Patents Examined by Donald G. Kelly
  • Patent number: 4434455
    Abstract: The light source of an area light or streetlight mounted on a lamppost is enclosed by a lower upwardly flaring bowl having its upper end closed by a generally conical cap. The cap and bowl are made of polycarbonate pigmented by titanium dioxide so that the cap emits only light sufficient to enable its shape to be seen in darkness and the bowl is much more translucent to emit adequate light for illumination.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 1, 1981
    Date of Patent: February 28, 1984
    Inventor: William H. Merritt
  • Patent number: 4433609
    Abstract: An ammunition magazine stowing belted rounds for rapid fire guns has generally horizontal, laterally spaced side rails for slidably supporting a file of uppermost rounds from which depend loops of rounds. In order to restrain forward sliding motion of an uppermost forward round into a gap at the forward ends of the round supporting rails, a resiliently mounted restrainer roller is mounted above the forward round while it is suspended on the rails. The roller prevents the forward round from sliding off the rails in case the magazine box is tilted forwardly or jarred, thereby preventing entanglement, hand up or jamming as a string of rounds is fed upwardly to the gun breech.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 17, 1981
    Date of Patent: February 28, 1984
    Assignee: FMC Corporation
    Inventor: Larry N. Darnall
  • Patent number: 4429615
    Abstract: A feeder for transferring ammunition from a magazine to the loading assem of an elevationally rotatable gun includes a first chute and a second chute. The first chute is pivotally mounted about the magazine. The second chute is articulated between the first chute and the loading assembly. The chutes are sized to provide an internal passage for the ammunition. An endless transfer chain can circulate along an interior path from the magazine through the chutes to drive the ammunition therethrough. This endless transfer chain returns from the interior path to the magazine along a return path. Linkage coupled to the endless transfer chain along its return path can draw it inwardly as the chutes unfold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 16, 1982
    Date of Patent: February 7, 1984
    Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army
    Inventor: Philip E. Morris
  • Patent number: 4425601
    Abstract: An improved apparatus for illuminating a plurality of stairs when in use involves a transformer to provide a reduced A. C. voltage; at least one light in proximity to the stairs to illuminate the stairs when at least a portion of the reduced A. C. voltage is supplied to the light and an electrical circuit including the light is formed; a rectifier to convert the reduced A. C. voltage to a D. C. voltage; a plurality of pressure sensitive switches associated with the rectifier and the treads of the stairs; physical pressure on the tread or treads acting to close at least one of the switches; and a relay in association with the pressure sensitive switches and light, and adapted to form the electrical circuit including the light in response to the closing of at least one of the pressure sensitive switches.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 31, 1981
    Date of Patent: January 10, 1984
    Inventor: Robert Donahue
  • Patent number: 4424736
    Abstract: The hatch of a military vehicle is hermetically fitted with a crewman's shelter formed of flexible material for receiving the upper portion of a crewman's body, including his head, shoulders and arms. The head-receiving portion has a vision plate and is connected to the crewman's head for rotation of the vision plate with his head. The shelter has gloved sleeves for receiving the crewman's arms and the entire shelter is collapsible inside the hatch when the hatch door is closed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 27, 1981
    Date of Patent: January 10, 1984
    Assignee: FMC Corporation
    Inventor: Andrew T. Byrne
  • Patent number: 4421008
    Abstract: A timed round stop for a sprocket fed weapon is disclosed. The round stop pivotable into and out of the ammunition feed path responsive to a control mechanism, for preventing a round being fed to the stripper bolt of the weapon before the stripper bolt is in the correct position to receive it. The control mechanism preferably comprises a ratchet having the same number of teeth as the feed sprocket and mounted for rotation about the same axis and at the same speed as the latter. Rotation of the control ratchet brings each of its teeth sequentially into engagement with a control surface of the round stop. During such engagement, the round stop is held in a position where it blocks the feed path. Further rotation of the ratchet terminates the engagement, and the round stop can then simply be pushed out of the way by the round of ammunition.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 27, 1981
    Date of Patent: December 20, 1983
    Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army
    Inventors: George E. Kontis, Sherwood P. Evans
  • Patent number: 4140204
    Abstract: There is disclosed a muffler for an internal combustion engine, particularly an automobile engine, which includes a heavy steel outer casing formed from a section of cylindrical tubing together with an internal baffle structure of two sections of smaller diameter cylindrical steel tubing at least one of which is perforated to create a plurality of louvered openings extending along and around the tubing section. Each of the tubing sections has an end that is offset by reason of a pair of opposite-direction bends in the tubing, and the offset ends of the two sections of tubing are overlapped and joined together by welding or other suitable means to produce an extended baffle structure of approximately the same length as the outer casing. The offset ends of the sections of tubing which are joined together are preferably flattened on the sides adjacent to each other to reduce the maximum dimension of the baffle structure along the portion thereof where the two tube sections overlap.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 1, 1977
    Date of Patent: February 20, 1979
    Assignee: Gator Products, Inc.
    Inventor: Stanley P. Wilson
  • Patent number: 4136813
    Abstract: In a method of joining a pair of parts, wherein one of the parts is formed of a carbon-containing material and the other formed of a metal at least at its surface to be joined to said one part, the parts are first assembled with the surfaces to be joined in the required joining position, with a brazing material and a flux being provided at or adjacent the surfaces to be joined. The flux is chosen so that when raised to an elevated temperature above the melting point of the brazing material, it is capable of reacting with oxides and carbon at the surface of said one part, while the brazing material is chosen so as to be capable of being heated to said elevated temperature without decomposition. The assembly is then heated at least to said elevated temperature in a non-oxidizing atmosphere so as to melt the brazing material and cause the flux to react with surface oxides and carbon on said one part whereby, on cooling, a brazed joint is produced between the parts.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 28, 1977
    Date of Patent: January 30, 1979
    Assignee: Lucas Industries Limited
    Inventor: Norman F. Smith
  • Patent number: 4133471
    Abstract: A base metal having at least one curved major surface is placed on a hard plate in such a way that the curved surface is in opposed relationship with the hard plate, and a cladding metal sheet is placed in opposed and spaced-apart relationship with the upper flat major surface of the base metal. The cladding metal sheet is firmly bonded to the base metal by explosive welding, and the curved surface of the cladding metal bonded becomes substantially in conformity with the curved surface of the base metal prior to the explosive welding. A clad metal sheet with a higher degree of dimensional accuracy may be provided and the bond is very strong and highly reliable. With copper base metal and composite cladding metal sheets each prepared by butt-welding foreign metal sheets which may be different in thickness, a mold for continuous casting may be produced which may substantially eliminate casting defects.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 1977
    Date of Patent: January 9, 1979
    Assignee: Asahi Kasei Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Tooru Niwatukino
  • Patent number: 4132343
    Abstract: A pipeline consisting of lengths of steel pipe welded together in end-to-end relation is made by first weld-plating the internal surface of the end portions of each individual pipe length with a corrosion-resistant material. A protective layer is then applied to the internal surface of each pipe length between the weld-plated end portions, the latter having first been smoothed down by machining to the desired finished thickness of the protective layer. The pipe lengths are then welded together in end-to-end relation. The welding operation consists of first depositing a root bead encircling the pipe at the junction of the ends of the weld-plated material. Weld material is then deposited in and fills out the gap between bevelled edges of the pipe ends to substantially the outside diameter of the pipe.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 1, 1977
    Date of Patent: January 2, 1979
    Assignee: BBC Brown, Boveri & Company Limited
    Inventor: Anders Kullendorff
  • Patent number: 4132286
    Abstract: A muffler comprising: an upper case provided at the opposite ends with semi-cylindrical inlet and outlet sections respectively and having an outwardly raised central portion and an integral flange-like edge portion; a lower case joined at a flange-like edge portion to that of said upper case and substantially symmetrical with said upper case with respect to the underside thereof; an exhaust inlet tube forming member having at least a semi-cylindrical inlet section inserted in a cylindrical inlet formed by the inlet sections of said upper and lower cases joined together and a gutter-like guide section connected to said inlet section and being joined to said upper case, lower case or both of them, said forming member being provided adjacent to an end thereof with a perforated portion; and an exhaust outlet tube forming member having at least a semi-cylindrical outlet section fitted in a cylindrical outlet formed by the outlet sections of said upper and lower cases and a gutter-like guide section connected to sa
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 25, 1977
    Date of Patent: January 2, 1979
    Assignee: Nihon Radiator Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hiroshi Hasui, Eizo Suyama
  • Patent number: 4132341
    Abstract: A method of forming a connector assembly in association with a hybrid circuit by soldering a plurality of relatively rigid connectors thereto, the resulting assembly being capable of self-supporting the hybrid circuit without the use of ancillary mechanical supporting devices when plugged into a suitably configured printed circuit board or the like. According to the method, a predetermined amount of solder paste is deposited on each of the hybrid circuit substrate terminal pads and one end of each of the rigid connectors is positioned on a respective one of the thusly formed solder paste fillets. Heat is then applied to the substrate reflowing the solder paste fillets and thereby enveloping the terminal pads and their associated connectors for achieving a high strength non-mechanically supported solder connection between each of the connectors and its associated terminal pad. In one embodiment of the invention, two such hybrid circuit-connector assemblies are formed simultaneously.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 31, 1977
    Date of Patent: January 2, 1979
    Assignee: Zenith Radio Corporation
    Inventor: William R. Bratschun
  • Patent number: 4131270
    Abstract: An L-shaped member is used for positioning a plurality of tube support plates at predetermined spaced locations on the L-shaped member with the tube holes of the tube sheets aligned. The L-shaped member is portable and includes a plurality of longitudinally separated members for locating the tube support plates with a predetermined spacing between each tube support plate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 22, 1977
    Date of Patent: December 26, 1978
    Assignee: Ecolaire Incorporated
    Inventors: George J. Williams, Robert C. Boyer
  • Patent number: 4131719
    Abstract: The load-bearing surface of a laminated plunger in a solenoid is provided with an embedded reinforcing material harder than the laminated plunger. The reinforcing material is made integral with the laminated plunger, by friction welding, only by a thin boundary layer between the contacting surfaces of the laminated plunger and the reinforcing material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 6, 1976
    Date of Patent: December 26, 1978
    Assignee: Sanmeidenki Kabushikikaisha
    Inventor: Tikahiro Nonoyama
  • Patent number: 4130233
    Abstract: A method of making porous metal heat sinks from aluminum is described. The sink, in its simplist form, is composed of layers of aluminum wire mesh randomly stacked and brazed together to form a rigid porous metal panel. Devices to be heated (or cooled) are mounted on the panel and forced air passed through the panel creating abundant heat transfer due to large surface area and favorable thermal conductivity of aluminum. Tortuous air passages through the wire mesh create conditions favorable for turbulence which further facilitates heat transfer. Advance in the state-of-the-art is the novel manufacturing method of making a low cost heat sink whose thermal performance is only slightly less than that of higher cost copper wire sinks. A secondary application of the invention is for the formation of metallic filtration material designed for filtering under controlled temperature conditions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 23, 1977
    Date of Patent: December 19, 1978
    Inventor: John Chisholm
  • Patent number: 4129241
    Abstract: A two step inertia welding process is employed to join the stem to the substrate of a disc thereby forming an anode assembly for a rotating X-ray anode tube. The abutting surfaces to be joined are rubbed together to heat the substrate to an elevated temperature, at which time the weld joint is formed by inertia welding.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 1977
    Date of Patent: December 12, 1978
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventor: Thomas M. Devine, Jr.
  • Patent number: 4129243
    Abstract: Disclosed is a double side cooled, pressure mounted semiconductor package and a method for the manufacture thereof. The package is formed by directly bonding upper and lower metal contact assemblies to an annular ceramic housing. Assembly is simplified if at least one contact assembly comprises two parts applied sequentially. An annular flange having a central opening approximately the size of the central opening in the annular housing and having an outside diameter larger than the outside diameter of the ceramic housing is direct bonded to one end of the housing simultaneously with a lower semiconductor contact. After a conventional semiconductor pellet is positioned in the housing, the second part, a metal contact disc with an outside diameter approximately equaling the outside diameter of the flange, is positioned thereover. Finally, the flange and the disc are welded around their peripheries.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 17, 1976
    Date of Patent: December 12, 1978
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Dominic A. Cusano, James A. Loughran, Yen S. E. Sun
  • Patent number: 4126205
    Abstract: An automobile exhaust gas muffler construction for flowing exhaust gases, comprises a housing having spaced apart semi-cylindrical end walls interconnected by tangential straight side walls. The housing also includes a front wall having a tubular inlet extending therethrough and through at least a portion of the housing, and a rear wall with a tubular outlet extending through the rear wall and through at least a portion of the housing. The tubular inlet and tubular outlet each have a gas flow slot passage defined along its length within the housing and gases flow from the inlet through this slot in the housing and through spiral passages defined by sound-muffling walls. The spiral passages of the inlet communicate with an expansion chamber defined in the housing which, in turn, communicates with spiral passages defined around the outlet connection.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 1977
    Date of Patent: November 21, 1978
    Assignee: J. Eberspacher
    Inventor: Walter Bauerschmidt
  • Patent number: 4125217
    Abstract: A steel column base member for connecting a hollow or box-shaped structural steel column member having square, rectangular or annular section, to a concrete foundation, which base plate member is an integral cast or forged body comprising a bottom plate member to engage the foundation, a box-shaped projection upwardly extending from the bottom plate member and having J-shaped grooves formed along overall outer edges of top surface of projection the width of web of projection being broader than thickness of column member, so as to effect groove welding between the bottom surface of the steel column member and the J-shaped grooved surfaces. A method of connecting an hollow or box-shaped steel column member to a base plate member is characterized by, effective J-shaped groove welding along between J-shaped groove surfaces of base plate member and the bottom surfaces of steel column member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 15, 1976
    Date of Patent: November 14, 1978
    Assignee: Kajima Corporation
    Inventor: Kuniaki Sato
  • Patent number: 4125216
    Abstract: Conductor wires are laid in parallel, one between a respectively associated pair of the coils of a helically wound coil spring while the coils are separated. Thereafter, the coils are moved together so that the conductor wires are pinched between them. One end of each of the wires is fluxed and then tinned with solder in dipping steps. Subsequently, the conductor wires are disposed in respectively associated ones of a series of parallel grooves formed in a conductor holder. The grooves are directed toward cavities in which elements to which the wires are to be bonded are suspended. The conductors are urged into engagement with those elements and hot air is made to flow into the cavity where the solder tinning is rendered molten whereby solder bonding is effected when the supply of hot air is terminated. The process is facilitated by the use of stops in conjunction with a coiled spring such that the conductor wires have their ends arranged in a common line prior to dipping and tinning.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 5, 1977
    Date of Patent: November 14, 1978
    Inventor: Stephen Ozimec