Abstract: A covering such as a suit, glove, condom or sheath forming a chemical barrier against harmful agents. The covering is flexible, stretchable, and relatively thin, and includes at least one relatively thin chemical barrier that will neutralize the harmful characteristics of the harmful agents. If an object cuts through the covering and into a person's skin or if a harmful agent tries to traverse through the covering, the chemical barrier will neutralize the harmful characteristics of the harmful agent so that the agent is neutralized either before reaching the person's skin, after reaching the person's skin, or both. Various methods of making the covering are also disclosed.

Abstract: A medication dispenser that includes a receptacle having a counting compartment with a first opening into the receptacle and a second opening through which the pills are dispensed. To be dispensed, the pills must passthrough the counting compartment and are counted during such passage. Both openings are blocked or unblocked by logic built into or remotely connected to the dispenser, which logic determines whether the pills in the compartment should be dispensed. In one embodiment of the dispenser, the pills are counted by sensing the amount of light that is passed through the compartment. The logic counts the pills by subtracting the amount of light transmitted through the compartment when it contains pills from the amount of light transmitted through an empty compartment and comparing the result to the known size of the pills. In an alternative embodiment, the pills are weighed in the counted compartment and the weight is compared to the known weight of a single pill.

Abstract: A telescopic boom assembly is disclosed. The assembly includes a plurality of boom members having at least first, second and third boom arms telescopically disposed within each other. The first boom arm is connected to a support base. A mechanism is provided for axially extending the second and third boom arms outwardly from the first boom arm, the third boom arm being constructed from dielectric material and disposed at the distal end of the assembly once the assembly is in a fully extended position. Finally, an end cylinder structure constructed from dielectric material is provided for axially moving the third boom arm relative to the first and second boom arms such that the third boom arm and the end cylinder structure dielectrically insulate the distal end of the third boom arm from the remainder of the boom assembly when the assembly is in an extended condition.

Abstract: A stringed musical instrument having a plurality of strings stretched over the sounding board of a sounding box includes a corresponding bridge for each string. Each bridge rests on the sounding board and may be translated along the corresponding string to thereby change the functional vibrating length of the string and hence change the pitch of the musical tone produced when the string is set into vibration. Each string passes through a bore extending through the corresponding bridge so that the bridge does not disengage from the corresponding string (and possibly become misplaced or lost) when the bridge is translated, when the string is in a non-stretched condition, or when the instrument is jolted.

Abstract: An improved inflatable cushion lift assembly for use in a bathtub by a person taking a bath. The lift assembly is positioned on the floor of a bathtub and is connected to the bathtub faucet to inflate the cushion. The cushion may be deflated while a person is sitting thereon to lower a person to the floor of the tub. Furthermore, the cushion may be inflated while the person is sitting on the cushion on the floor of the tub to raise the user upwardly to allow the user to exit the tub easily. The present improvement inhibits undesired movement of the cushion while being used by utilizing a rigid bottom panel and/or rigid top panel. Furthermore, the interior of the cushion may be provided with baffles or the like for dampening water oscillations within the cushion. The cushion, for reasons of stability, may also be tiered or formed in layers such that the cushion inflates or deflates in stages.