Abstract: A power takeoff (PTO) assembly equipped with an electromechanical shifter for moving a pinion gear of the PTO assembly into and out of engagement with a drive gear of that assembly or of a vehicle transmission on which the assembly is mounted. The PTO assembly includes a telescoping shock shaft having a first shaft section axially advanced by a power-driven linear actuator and operatively connected to a second shaft section equipped with a fork for urging the pinion gear laterally into (and out of) engagement with the drive gear. Between the two shaft sections is a compression spring that stores energy by compressing until a condition of alignment between the pinion and drive gears occurs, at which time the stored energy of the spring releases and quickly shifts the pinion gear into meshing engagement with the drive gear.

Abstract: A control assembly primarily intended for use in manually regulating the operating speed of power equipment in which fine adjustments may be obtained by rotating the control knob and rapid changes in speed may be achieved by shifting the knob axially. The assembly includes an outer one-piece sleeve adapted to be mounted upon an instrument panel or engine housing and permanently joined to a flexible casing containing the operating wire or cable. A plunger assembly is rotatably and slidably received within the sleeve, the plunger assembly including a thin-walled plunger tube of flexible material having a control knob ultrasonically welded to one end of the plunger and a swivel connection joining the operating wire at the plunger's opposite end.

Abstract: A throttle control assembly for lawnmowers and similar power-operated equipment, such assembly consisting essentially of (1) a mounting member permanently affixed to the flexible casing for the throttle control wire and adapted to be secured to the handle of the power equipment, and (2) an elongated cover that may be easily connected to the end of the control wire and then snapped into operative position over the mounting member. When the parts are so coupled, the cover is readily slidable upon the mounting member (which it conceals and protects) to control engine speed but is securely locked against detachment from that mounting member. A speed indicator formed as an integral part of the mounting member projects through an elongated slot in the cover, and indicia upon the cover aligned with the indicator provide clear and accurate representations of throttle settings.

Abstract: In a control for use in a hydraulic system of the type which includes a hydraulic cylinder arranged to raise and lower a load such as a dump bed of a vehicle, wherein the hydraulic system is actuated for raising and lowering the dump bed upon axial displacement of a rod member contained within an outer conduit from a neutral position in first and second respective axial directions and wherein the hydraulic system is deactivated upon the rod member being in the neutral position. The control includes a tubular member which is adapted to be connected to the outer conduit, a control knob, and a rigid inner member partially within the tubular member having a first end connected to the rod member and a second end supporting the control knob. A latch supported by the tubular member is arranged for releasably locking the inner member in a neutral position with respect to the tubular member for precluding inadvertent axial displacement of the rod member from the neutral position.

Abstract: The cables on a compound bow are provided at the ends thereof with double ears, hooks or anchors whereby a new bow string may readily be applied before the old string is removed or severed.

Abstract: A hollow knob is provided for use on control shafts and the like. The knob comprises two hollow sections of plastic material and a metal insert threaded for receipt of a control rod or the like. The two hollow knob sections are provided with reinforcing ribs running at right angles to one another, and readily secured at crossover points by means of sonic welding. The metal insert is held securely in place in a well in one of the two plastic portions, being firmly trapped in place, and reinforcing the plastic sections.