Patents by Inventor Gerald P. Hester

Gerald P. Hester has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 4354101
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for decoding a high density linear bar code of the type of the Universal Product Code (UPC) symbol and derivatives thereof. The method comprehends unambiguously decoding the encoded characters of the symbol by the use of primary ratios representative of the ratios of the sum of the widths of selected coding modules and secondary decoding ratios. The secondary ratios are selected in the event of any out-of-tolerance printing of the symbol for permitting the secondary ratios to be utilized with the primary ratios for resolving any possible ambiguities. The method and apparatus is applicable to scanning the UPC symbol by means of a hand-held wand as well as laser beam scanning. The apparatus contemplates the measuring of the widths of the coding modules and storing the width measurements in a memory without decoding.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 22, 1980
    Date of Patent: October 12, 1982
    Assignee: MSI Data Corporation
    Inventors: Gerald P. Hester, Paul Sherer
  • Patent number: 4345315
    Abstract: An electronic terminal for electronically collecting opinion data from customers of a service organization as to the satisfaction with the services rendered. The electronic terminal has a keyboard that displays the inquiries with multiple choice responses for each inquiry. A response is associated with each key whereby the operation of the key records the associated response. The response representative of each operated key are collected under the electronic control of a microprocessor controller and visually displaying to the customer each of his selections. A tally of each answer is permanently recorded in the terminal. The electronic control for the terminal includes stored parameters for programming certain operations. The terminal includes a porable data collection terminal for receiving the collected data and permitting it to be transmitted to a remote point by conventional telephone lines to a host processor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 19, 1979
    Date of Patent: August 17, 1982
    Assignee: MSI Data Corporation
    Inventors: Ernest R. Cadotte, Gerald P. Hester
  • Patent number: D257588
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 13, 1978
    Date of Patent: December 2, 1980
    Assignee: MSI Data Corporation
    Inventors: Ernest R. Cadotte, Gerald P. Hester, Martin D. Husted
  • Patent number: D257616
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 13, 1978
    Date of Patent: December 9, 1980
    Assignee: MSI Data Corporation
    Inventors: Ernest R. Cadotte, Gerald P. Hester, Martin D. Husted