Patents Represented by Law Firm Schatzel & Hamrick
  • Patent number: 4011604
    Abstract: An improved apparatus for controlling the quantity of water flowing through a water outlet in a toilet tank comprising a rotatable shaft having opposed first and second ends disposed through an opening in the front wall of the toilet tank, a crank mounted to the tank, connected to the first end and being capable of rotating the shaft through first and second angles when a force is applied to it, an arm connected to the second end, a box-like structure forming a chamber disposed in the tank and including first and second upwardly extending tubes forming first and second ports, respectively, an upwardly extending overflow tube, and a third port arranged to discharge water through the water outlet, the first tube having an axial dimension that is greater than the second tube, a first flapper valve hingedly connected to the overflow tube and being normally seated on the first port, the first valve being movable from a normally closed position to an open position, a second valve hingedly connected to the overflow
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 26, 1976
    Date of Patent: March 15, 1977
    Inventor: Forrest C. Goldsworthy
  • Patent number: 4012785
    Abstract: A playback circuit for use with a magnetic recording transducer, in a magnetic recording apparatus, the transducer developing an alternating current readback signal having alternating positive and negative peaks, the playback circuit comprising a differentiator responsive to the readback signal and operative to produce a differentiated signal having first and second polarities and having zero crossings in time coincidence with the positive and negative peaks, a bidirectional one-shot device responsive to the differentiated signal and operative to produce a first bistate signal having transitions in time coincidence with the zero crossings and to produce a second signal comprising a sequence of pulses having leading edges that correspond in time to the zero crossings and having trailing edges that lag the leading edges by a predetermined time interval, a latch for producing a third signal having transitions that correspond in time to the trailing edges and having a level that corresponds to the level of the fi
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 13, 1976
    Date of Patent: March 15, 1977
    Assignee: Shugart Associates, Inc.
    Inventor: David L. MacDougall, Jr.
  • Patent number: 4011722
    Abstract: A hydraulic pump apparatus including an outer housing having internal walls which are spherically configured, a hydraulically actuable variable position control ring which cooperates with the spherical housing walls to define the geometry of a hydraulic working cavity, and a rotor assembly having vanes which divide the working cavity into a plurality of working chambers and which follow the position of the control ring to vary the volume of the working chambers so as to move fluid into and out of inlet and outlet ports, respectively. The vanes are supported by a plurality of concentric rings which are attached in gimbal fashion to a rotor hub and pin assembly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 10, 1976
    Date of Patent: March 15, 1977
    Inventor: J. Howard Drake
  • Patent number: 4011940
    Abstract: A storage container for storing an article comprising a first wall having opposed front and back edges, opposed side edges, and a first inner surface, a second wall having opposed front and back edges, opposed side edges, and a second inner surface, a side wall extending inwardly from the second inner surface proximate the opposed side edges and the front edge, the side wall including a ramp which terminates in a notch, a back wall including hinges connected to the respective back edges such that the first inner surface is capable of being moved into a facing relationship relative to the second inner surface, the hinges being formed of a resilient material and serving to normally bias the first and second walls apart, the first, second, back and side walls serving to form an enclosure for storing an article when the front edges are aligned, a rigid rib having a ramp-engaging surface, the rib being connected to the first inner surface in alignment with the notch when the walls are formed into the enclosure, wh
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 1975
    Date of Patent: March 15, 1977
    Assignee: Amaray International Corporation
    Inventors: Lloyd D. Neal, Allan R. Northrup
  • Patent number: 4009784
    Abstract: Document hanging apparatus comprising an elongated strip of plastic material folded along a longitudinal foldline and having apertures provided in the side portions near the foldline, and adhesive document affixing means provided along one edge opposite the fold to engage a document and secure such document between the sides of the strip.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 1975
    Date of Patent: March 1, 1977
    Inventors: Abram G. Elias, Peter G. Elias
  • Patent number: 4009476
    Abstract: An apparatus for automatically controlling the operation of a door comprises a microwave transceiver responsive to detect the movement of a randomly moving object and operative to develop a Doppler signal representative of such movement, the Doppler signal being generally sinusoidal with a zero crossing in each cycle, a strobe generator responsive to the Doppler signal and operative to develop a timing pulse upon the occurrence of each such zero crossing, a pair of integrating circuits responsive to the Doppler signal and operative to develop first and second signals of unlike polarity in the absence of the movement and of like polarity in the presence of the movement, a pair of OR gates for detecting the respective polarities of the first and second signals, a sample and hold circuit responsive to the timing pulse and operative to develop a control signal when the first and the second signals are of like polarity, and a relay driver responsive to the control signal and operative to open the door.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 27, 1975
    Date of Patent: February 22, 1977
    Assignee: Solfan Security Systems
    Inventor: Erno B. Lutz
  • Patent number: 4008501
    Abstract: A combination punching and binding machine for gang punching a stack of sheets and binding the sheets with a pre-curled plastic comb-binding element. The machine is electrically operated by energizing a reversible motor which, when operated in one mode actuates the punches, and when operated in a second mode, laterally moves a comb upon which the binding element is placed and then actuates a plurality of hook elements to uncurl the curled splines of the binding element for receiving the punched sheets.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 12, 1976
    Date of Patent: February 22, 1977
    Assignee: NSC International Corporation
    Inventor: James W. Cutter
  • Patent number: 4007419
    Abstract: A combination speedometer/odometer apparatus for displaying either the speed of a vehicle or the distance a vehicle has traveled, and including a speed pick-up attached to the vehicle for developing a first voltage signal having voltage spikes occurring at a frequency proportional to the speed of the vehicle; a pulse generator which develops a voltage pulse in response to each spike, the pulses having a predetermined duration; a signal generator controlled by the voltage pulses which develops a speed signal and a distance signal both having bursts of high-frequency signal, the number of bursts in the speed signal being proportional to the speed of the vehicle and the number of bursts in the distance signal being proportional to the total distance the vehicle has traveled; a first counter for counting the cycles of the speed signal, the counter initiating its count in response to a reset signal; a synchronizer for developing the reset signal a predetermined period of time after the occurrence of one of the vol
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 2, 1975
    Date of Patent: February 8, 1977
    Inventor: Richard Jasmine
  • Patent number: 4003414
    Abstract: A DIP lead former including a cabinet housing an electric motor, a pair of lead forming rollers disposed in side-by-side spaced apart relationship and driveably coupled to the motor, an elongated forming rail located between the lead forming rollers for transporting DIPs into engagement with the rollers, an upper guide for guiding the DIPs along the forming rail, and a pair of adjustment knobs for varying the distance between the upper guide and the forming rail.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 20, 1976
    Date of Patent: January 18, 1977
    Inventor: Dewey D. Halligan
  • Patent number: 4000368
    Abstract: An electronic nonuniform clock generating apparatus including a modulo N counter for counting uniform clock pulses in a controlled manner to develop a series of clock pulses which are nonlinearly related to the rotation of a scanning device to form a nonuniform clock signal comprised of a series of different clock states each including one or more uniform clock pulses, a clock signal counter for counting the nonuniform clock signal pulses, a clock signal decoder which is preprogrammed to develop an increment signal each time the count developed by the clock signal counter reaches a number commensurate with the number of pulses in a particular state, a state counter for counting the number of increment signals developed by the clock signal decoder to develop a clock signal decoder, and a state decoder responsive to the clock state signal output of the state counter and operative to control the operation of the modulo N counter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 4, 1975
    Date of Patent: December 28, 1976
    Assignee: Dacom, Inc.
    Inventor: James G. Tisue
  • Patent number: 3995200
    Abstract: A ground monitor and circuit breaker actuating apparatus for monitoring the continuity of the ground and pilot conductors in a power distribution system and for deenergizing the power supply system when a true fault in the ground or pilot conductor occurs, including a DC power supply, an impedance bridge which passes a test signal whenever a bridge imbalance occurs in response to a fault logic signal or a fault in the pilot conductor or the ground conductor, an oscillator which generates a test signal for use by the bridge, a fault logic generator which generates a fault logic signal for causing intermittent unbalancing of the bridge and for use by a pulse rate discriminator, a filter which eliminates spurious signals passed by the bridge, a pulse former which converts the filtered signal into a pulsed fault signal, a threshold detector which passes the fault signal if the voltage level of the pulses exceed a predetermined threshold voltage level, a phase detector and a null output detector which compare the
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 23, 1975
    Date of Patent: November 30, 1976
    Inventor: Larry G. Stolarczyk
  • Patent number: 3994454
    Abstract: A stunt kite comprising a first horizontal spar member, a second vertical spline member, third and fourth diagonal spar members, the members being formed into a fixed frame, a covering disposed on the frame and having a lateral dimension which is greater than its dimension corresponding to its longitudinal axis and being symmetrical in shape about the longitudinal axis, a bow string forming the first member into a bowed shape such that the covering is bowed into a generally convex configuration, a pair of bridles each symmetrically connected between the third and fourth members on opposed sides of the second member and extending outside the covering, the substantial midpoint of each bridle forming an attachment point which lies a predetermined distance above the center of gravity of the kite, and first and second tails connected to the bottom ends of the third and fourth members, respectively, for providing substantially equal stabilizing drag forces at the bottom corners of the covering, such that when lengt
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 15, 1975
    Date of Patent: November 30, 1976
    Inventor: Lynn M. Worsham
  • Patent number: 3991322
    Abstract: A signal delay apparatus for delaying an information signal and including a bucket brigade device for sampling the signal and time delaying the samples, a sample-and-hold device for sampling and storing the voltage levels of the individual delayed samples in succession, and a clock for developing timing signals for controlling the delay line and the sample-and-hold device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 1975
    Date of Patent: November 9, 1976
    Assignee: California Microwave, Inc.
    Inventors: John A. Bush, Michael Alexander Boutte
  • Patent number: 3990689
    Abstract: An adjustable holder assembly for positioning a vacuum chuck relative to a bed including a base plate having an integrally formed pivot mount for rotatably affixing the plate to a bed providing a first degree angular displacement .theta.1. A lower stage includes a housing having bearing ways formed on the bottom of said housing spaced to slidably mate with the tracks in the base plate, a lead screw extending through said housing and a concentric shaft with cord means encircling said shaft, the lower stage housing having substantially parallel tracks formed in the top surface at right angles to the bottom surface ways.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 11, 1975
    Date of Patent: November 9, 1976
    Inventor: Ralph H. Eklund, Sr.
  • Patent number: 3988814
    Abstract: An improved multi-purpose milling machine for milling a work piece along a desired line of action. The machine includes an electronic control network for controlling the position of the cutting tool relative to the work piece along a plurality of axes responsive to commands of the operator. The electronic control network is adapted for controlling the rate and direction of rotational motion of the cutting tool relative to the work piece and the linear motion and direction of the work piece relative to the cutting tool.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 3, 1975
    Date of Patent: November 2, 1976
    Inventor: Robert E. Hoffman
  • Patent number: 3986403
    Abstract: A writing instrument comprising a housing including a flexible diaphragm and a sidewall forming a cavity therewithin, the diaphragm serving to distort in response to a movement of the sidewall, a plurality of strain gages attached to selected locations on the diaphragm, each strain gage having an electrical resistance and being responsive to distortion of the diaphragm and operative to produce a change in its electrical resistance corresponding to the distortion at its respective location, a reservoir capable of holding writing fluid and formed to be carried within the cavity, the reservoir including external ribs for frictionally engaging the sidewall and having a shaft extending therefrom, the shaft having a distal end for writing on a surface and a passageway for supplying writing fluid to the distal end, the distal end being movable in response to contact with the surface, whereby when the shaft is moved, such movement is transmitted through the reservoir and the sidewall to the diaphragm causing it to di
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 13, 1976
    Date of Patent: October 19, 1976
    Assignee: Xebec Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: Clinton J. Hurd, William J. Kadzewick
  • Patent number: 3984719
    Abstract: A light source lamp apparatus having a lamp housing envelope with a circular opening and an electrode assembly disposed and sealed within the interior of the envelope about said opening. The electrode assembly includes an electrode support shaft with an electrode mounted about one end and a cylindrical shoulder intermediate the electrode and the other end; a compression ring coaxial with the shaft and positioned in tandem with the shouler to form a seat for receiving an elastometer O-ring intermediate the compression ring and the shoulder; an elastometer O-ring positioned within said seat; pressure control means coupled to said compression ring for compressing the seat and expanding the outer diameter of the O-ring to cause the outer peripheral surface of said O-ring to interface with the interior surface of the envelope and seal said envelope and said O-ring.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 15, 1975
    Date of Patent: October 5, 1976
    Assignee: ILC Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Egils M. Grasis, Joseph R. Caruso
  • Patent number: 3983488
    Abstract: A threshold extension device for use in a frequency modulation demodulator circuit to minimize effects of impulse noise, usually referred to as "clicks", which normaly appear in the demodulated output signal, and including a delay line for delaying the demodulated signal, a follow and hold circuit for selectively omitting the click impulses from the delayed signal, a detector for detecting the occurrence of an event which will give rise to a click impulse in the demodulated signal, and a detector driven control signal generator for controlling operation of the follow and hold circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 17, 1974
    Date of Patent: September 28, 1976
    Assignee: California Microwave, Inc.
    Inventors: John A. Bush, Drew R. Lance, John E. Altstatt
  • Patent number: 3980174
    Abstract: A closed loop conveyor system comprising a cylindrical drive pulley and a cylindrical return pulley, each including at least one groove having a generally W-shaped transverse cross section, and a conveyor belt disposed around the drive pulley and return pulley and having a carcass with an exterior load-carrying surface and an interior surface that includes at least one groove-engaging rib formed in the direction of belt travel. The bottom surface of the rib has a transverse cross section in the shape of an inverted V serving to bifurcate the rib into two wedging portions which engage and are spread apart by the bottom wall of the groove, thereby causing the rib to lockingly mate with the groove.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 10, 1975
    Date of Patent: September 14, 1976
    Assignee: Dynaloc Corporation
    Inventor: Rene A. Conrad
  • Patent number: 3980608
    Abstract: A rack for holding knives comprising a housing including parallel first and second sidewalls interconnected by a base and having an opening therebetween, fasteners for mounting the housing to an associated surface such that the sidewalls are vertically oriented, and a plurality of partition members disposed in a stacked relationship on the base between and vertically movable within the sidewalls, each member being formed from a unitary body of resilient material including an elongated portion having a blade-holding surface and terminating in a blade guiding portion disposed in a facing relationship to the opening, the blade-holding surface of a first member being disposed subjacent the blade-guiding portion of a second member and cooperating therewith to form a blade-holding recess, whereby when the blade of a knife is inserted into the rack the blade-guiding portion serves to guide the tip of the blade into the recess forcing the members above the knife upward to accommodate the blade, the weight of the memb
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 23, 1975
    Date of Patent: September 14, 1976
    Inventor: Edward J. Faltersack