Abstract: In a progressive die for punch press operations in which a strip of material is fed into the press and sequential operations are conducted on the strip including the separation of parts from the strip. The die is provided with a construction which forms an integral carrier tab between the parts to be separated. In the embodiment ilustrated, the operation is the manufacture of rotor and stator laminations for a dynamoelectric machine. The strip of material is fed into the press in which the die is mounted, and the respective rotor and stator laminations are formed in a series of workstations within the die. The improvement in the die construction is a punch station for substantially but not completely separating the rotor lamination from the strip. Thereafter, additional operations are constructed on the strip, the rotor lamination being completely separated at a subsequent workstation.

Abstract: A Kelly bar adapter for use with earth anchor driving machinery is disclosed. The adapter allows for pivotal connection of an earth anchor or earth anchor extension rod thereto. Thus, a vertically hanging Kelly rod may be attached to an earth anchor or its associated extension rod while the same is diagonally extending out of the ground. A tool for removing earth anchors having an integral eyelet or an eyelet which is threaded onto an earth anchor is also disclosed.

Abstract: An automatic mechanical flue fire extinguishing system includes a pressurized container of fire-extinguishing material which communicates with a thermally sensitive valve installed in a flue pipe of a wood stove or the like near the bottom of the flue pipe. When a predetermined temperature is reached, a fusible metal disk within the valve melts, opening the valve and releasing the fire extinguishing material into the flue pipe, thereby extinguishing the flue fire. The fire extinguishing system may also be manually operated.

Abstract: An electricity meter transponder package includes an electricity meter and a cover for containing the meter. The cover is secured to the meter by a predetermined rotation of the cover with respect to the meter. A first electrical connector-half is fixedly mounted with respect to the meter, that connector-half having terminals electrically connected to the meter. A second electrical connector-half having terminals mateable with the terminals of the first connector-half is fixedly mounted with respect to the cover in a position such that the predetermined rotation of the cover with respect to the meter causes the terminals of the first and second connector-halves to mate to complete electrical connection between their respective terminals. At least one electrical circuit is carried by the cover, which circuit is electrically connected to at least some terminals of the second connector-half.

Abstract: Portable lift structure for moving a support platform between a comparatively dry position above the surrounding deck of a liquid spa tank to a wetting position in the spa tank including two longitudinally extending structural members pivotally connected at corresponding top ends thereof to be moved between a portable and operating positions, one structural member serving as a mast to be removably mounted in the spa tank deck and the other as a platform mount, to be pivoted from above the surrounding spa tank deck to a position above the spa tank and lowered by a hydraulic cylinder and piston to a wetting position.

Abstract: A communication system uses the current waveform of an electricity distribution network as a carrier, the signal being present as current pulses around four predetermined zero crossings. The current waveform is sampled around the voltage zero crossings to obtain a time-ordered set of waveform values. The ordered waveform values for each bit are examined to determine if the values fall within preset criteria indicative of a stable carrier. When the ordered waveform values for a particular bit all fall within the preset criteria, that particular bit is identified as a good bit. When at least some of the ordered waveform values for a particular bit fall outside the preset criteria, that particular bit is labelled as suspect. The ordered values of each suspect bit and of adjacent bits are tested to determine whether four successive values meets the preset stability criteria, and whether the four successive values indicating a stable carrier include at least two succesive values from the suspect bit.

Abstract: A portable hand held vacuum cleaner is disclosed as having a housing with a handle to lift and operate the vacuum cleaner, and a nozzle/debris container releasably locked to the housing. The housing contains a motor driven blower that draws air and debris (wet or dry) into the nozzle/debris container for depositing the debris therein, while allowing air to be exhausted through the blower and then through the housing to atmosphere. The blower is constructed with first and second jointly rotatable elements having a series of circumferentially spaced blower exhause passageways and a transversely extending blower passageway adjacent the nozzle/debris container, for increased efficiency. A combined filter and seal is positioned in sealing engagement between the housing and the nozzle/debris container while affording filtering of debris from air between the nozzle/debris container and the blower in the housing.

Abstract: A rotor assembly for an electric motor includes a plurality of laminations disposed in a stack, a tension rod extending axially through the rotor lamination stack, and end clamps disposed at each end of the rotor lamination stack and secured to the tension rod for compressing the stack to hold the laminations of the stack fixedly in position by compression. A method of stamping rotor and stator laminations for a doubly salient electric motor from a single piece of metal includes the steps of stamping a rotor lamination out of the piece of metal, and stamping the stator lamination out of the piece of metal offset from the stamping of the rotor lamination so that a tooth of the rotor lamination stamping is taken from the gap between two teeth of the stator lamination stamping. The centroids of the rotor and stator laminations in their stamped locations in the piece of metal are offset from one another.

Abstract: An adjustable workpiece supporting frame is disclosed for use with an abrasive saw supported relative to a base pan. The frame is removably mounted to the base pan and includes a plurality of generally parallel rails extending generally horizontally of the pan and also generally longitudinally of the saw. A series of spaced free-turning rollers are mounted on the rails for supporting a workpiece thereon while enabling longitudinal adjustment of the workpiece relative to the saw. A workpiece fence extends above and is generally parallel to the parallel rails with rollers, and is supported by the frame. The workpiece fence is laterally adjustable relative to the saw for precise measured adjustment thereof. The adjustable workpiece supporting frame thus provides both lateral and longitudinal adjustment relative to the abrasive saw.

Abstract: An electric motor for use with a pump has a stator assembly and a rotor assembly. The rotor assembly includes a rotatable shaft and a rotor affixed to and rotatable with the shaft. The stator and rotor assemblies are intended for installation in an appliance. A cover forms an endshield for the motor, as well as a portion of the housing of a pump for the appliance. The cover is constructed so as to align the shaft extending into the pump with operable portions of the pump.

Abstract: A washing machine has a rotatable drum for holding items being washed and water for washing the items. The number of items in the drum and the amount of water in the drum may vary. Power is supplied from an inverter to a motor which rotates the rotatable drum. A speed control responsive to the inverter current regulates the drum rotating speed within a selected range.

Abstract: A portable container for storing and removing elongated elements, such as an electric extension cord, is disclosed. The portable container includes an open upper end, an inner shaft within the container about which an elongated element is wrapped, and a lid covering the open upper end of the container and having at least one opening which cooperates with the inner shaft to enable an elongated element to be inserted into the container and wrapped around the inner shaft or removed from the container while being unwound from the inner shaft. The inner shaft may be hollow for accommodating and storing various products therein, with a separate inner shaft cover for overlying an open upper end of the inner shaft so as to capture the various products stored therein. The lid may have a second opening through which one end of an elongated element extends with the other end of the elongated element extending through the overlying opening in the lid.

Abstract: Articles to be sorted are loaded into carriers which move along a predetermined path that has groups of receptacles under and adjacent to it. Each carrier has gates or doors which are normally "closed" to define a bottom that can hold an article within that carrier, but which can be "opened" to release that article for direct transfer into a selected one of the receptacles, all of which are positioned below the level of that carrier. The gates or doors of the carriers are arranged so they can selectively and directly transfer articles into the centermost of a group of transversely-positioned receptacles, into the receptacle that is disposed outwardly of that centermost receptacle, or into the receptacle that is disposed inwardly of that centermost receptacle. As a result, the direct transfer sorting system of the present invention obviates the bulky and expensive chutes and guides which have been required by prior sorting systems.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for cleaning printed electrical circuit boards having surface mount components by ultrasonic energy in the frequency range between 300 kHz and 1.0 MHz. The ultrasonic energy is produced by an array of piezoelectric wafers mounted to the inside surface of an immersible transducer assembly which, in turn, is disposed in a tank accomodating a bath of cleaning liquid. The ultrasonic energy provided by the transducer assembly and the circuit board to be cleaned are disposed to cause the ultrasonic wave beam to be incident upon a board to be cleaned at an angle of 90.+-.60 degrees relative to the surface plane of the board. This arrangement will remove solder flux residue and other contaminants from spaces ranging from 0.001 to 0.010 inch present underneath a surface mount component.

Abstract: A thermosetting composition for chemical resistant tile and brick mortar is disclosed. The composition includes a thermosetting resin having a content of 10-25% by weight (and having trace amounts of a promoter such as an amine or amide and optionally having trace amounts of a stabilizer such as cobalt naphthenate) for use with a pre-mixed dry powder comprising the remainder. The pre-mixed dry powder includes an aggregate such as silica having a content of 75-90% by weight, a pigment such as titanium dioxide or iron oxide having a content of 0.25-2% by weight, a catalyst such as benzoyl peroxide having a content of 0.1-4% by weight, and a thickener consisting of organoclay having a content of 1/2-6% by weight.

Abstract: A motor base clamp for clamping motors or the like to a supporting base is disclosed. The motor base clamp includes a pair of mirror image elongated clamping elements attached at one end to the supporting base and configured to surround the motor or the like. The free ends of the clamping elements are associated with a fastener that secures and tightens the clamping elements together in the vicinity of the free ends of the elements so as to clamp a motor or the like to the supporting base. At least one of the fastener or the free ends of the clamping elements are configured to equally distribute the load of the fastener to the free ends of the clamping elements when secured and tightened together.

Abstract: An exercise machine in which four interconnected movable stations are provided, two hand and two foot, one hand and one foot station being connected by a cable by way of pulleys for moving the stations in opposite directions in response to the exertion by the user of a preponderant force upon one of the stations, the other hand and foot station being connected by another cable by way of pulleys for moving the stations in opposite directions in response to the exertion by the user of a preponderant force upon one of the stations, and the two foot stations being connected to one another for moving the foot stations in opposite directions in response to the exertion by the user of a preponderant force upon one of the foot stations. A method of exercise is provided that includes pitting all four members, both arms and both legs, against one another to cause all four members to move separately but simultaneously, the members moving in response to the exertion of a preponderant force by a member or members.

Abstract: A switch assembly for selectively engaging and disengaging contacts connected to electrical machinery such as the windings for an electric motor including a pair of conductive members having insulated base portions and flexible cantilevered portions extending outwardly therefrom, each carrying one of a pair of spaced opposed electrical contacts, with one cantilevered portion of the conductive members being shorter and stiffer than the other to enhance rolling wipe-action of the pair of contacts when engaged.