Patents Represented by Attorney The Culbertson Group, P.C.
  • Patent number: 7293385
    Abstract: A module housing is adapted to be inserted into an operating position in the trigger group receiving area of a firearm. The module housing includes at least one pin receiver defined by two openings formed in the module housing, one on each lateral side of the housing. A module pin is received in the pin receiver and at least one trigger group component is mounted or supported for rotation on the module pin. The pin receiver is located on the module housing so as to align with a pin receptacle of the firearm when the module housing is in the operating position. By locating the pin receiver in the module housing so as to align with a corresponding pin receptacle of the firearm when the module housing is in the operating position, the trigger group module and the trigger group components housed in the module housing may be readily supported by the OEM pin receptacle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 9, 2007
    Date of Patent: November 13, 2007
    Inventor: Michael L. McCormick
  • Patent number: 7278918
    Abstract: Gaming methods, apparatus, and program products prompt players to move between different gaming machines or player stations (103) included in a gaming system (100). One preferred method includes receiving a player input at a first player station (103) in a network gaming system (100). Upon receiving the player input at the first player station (103), a station changing prompt is produced at the first player station (103). A multi-station game result for the player is then awarded to the player after the player makes some input at a second player station (103) in the system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 10, 2004
    Date of Patent: October 9, 2007
    Assignee: Multimedia Games, Inc.
    Inventor: Clifton Lind
  • Patent number: 7275494
    Abstract: A valve structure includes a valve body on which is mounted a first valve and a second valve. The first valve traverses the valve body at a first position and the second valve traverses the valve body at a second position spaced apart from the first position. The first valve may comprise a fill valve and the second valve may comprise a pressure relief valve. Alternatively, a single valve structure may incorporate both the fill and pressure relief functions. The valve structure may be incorporated with a bladder made of a flexible and elastic material. In this arrangement, the valve body is positioned in a valve receiving opening in the bladder material and is sealed to the bladder material around the periphery of the valve receiving opening so as to define a sealed bladder interior with the bladder material. Such a valve and bladder combination may be used together with a hull tube to form a portion of an inflatable hull for a boat.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 8, 2006
    Date of Patent: October 2, 2007
    Assignee: Cryogenic Plastics, Inc.
    Inventors: Dale Polley, David Hotz, Russell Taylor
  • Patent number: 7222473
    Abstract: A riding stirrup (10) includes a hanger rod (11) for connecting the stirrup to a saddle, and a stirrup loop (12) connected to the hanger rod. The stirrup loop (12) defines a stirrup opening (14) through which a rider may extend their foot when the rider is sitting in the saddle. The stirrup loop (12) also includes an elongated base support tread (17) positioned generally at the bottom of the loop. The base support tread (17) extends at a slant with respect to a stirrup centerline (CL) which extends perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the hanger rod (11), through a midpoint of the rod, and through the base support tread. This slant places the distance between an outer tread section (21) and the hanger rod (11) greater than the distance between an inner tread section (20) and the hanger rod.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 24, 2003
    Date of Patent: May 29, 2007
    Inventor: David E. Jones
  • Patent number: 7214398
    Abstract: A pH increasing material is placed in contact with the surface of an initial comminuted meat product. This contact with the pH increasing material increases the pH of the initial meat product to produce an intermediate meat product. The method also includes the step of removing the pH increasing material and applying mechanical action to the intermediate, pH increased meat product. The method may also include placing a pH lowering gas at a neutralizing pressure in contact with the surface of the intermediate meat product to decrease the pH of the meat product.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 17, 2004
    Date of Patent: May 8, 2007
    Assignee: Freezing Machines, Inc.
    Inventor: Eldon Roth
  • Patent number: 7200686
    Abstract: A serialization detection arrangement determines whether a received IO request requires serialization. An overlap detection arrangement then determines if the received IO request produces an impermissible overlap condition. Each IO request producing an impermissible overlap condition is blocked so that it cannot be executed by a storage device while the impermissible overlap condition exists. However, IO requests avoiding an impermissible overlap condition are passed on to the storage device to be executed at the device. Blocking or passing IO requests is preferably performed by an IO request control arrangement. Upon receipt of an IO done signal for a particular IO request, a completion arrangement starts any IO request that had been blocked by the particular IO request and updates the records for both pending requests requiring serialization and blocked IO requests.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 25, 2002
    Date of Patent: April 3, 2007
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Joon Chang, Gerald Francis McBrearty
  • Patent number: 7175525
    Abstract: A method includes first revealing a limited set of potential game results to a player through a player terminal and then presenting the player with a set of graphic representations through the player terminal. Each respective representation has no apparent relationship to any particular potential result in the limited set of potential results. Thus, the player who is presented with the graphic representations cannot tell if any particular one of the representations is tied in any way to any particular potential result in the limited set of potential results. After presenting to the player the set of representations, the player is allowed to select at least one of the representations by making a player choice input through the player terminal. In response to the player choice input, at least one of the potential results in the limited set of potential results is assigned to the player, and this assigned potential result becomes the player's result for the game.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 12, 2004
    Date of Patent: February 13, 2007
    Assignee: Multimedia Games, Inc.
    Inventor: Clifton Lind
  • Patent number: 7166029
    Abstract: A result presentation arrangement for a slot machine includes a display having a display surface forming generally at least a portion of a curved shape. A processor is coupled to communicate with the display to cause the display to produce or display one or more indicia and to control movement or animation of the indicia. One or more curved displays may be mounted on a spinnable reel, or one or more curved displays may be supported in a stationary position and controlled to simulate one or more spinning reels.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 10, 2004
    Date of Patent: January 23, 2007
    Assignee: Multimedia Games, Inc.
    Inventor: Joseph R. Enzminger
  • Patent number: 7162824
    Abstract: A module housing is adapted to be inserted into an operating position in the trigger group receiving area of a firearm. The module housing includes at least one pin receiver defined by two openings formed in the module housing, one on each lateral side of the housing. A module pin is received in the pin receiver and at least one trigger group component is mounted or supported for rotation on the module pin. The pin receiver is located on the module housing so as to align with a pin receptacle of the firearm when the module housing is in the operating position. By locating the pin receiver in the module housing so as to align with a corresponding pin receptacle of the firearm when the module housing is in the operating position, the trigger group module and the trigger group components housed in the module housing may be readily supported by the OEM pin receptacle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 22, 2004
    Date of Patent: January 16, 2007
    Inventor: Michael L. McCormick
  • Patent number: 7160265
    Abstract: The invention relates to a needle-less injection device, comprising a cannula (5) which can be inserted in a housing (3), can be filled with a predetermined active substance (11) for injection, and comprises a piston (9) movable in a cannula housing for ejecting the active substance (11) from an outlet opening (53) in the cannula housing, and a propellant charge cartridge (7) insertable into the housing (3) and comprising a housing containing a propellant charge (19) and a device (23) for igniting the propellant charge, and a propelling surface (15) movable in a part (3a) of the housing of the injection device (1) or in the housing of the cannula (5) or in the cartridge housing and movable by the gas pressure, after ignition of the propellant charge (19), out of a starting position into an end position, the outer periphery of the propelling surface being sealed from the inner periphery of each housing during the entire displacement travel also, wherein the propelling surface (15) acts upon the piston (9) mova
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 20, 2001
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2007
    Inventor: Peter Lell
  • Patent number: 7146923
    Abstract: A valve structure includes a valve body on which is mounted a first valve and a second valve. The first valve traverses the valve body at a first position and the second valve traverses the valve body at a second position spaced apart from the first position. The first valve may comprise a fill valve and the second valve may comprise a pressure relief valve. Alternatively, a single valve structure may incorporate both the fill and pressure relief functions. The valve structure may be incorporated with a bladder made of a flexible and elastic material. In this arrangement, the valve body is positioned in a valve receiving opening in the bladder material and is sealed to the bladder material around the periphery of the valve receiving opening so as to define a sealed bladder interior with the bladder material. Such a valve and bladder combination may be used together with a hull tube to form a portion of an inflatable hull for a boat.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 29, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 12, 2006
    Assignee: Cryogenic Plastics, Inc.
    Inventors: Dale Polley, David Hotz, Russell Taylor
  • Patent number: 7149099
    Abstract: An apparatus (10) includes a portable electric power storage arrangement (14) and a power panel (18) all mounted in or on a common housing (11) that includes a carrying feature or handle (12) by which the housing may be easily carried. The electrical power storage arrangement (14) provides DC electrical power for the power panel (18) and preferably includes one or more rechargeable batteries. Apparatus (10) further includes an inverter circuit (15) mounted in or on the housing (11) for inverting power from one or more batteries associate with the apparatus to produce a modeler's AC output. The modeler's AC power output comprises an AC power signal that is sufficient to drive an AC powered charging circuit (52) for charging batteries associated with a modeler's transmitter (53) or receiver (54).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 13, 2004
    Date of Patent: December 12, 2006
    Assignee: Equalizer Industries, Inc.
    Inventor: Ray Asbery
  • Patent number: 7095788
    Abstract: An encoding element (109, 111, 113) and a decoding arrangement (110, 112, 114) is included with each separate circuit (104, 105, 106) in a system (100) of circuits which must communicate digital signals with each other. The encoding devices (109, 111, 113) included with the separate circuits (104, 105, 106) cooperate to produce an encoded signal on a common transmission line or network (108) which interconnects the various circuits. The decoding arrangement (110, 112, 114) associated with each respective circuit receives the encoded signal appearing on the transmission line and decodes the encoded signal to reproduce or recreate the digital data signals transmitted from the other circuits in the system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 17, 2000
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2006
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Tai Anh Cao, Lloyd Andre Walls
  • Patent number: 7094435
    Abstract: Carbon monoxide is injected into the interior of the meat product along with other materials to produce a desired carbon monoxide saturation level. The amount of carbon monoxide in the added fluid is controlled to produce a desired carbon monoxide saturation level distributed substantially evenly throughout the volume of the meat product. This desired saturation level may vary depending upon the nature of the meat product being treated, however, the saturation level will generally remain at less than 100% or complete saturation for most meat products. The liquid added to meat product may be added simultaneously with the carbon monoxide or may be added as a pre-treatment before application of carbon monoxide or as a post-treatment after the application of carbon monoxide.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2004
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2006
    Assignee: Freezing Machines, Inc.
    Inventor: Eldon Roth
  • Patent number: 7093973
    Abstract: A sparging device (10) includes a number of sparger or screen passages (14) each extending from a respective passage inlet to a respective passage outlet. The sparging device (10) further includes a fluid chamber (25) that defines a chamber area through which at least one of the sparger passages (14) extends. A fluid communication device (34) is associated with each sparger passage (14) extending through the fluid chamber (25) to enable fluid communication between the fluid chamber and the interior of the respective sparger passage. The sparging device (10) allows a processing fluid in the fluid chamber (25) to be added to a foodstuff pumped through the sparger passages (14). Multiple fluid chambers may be formed in the sparging device to facilitate the addition of multiple processing fluids to a foodstuff.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 11, 2002
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2006
    Assignee: Freezing Machines, Inc.
    Inventor: Eldon Roth
  • Patent number: 7086298
    Abstract: An apparatus includes a base structure, a force measuring device, and a processing device. The force measuring device is operatively connected between a bowstring connector and a force transmitting connection to the base structure, and is adapted to produce a force output signal indicative of the tensile force applied along a draw force axis between the bowstring connector and the base structure. The processing device is mounted on the base structure and uses the force output signal received from the force measuring device to identify one or more bowstring force characteristics from the force output signal produced over the course of the bowstring draw cycle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 2004
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2006
    Inventor: Ronin Borg Colman
  • Patent number: 7050478
    Abstract: A spread spectrum clock system (11) modulates the supply voltage for a circuit (10) in concert with the circuit clock frequency (C). The system increases the supply voltage for the circuit (10) in phase with increases in the circuit clock frequency (C). However, in the portion of the clock frequency modulation period in which the clock frequency (C) is decreasing, the system (11) also decreases the supply voltage for the circuit (10). This relationship between the circuit supply voltage and circuit clock frequency (C) may be accomplished by modulating the output (18) of a power supply (15) for the circuit (10) and applying that modulated supply voltage signal through a signal translator (30) to control modulation of a clock source (14).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 3, 2000
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2006
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventor: Roger Donell Weekly
  • Patent number: 7045162
    Abstract: An enclosure treatment method includes introducing a pH increasing material into an enclosure adapted to contain meat products. Introducing the pH increasing material creates a desired pH increasing gas content in the atmosphere within the enclosure. The method also includes the step of maintaining the pH increasing gas content in the enclosure atmosphere while meat products are contained in the enclosure. The pH increasing gas in the enclosure atmosphere is absorbed into water in the enclosure to increase the pH of the water. The water affected in the present treatment process may be moisture collecting on various surfaces within the enclosure, or may be moisture within the meat products being stored in the enclosure. In any event, the increased pH is inhospitable to most microbes and reduces or suppresses microbe activity in the water either by retarding propagation or killing microbes outright.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 10, 2002
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2006
    Assignee: Freezing Machines, Inc.
    Inventor: Eldon Roth
  • Patent number: D554708
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 14, 2006
    Date of Patent: November 6, 2007
    Assignee: Multimedia Games, Inc.
    Inventors: Leroy H. Gutknecht, Jefferson C. Lind, Clifton E. Lind, Matthew H. Haga, Frank C. DeSimone, Brendan M. O'Connor, Clint A. Owen
  • Patent number: D557348
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 15, 2006
    Date of Patent: December 11, 2007
    Assignee: Multimedia Games, Inc.
    Inventors: Leroy H. Gutknecht, Jefferson C. Lind, Clifton E. Lind, Matthew H. Haga, Frank C. DeSimone, Brendan M. O'Connor, Clint A. Owen