Patents Examined by P. Austin Bradley
-
Patent number: 7429188Abstract: A cable connector assembly (100) includes an insulative housing (2) defining a number of receiving passages (23, 24), a number of contacts (3) respectively received in the receiving passages and including at least one detect contact (33), a circuit board (4) assembled to the insulative housing and including an LED (42) connecting with the at least one detect contact, a cable (6) electrically connecting with the circuit board, a rear cover (7) assembled to the housing, and status indicator means (82) molded with the rear cover and overlapping the LED to spread the light emitted by the LED outwardly for normal status indication.Type: GrantFiled: July 3, 2006Date of Patent: September 30, 2008Assignee: Hon Hai Precision Ind. Co., Ltd.Inventor: Jerry Wu
-
Patent number: 7426157Abstract: An interval timer combining the features of a practice timer, means of measuring date and metronome into a single device for the purpose of measuring, recording, and displaying practice records over a period of weeks or months. During the measuring of practice time, the device may complement the passage of time by the use of lights, sounds, or vibrations. It features a display screen that can indicate total time practiced, current chronological time and date, and a record of practice accomplished over a period of chronological time. The device may also accommodate interchangeable face plates of electronic icons for user personalization of the device. An enhanced version may include means for displaying assignment and practice information.Type: GrantFiled: March 4, 2004Date of Patent: September 16, 2008Inventors: Nathan James Arnold, Greg J. Owoc, William Palmer Lovegrove
-
Patent number: 7420881Abstract: The device includes data entry means (10), control means (14) connected to means (12) for displaying said data. The invention is characterised in that it further includes a processing unit (16) inserted between the data entry means (10) and the control means (14). The processing unit (16) includes a memory (11) for storing reference times and particularly the Time Out, a counter (18) storing the time TC that elapses from the start of a manipulation and the time TM the elapses between two manipulations, and a comparator (21) including a first comparison unit (23), which acts on the one hand on an ON/OFF switch (24) to interrupt, via control means (14) the energy supply when TC>TO and which, on the other hand, enables TO to be altered at the end of a series of manipulations as a function of certain reference times of the memory and the speed at which the manipulations have been carried out.Type: GrantFiled: October 29, 2004Date of Patent: September 2, 2008Assignee: ASULAB S.A.Inventors: Erik Jan Frenkel, Jean-Charles Guanter
-
Patent number: 7410289Abstract: A watchwinder adapted for home use or in a retail store environment includes a horizontal dovetail groove or channel on the top, bottom and side surfaces of the watchwinder housing which cooperates with a removable interlocking bar or rail of mating dovetail shape to selectively and detachably interconnect adjacent watchwinders arranged in a vertical or side-by-side relation. The grooves preferably extend across the horizontal dimension of the watchwinder to a point short of the front of the housing for concealment purposes, and are made relatively wide in relation to the dimensions of the housing to improve rigidity of an interlocked grouping of watchwinders and to simplify assembly. Preferably, the channels are of equal size and shape and spaced equidistantly apart. An array of interlocked watchwinders can be built up to varying size and shape, and one or more of the watchwinders can be selectively removed from anywhere within the array without disturbing the others.Type: GrantFiled: March 21, 2006Date of Patent: August 12, 2008Assignee: Wolf Designs, Inc.Inventor: Paul D. Hill
-
Patent number: 7408846Abstract: The ornamental article is a bangle or ring which can house a watch or item of jewelry. The article has two or more planar portions fixed at a 90° angle and a display area that spans the surface of at least two of the planar portions to form a continuous angled display area.Type: GrantFiled: March 11, 2005Date of Patent: August 5, 2008Inventor: Fredi Brodmann
-
Patent number: 7388814Abstract: The present invention provides a time indicator and method of use for determining and visually displaying the passage of a predetermined period of time. The time indicator of the present invention comprises a top portion and a bottom portion. The top portion is a multi-layer segment comprising a dye support layer coated with a masking layer, which containing a viewing window therethrough, and a non-curing ink or dye permeable polymer layer containing a migrating agent. The bottom portion is a multi-layer segment comprising a base support layer and a migrating ink or dye printed on the top surface of the base segment. The time indicator apparatus further comprises a removable impervious film or middle layer, which can be removed allowing the top and bottom portions to come into contact with one another, thereby activating the time indicator. The time indicator of the present invention allows one to follow the uniform directional visual dye migration through the viewing window.Type: GrantFiled: December 16, 2005Date of Patent: June 17, 2008Inventors: John Teffenhart, Benny S. Yam, Raymond S. Brown, James Mullowney
-
Patent number: 7387434Abstract: There is provided portable apparatus capable of maintaining a function of preventing accidental operation of a push button when the apparatus is carried on the wearer's body. The apparatus includes a watch enclosure body (apparatus enclosure body), a pipe, a push button, a biasing member, a locking member, and a whirl-stop. The pipe is fixed to the enclosure body by inserting it into a through hole in the enclosure body. A retainer tube of the pipe has a female thread formed thereon and is disposed outside the enclosure body. The push button has a shaft passed through the pipe, a detent for preventing the push button from being pulled out of the pipe, and a manipulator head disposed outside the enclosure body. The biasing member biases the push button outward with respect to the enclosure body. The locking member has an inner wall with a male thread and a stopper projection that comes into contact with and moves away from the head, and an outer wall that fits on the tube.Type: GrantFiled: October 4, 2006Date of Patent: June 17, 2008Assignee: Seiko Instruments Inc.Inventors: Haruki Hiranuma, Kinshuroh Itoh
-
Patent number: 7385876Abstract: A radio-controlled timepiece includes a regional-information storage unit that stores information on a target time region, a receiving circuit that receives a standard frequency that contains UTC time information, and that outputs a received signal, a regional-time calculating unit that calculates a current time of the target time region based on the information on the target time region and the received signal, a display unit that displays the current time calculated, a display-time correcting unit that corrects the current time to be displayed in DST or in standard time in timing determined based on the current time when information on a DST switching day is included in the received signal.Type: GrantFiled: June 7, 2004Date of Patent: June 10, 2008Assignee: Citizen Holdings Co., Ltd.Inventors: Takashi Ihara, Akinari Takada, Masaaki Namekawa, Masami Fukuda, Minoru Kobayashi
-
Patent number: 7382693Abstract: The invention relates to an instantaneous mechanism for controlling the date indicator (24) of a timepiece movement. It comprises: a 24-hour wheel (10) pierced with a first cutout (12b), a date driving wheel (16) mounted to rotate freely on the 24-hour wheel (10), coaxial therewith and having a pin (18) which fits into the cutout and a tooth (20) which collaborates with the indicator (24) to cause it to move on step by step each day at around midnight, and a spring balance (26, 32) collaborating with the pin (18). These components are shaped, sized and arranged in such a way that, at around midnight, the balance (26) escapes from the pin (18) and returns abruptly to its rest position, throwing forward the pin (18) and the driving wheel (16) whose tooth (20) strikes the date indicator (24) to cause it to move on by one step.Type: GrantFiled: October 23, 2003Date of Patent: June 3, 2008Assignee: Zenith International S.A.Inventor: Jean-Pierre Charpier
-
Patent number: 7379304Abstract: An insert panel assembly for the IDU cards at the hub of a point-to-multipoint millimeter wave wireless communication system. Generic cards with terminations for the selective connection of remote transceivers are provided with an apertured faceplate over which an insert panel may be placed to selectively block access to the card terminations. In one embodiment, the insert carries adaptors and another embodiment the connector on the conductor from the transceiver is configured to attach to the faceplate. In both embodiments the weight of the connector and conductor is supported by the chassis and not by the card. The connector is angled downwardly to avoid stress on the conductor and reduce the likelihood of kinking.Type: GrantFiled: June 29, 2001Date of Patent: May 27, 2008Assignee: Harris CorporationInventor: Thomas Edward Udd
-
Patent number: 7379395Abstract: A time measurement system that uses two signals generated by direct digital synthesis. The generated signals have the same frequency but different phase. One signal is used to identify the start of the measurement interval and the other signal is used to identify a measurement window in which a signal indicating the end of the measured interval might be detected. The time measurement system is used as part of a time domain reflectometry (TDR) system. An incident pulse is synchronized to the first signal and launched down on a line. In the measurement window, the signal on the line is compared to a threshold value to determine whether the pulse has been reflected and traveled back to the source. By iteratively repeating the measurement with a different measurement window, the time of arrival of the reflected pulse can be determined. This time domain reflectometry approach is incorporated into automatic test equipment for testing semiconductor devices and is used to calibrate the test equipment.Type: GrantFiled: June 30, 2004Date of Patent: May 27, 2008Assignee: Teradyne, Inc.Inventors: Robert Bruce Gage, Jacob Alvin Salmi
-
Patent number: 7376053Abstract: The present invention proposes improving the yield of a microgenerator (1) used for operating a timepiece. Such a microgenerator operates on the basis of the phenomenon of electromagnetic induction, it is thus desirable to limit as far as possible the presence of magnetic masses in proximity to said generator. Research undertaken has shown that the electrically conductive paths (9), and even their single protective layer, arranged in proximity to the microgenerator brake it, when they are formed of a magnetic material, and in particular a ferromagnetic material. Thus, the selection of exclusively non-magnetic materials is proposed for manufacturing the conductive paths.Type: GrantFiled: February 24, 2002Date of Patent: May 20, 2008Assignee: Eta SA Fabriques d'EbauchesInventors: Frédéric Leuba, Denis Burdet
-
Patent number: 7369463Abstract: A timer for assisting in the control of various medical regimen is described. The timer is particularly adapted for use in avoiding or assuring conception by providing a graphic representation on the timer to alert a user as to when a medically correct step needs to be taken. The timer is provided with an alarm that alerts one as to when a transition from one particular part of, for example, a contraceptive regimen to another part of the regimen is about to occur and illustrates the transition on the graphic representation. A status of the regimen is also presented to a user. One graphic representation involves an hour-glass filled with granules corresponding in number to the amount of time left before a transition in the medical regimen is to occur.Type: GrantFiled: February 19, 2000Date of Patent: May 6, 2008Assignee: N.V. OrganonInventors: Marlies Van Dullemen, Jan Willem Bouwknegt
-
Patent number: 7366059Abstract: The invention relates to a display device for a wristwatch comprising a luminescent surface for illuminating the background of a display element consisting of one or more alphanumeric characters. The display device comprises a window in an opaque watch face in which these characters can be displayed. The luminescent surface covers at least one partial area of a supporting surface situated behind said window. The alphanumeric characters of the display element have an opaque material and are located between the watch face and the luminescent surface.Type: GrantFiled: November 4, 2002Date of Patent: April 29, 2008Assignee: Eterna AG UhrenfabrikInventor: Ernst Seyr
-
Patent number: 7364352Abstract: A mechanism having at least a function of measuring an arbitrary elapsed time is provided, which disables the function from being reset after the function is started, and enables the function to be reset after the function is stopped. The function is continuously held in an electrical ON state after being started, except when being normally stopped. This provides a time measurement device and method in which an electrical operating state and a mechanical operating state can coincide.Type: GrantFiled: February 21, 2003Date of Patent: April 29, 2008Assignee: Seiko Epson CorporationInventors: Hidehiro Akahane, Kenichi Okuhara, Akihiko Maruyama, Nobuhiro Koike
-
Patent number: 7362659Abstract: A method and system for accurate timing in a low current system useful in fuzing applications generates a first count of oscillations of an oscillator of unknown frequency during a first period of unknown duration. A second count of oscillations of the oscillator is generated during a second period of a known duration. The duration of the first period is calculated based on the first count and the second count. A solid-state, thin-film battery is able to be used by virtue of low-current characteristics of the system, enabling extended shelf life for fuzing systems.Type: GrantFiled: July 11, 2002Date of Patent: April 22, 2008Assignee: Action Manufacturing CompanyInventors: Jonathan Siebott, Richard Frantz
-
Patent number: 7362662Abstract: A timepiece includes a display face having a color time field with a first axis representing a first unit of time and a second axis representing a second unit of time, wherein a colored section fills the color time field as time elapses and wherein a current color displayed in the colored section is one color in a set of different colors that correspond to a predetermined measurement of time.Type: GrantFiled: August 4, 2003Date of Patent: April 22, 2008Inventor: Timothy R. Lang
-
Patent number: 7362663Abstract: The invention provides an electronic printed chromatic elapsed time indicator device comprising a switch, a power source and a power driven elapsed time display for indicating the elapse of a limited predetermined segment of time upon activation of the switch and irrespective of the actual time of activation thereof, wherein the components are functionally interconnected and are printed on at least one substrate.Type: GrantFiled: September 21, 2005Date of Patent: April 22, 2008Assignee: Timestrip UK LimitedInventor: Michael Kagan
-
Patent number: 7357568Abstract: A running reserve indicator is provided for a mechanical clockwork provided with a main barrel for driving a gear-train and at least a second barrel for driving a gear-train allocated to an auxiliary function which is performed during a determined period. With the indicator, the running reserve displayed with the aid of a hand and a dial is always equal to the running reserve of the barrel having the smallest reserve.Type: GrantFiled: July 8, 2004Date of Patent: April 15, 2008Assignee: Eterna SAInventors: Paul Gerber, Willy Meier
-
Patent number: 7359289Abstract: The invention concerns a watch including a case having a middle part and housing a watch movement having a time-setting stem in a first peripheral region, said movement further including a first and a second control member which are arranged on either side of the time-setting stem and which each have an angular shift of less than 90° with the time-setting stem in relation to the centre of the movement, the watch further including an actuation device including a first and a second push-button arranged on the case in proximity to the movement, for respectively actuating said first and second control members, said watch being characterized in that, between each of said first and second push-buttons and said time-setting stem, there is an angular shift greater than 90° in relation to the centre of the movement, in that said first and second push-buttons are arranged in a second peripheral region of said watch movement, in that said actuation device further includes a transmission mechanism extending between saType: GrantFiled: December 21, 2004Date of Patent: April 15, 2008Assignee: Tissot S.A.Inventor: André Saunier