, 1982
    Date of Patent: October 30, 1984
    Assignee: Magnepan, Inc.
    Inventor: James M. Winey
  • Patent number: 4479456
    Abstract: An animal feeding apparatus includes a bunk, or trough for receiving solid feed and water and animal actuated hopper means disposed over the trough. The water dispensing function is provided by a plurality of valves having operators to be actuated, preferably, by the snout of an animal and which are configured and disposed to inhibit actuation by the animal at such times as the level of liquid in the bunk exceeds a predetermined depth. The feed dispensing function is provided by the simultaneous actuation of an elongated agitator, disposed on one side wall of the hopper and in a dispensing slot in the bottom of the hopper, and a grate, disposed above the agitator and adjacent the slot and the opposite side wall of the hopper, by an agitator arm connected to the agitator and the grate, and extending downwardly into the bunk for actuation by an animal. The agitator and the grate are pivotable about a common axis to provide different radii of oscillation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 9, 1982
    Date of Patent: October 30, 1984
    Inventor: Lonny D. Schweiger
  • Patent number: 4471716
    Abstract: A PFA Teflon carrier for silicon wafers being processed in hot baths in the production of integrated circuit chips with sidewalls having wafer spacing webs and grooves receiving the wafers in confronting and spaced relation. The sidewalls having outboard channel supports or stiffening bars extending substantially to the ends of the sidewalls and adjacent offsets in the sidewalls which connect to the end walls of the receptacle, one end wall being H-shaped and having a cross bar panel with elongate parallel stiffener bars thereon at the level of the bottom edge of the wafer confining panels in the sidewalls, the stiffener bars in the end walls having their ends spaced from the sidewalls.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 20, 1982
    Date of Patent: September 18, 1984
    Assignee: Fluoroware, Inc.
    Inventor: Guy L. Milliren
  • Patent number: 4471173
    Abstract: A planar diaphragm type magnetic transducer with an acoustically transparent magnetic backing, and a diaphragm overlying and spaced from the magnetic backing, the magnetic backing having magnetized strips lying parallel to each other and adjacent magnetized strips having opposite polarities at their faces confronting the diaphragm, the diaphragm being stiff and resisting flexing and connected by a flexible surround at its periphery.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 1, 1982
    Date of Patent: September 11, 1984
    Assignee: Magnepan, Inc.
    Inventor: James M. Winey
  • Patent number: 4471172
    Abstract: A planar diaphragm type magnetic transducer with magnetic circuit wherein the magnet strips on the soft iron plate and confronting the diaphragm are arranged in a sequence south, north, north, south, south, north, north, south, et seq. The magnet strips are spaced across the transducer and the metal plates on which the magnet strips lie are apertured to make the plates acoustically transparent. Conductors are grouped in runs on the diaphragm opposite alternate pairs of magnet strips which have magnetic poles of opposite polarity at their front faces.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 1, 1982
    Date of Patent: September 11, 1984
    Assignee: Magnepan, Inc.
    Inventor: James M. Winey
  • Patent number: 4464995
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for removing defective railroad ties from the right-of-way in one piece and without disturbing the elevation, cross-level and line, of a track system. The method is carried out by first removing the tie plates from an individual tie to be replaced; forming a trench underneath the tie by the use of laterally directed scarifiers while retaining the tie in its normal position and restraining the tie against movement longitudinally of the track system so as to displace ballast material from underneath the tie to the next adjacent crib; applying a downward force to the top of the tie to be removed; and withdrawing the tie from one or the other end.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 26, 1981
    Date of Patent: August 14, 1984
    Assignee: Loram Maintenance of Way, Inc.
    Inventor: Frank J. Nameny
  • Patent number: 4465016
    Abstract: A liquid chemical treatment measuring device as for metering treated chemicals for agricultural seeds. A housing containing a disc-like rotor sandwiched between stationary discs or headers, there being flat faces between the rotary disc and the stationary headers or discs. A rotary disc has a multiplicity of measuring chambers extending endways through its thickness. The stationary discs have supply and recirculation manifold grooves opposite each other and confronting the measuring chambers of the revolving disc, and also an inlet port and an overflow port producing continuous flushing of the measuring chambers and supply and recirculation grooves. The stationary discs or headers also have discharge and relief manifold grooves opposite each other and draining the liquid chemical treatment from the measuring chambers of the revolving rotor and supplying air into the chambers to allow rapid draining.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 1982
    Date of Patent: August 14, 1984
    Assignee: Gustafson, Inc.
    Inventor: Joseph A. Weber
  • Patent number: 4459946
    Abstract: In a specific embodiment a cam unit comprised of three differently profiled cams acts on follower portions or working surfaces on a shiftable first rocker arm to cause a second rocker arm to open and close a valve associated with the combustion chamber or cylinder of an internal combustion engine in accordance with the cam profiles and the contours of the follower surfaces to (1) maintain the valve completely closed, such as during engine deceleration, (2) vary the valve duration and produce a lesser valve lift to effect an engine throttling mode of operation, and (3) vary the valve duration and produce a greater valve lift for a higher engine performance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 17, 1982
    Date of Patent: July 17, 1984
    Assignee: Investment Rarities, Incorporated
    Inventor: Corliss O. Burandt
  • Patent number: 4458434
    Abstract: Container for pictures, especially for photopositives, which is constructed to be at the same time a stand-up or hanging frame or a component of an archive. The container has centering elements by means of which the uppermost picture of a stored pile is completely visible in the viewing window.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 20, 1981
    Date of Patent: July 10, 1984
    Assignee: Licinvest AG
    Inventor: Peter Ackeret
  • Patent number: 4455061
    Abstract: A holographic optical element is formed by subdividing the surface of a relatively thick dichromated gelatin film into numerous small areas so as to provide a corresponding number of volume facets therebeneath. Each facet is individually exposed with coherent waves, either planar or spherical, so as to record a desired interference pattern within that particular facet. By constructing each facet individually, a volume hologram is created containing an arbitrarily specified complete fringe pattern which will cause a readout beam to be deflected along a desired scan path, or a hologram can be produced which will provide a wavefront transformation when illuminated with an expanded laser beam so as to display a complete image with 100% optical efficiency.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 1980
    Date of Patent: June 19, 1984
    Assignee: The Regents of the University of Minnesota
    Inventor: Steven K. Case
  • Patent number: 4453284
    Abstract: A car washer for a stationary car, including a pair of tracks on the floor, between which the car remains, an upright arch frame to pass over the car and having wheels on the track; a plurality of scrubber curtains of cloth, felt-like material cut into strips and suspended from the frame to engage and scrub the automobile as the frame passes along the automobile, means oscillating the strips in side to side direction, spray nozzles directing cleaning solution onto the strips; the mobile frame moving along the car, first in one direction, then in the reverse direction; upright rotary scrubbers on arms which swing toward and away from the automobile body, the arms being mounted on the upright frame, the rotary scrubbers also being made of strips of cloth, felt-like material, nozzles directing cleaning solution onto such strips, the rotary scrubbers being reversible, and the control means for the rotary scrubbers requiring reversing of the rotary scrubbers when the mobile arch frame reverses its direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 17, 1982
    Date of Patent: June 12, 1984
    Inventor: Robert H. Schleeter
  • Patent number: 4453836
    Abstract: A sealed, internally lubricated rotary roller drill bit for drilling hard earth formations in which internally disposed axially, thrust and ball anti-friction bearings are used in combination and in which a first seal means is provided for preventing the introduction of drilling debris and a second seal means is provided to prevent the introduction of such debris and to maintain the lubricant inside of the bit under pressure. A pressure relief means is provided to allow excess lubricant to flow around one of the seals. A stream of air is directed through the bit, first in a direction to "clean" the bore hole and in further directions to allow ready access to a lubricant fitting and to effect a seal at the interface between rotating portions of the bit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 31, 1981
    Date of Patent: June 12, 1984
    Inventor: Frank J. Klima
  • Patent number: D275353
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 1, 1982
    Date of Patent: September 4, 1984
    Assignee: Dunbar Furniture, Inc.
    Inventor: Jack G. Dunbar
  • Patent number: D278767
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 12, 1982
    Date of Patent: May 14, 1985
    Inventor: Roy D. Lundquist