Abstract: A beverage (tea and coffee) making appliance of the type having a reservoir wherein a supply of hot water for brewing is maintained and from which a volume of the hot water is displaced by an equal volume of a batch of cold water discharged by gravity from a cold water basin through a fill tube into the bottom of the reservoir. The displaced hot water is discharged into a brewing funnel lined with a filter on which the beverage forming material (ground coffee or tea leaves) is placed. The cold water basin is equipped with a removable standpipe-like fitting on the upper end of the fill tube through which cold water enters as long as the level of water in the cold water basin is above the upper end or entrance opening in the fill tube. The fill basin has a second drain opening to which is connected one end of a tube the other end of which discharges into a portion of the brewing funnel which is partitioned off from the filter lined portion.

Abstract: A coffee grinder adapted to discharge ground coffee directly into a brewing funnel which is readily insertable and removable from the grinder. The grinder is equipped with brewing funnel support means in the form of a pair of spring clips mounted to the grinder. The spring clips have two pairs of yieldably spreadable support elements for accommodating brewing funnels of different sizes. Thus, large size brewing funnels that would result in permanent distortion of the pair of support elements suitable for smaller funnels can be accommodated in the second pair of support elements without producing permanent distortion of the later.

Abstract: A discharge chute unit is provided for attachment to a coffee grinder which has a discharge opening in the underside of a grinding chamber. The upper end of the discharge chute unit is mounted under the discharge opening and provided with de-chaffing the de-plugging means. A baffle is pivotally mounted in the upper end of the chute unit below the de-chaffer and de-plugger and normally biased in a position to deflect the flow of ground coffee and chaff toward the back side or rear wall of the chute member. The free discharge of chaff into the chute unit is prevented by a de-chaffer having reed-like de-chaffing members which yieldably obstruct the inlet opening into the chute unit without overly interfering with the discharge and flow of ground coffee from the grinding chamber into the chute unit.

Abstract: A beverage maker and serving unit system comprising a beverage maker and a portable beverage server. The beverage maker supports a brewing funnel over a platform on which the server sets when positioned to receive a stream of fresh brewed coffee or tea from the brewing funnel. When the system is designed for making iced tea the beverage maker will have a separate outlet for discharging diluting water into an opening in the server when the server is positioned all the way back on the platform. For support, the server has a set of front legs, a set of rear legs, and a set of intermediate legs all of which rest on the platform when the server is being filled. The server also has a lifting bail which cannot be fully raised until the server is filled and moved forward on the platform to where the intermediate legs engage upstanding detents on the front of the platform. When the server is setting back on the platform and being filled, the front legs engage the detents.

Abstract: There is disclosed a monitoring system for monitoring a plurality of functions or stations in a machine and capable of providing an alarm signal in the event of a failure or significant deviation in any one of the functions, which monitoring system also incorporates electronic circuitry for automatically temporarily disabling the alarm device in the event of a near simultaneous discontinuance or deviation in all of the functions being monitored.

Abstract: A calibrated tuneable monitor for use with multi-row planting apparatus includes means for sensing the number of seeds delivered to furrows formed in a field and controlling an indicator to give a visual readout to the operator of the planting apparatus as to whether the number of seeds planted is at least equal to a predetermined minimum value which is preset by a selector dial. The seed monitor system has a DC coupled monostable circuit for producing a pulse of given pulse width for each pulse produced by a seed sensor. The pulse from the DC coupled monostable circuit is then integrated and formed into a voltage which is proportional to the rate at which pulses are received. This voltage is then compared in a voltage comparator circuit to control the operation of an indicator.

Abstract: Disclosed is a sensing device for monitoring the rotation of a shaft or other mechanical movements. A magnetic structure is positioned on the shaft for rotation therewith and provides a plurality of discrete magnetic poles about the shaft at uniform spaced apart locations. The magnetic structure is formed of flexible plastic, permanent magnet material cut in a castellated configuration to form a plurality of uniformly spaced apart magnetic pole elements.