Patents by Inventor James R. Whitten

James R. Whitten 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: 7467717
    Abstract: An automatic failed roll condom detection and removal apparatus wherein failed roll condoms are rapidly removed from a testing mandrel such that shut down of the testing and handling equipment is not required. Detection means detect the presence of a failed roll condom on a testing mandrel as it returns from the testing and removal station and ejection means remove the failed roll condom from the mandrel. The ejection means has a series of rotating brushes having relatively stiff bristles, the brushes being mounted on a reciprocating carriage in ascending manner in the mandrel return travel direction. When a failed roll condom is detected, the shuttle carriage return rate is slowed and the rotating brushes are brought into contact with the failed roll mandrel, each brush in succession pushing or rolling the condom higher on the mandrel until the final brush ejects the condom.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2006
    Date of Patent: December 23, 2008
    Inventor: James R. Whitten
  • Publication number: 20070176606
    Abstract: An automatic failed roll condom detection and removal apparatus wherein failed roll condoms are rapidly removed from a testing mandrel such that shut down of the testing and handling equipment is not required. Detection means detect the presence of a failed roll condom on a testing mandrel as it returns from the testing and removal station and ejection means remove the failed roll condom from the mandrel. The ejection means has a series of rotating brushes having relatively stiff bristles, the brushes being mounted on a reciprocating carriage in ascending manner in the mandrel return travel direction. When a failed roll condom is detected, the shuttle carriage return rate is slowed and the rotating brushes are brought into contact with the failed roll mandrel, each brush in succession pushing or rolling the condom higher on the mandrel until the final brush ejects the condom.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 27, 2006
    Publication date: August 2, 2007
    Inventor: James R. Whitten
  • Patent number: 6984992
    Abstract: A condom testing apparatus having a plurality of electrically conductive mandrels having condoms loaded thereon, a first set of condom-contacting electrode members, a second set of condom-contacting electrode members, and a gapped electrical circuit between each of the mandrels and the first set of condom-contacting electrode members and between each of the mandrels and the second set of condom-contacting electrode members during testing, wherein defects within a condom being tested are detected by passage of current between the mandrels and the first and second sets of condom-contacting electrode members, wherein the first set of condom-contacting electrode members contacts less than 100 percent of the circumference of each of the condoms and the second set of condom-contacting electrode members contacts less than 100 percent of the circumference of each of the condoms, such that two condoms can be tested at once.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 7, 2004
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2006
    Assignee: Agri Dynamics, Inc.
    Inventor: James R. Whitten
  • Patent number: 6616386
    Abstract: An apparatus for loading thin-walled, elastic, tubular members having a single closed end, such as finger cots, condoms, balloons or the like, onto elongated rod or finger elements for subsequent placement onto a mandrel for processing or testing, where the tubular member is drawn in inverted manner onto the finger elements by suction and where separable finger element alignment blocks are provided to properly align and position the finger elements to receive the tubular member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 24, 2002
    Date of Patent: September 9, 2003
    Assignee: AGRI Dynamics, Inc.
    Inventors: Brian A. Gobrogge, James R. Whitten
  • Publication number: 20030138300
    Abstract: An apparatus for loading thin-walled, elastic, tubular members having a single closed end, such as finger cots, condoms, balloons or the like, onto elongated rod or finger elements for subsequent placement onto a mandrel for processing or testing, where the tubular member is drawn in inverted manner onto the finger elements by suction and where separable finger element alignment blocks are provided to properly align and position the finger elements to receive the tubular member.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 24, 2002
    Publication date: July 24, 2003
    Inventors: Brian A. Gobrogge, James R. Whitten
  • Patent number: 6588989
    Abstract: An apparatus for handling and orienting elastic, thin-walled, tubular members having a closed end and an open end, such as finger cots, such that all tubular members are delivered in the same orientation, the apparatus having a retrieval conduit, a delivery conduit angularly joined to the retrieval conduit, a reversing chamber extending linearly forward from the retrieval conduit and across the opening to the delivery conduit, and suction means to draw the tubular members through the retrieval and delivery conduits. A tubular member traveling in the forward orientation with the closed end forward will be drawn directly into the delivery conduit, while a tubular member traveling in the reverse orientation with the open end forward will first pass the opening to the delivery conduit and strike the barrier end wall of the reversing chamber, and then be drawn into the delivery conduit with the closed end forward.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 27, 2001
    Date of Patent: July 8, 2003
    Assignee: Agri Dynamics, Inc.
    Inventors: James R. Whitten, Brian A. Gobrogge, Ken Thompson
  • Publication number: 20030021639
    Abstract: An apparatus for handling and orienting elastic, thin-walled, tubular members having a closed end and an open end, such as finger cots, such that all tubular members are delivered in the same orientation, the apparatus having a retrieval conduit, a delivery conduit angularly joined to the retrieval conduit, a reversing chamber extending linearly forward from the retrieval conduit and across the opening to the delivery conduit, and suction means to draw the tubular members through the retrieval and delivery conduits. A tubular member traveling in the forward orientation with the closed end forward will be drawn directly into the delivery conduit, while a tubular member traveling in the reverse orientation with the open end forward will first pass the opening to the delivery conduit and strike the barrier end wall of the reversing chamber, and then be drawn into the delivery conduit with the closed end forward.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 27, 2001
    Publication date: January 30, 2003
    Inventors: James R. Whitten, Brian A. Gobrogge, Ken Thompson
  • Patent number: 6394258
    Abstract: An apparatus for loading condoms onto mandrels is disclosed, the apparatus comprising a plural number of expansion rods adapted to receive and stretch a condom and a plural number of detaining rods to abut and retain the condom ring, the rods being mounted on a reciprocating carriage assembly which moves the rods past the mandrel, the mandrel itself stripping the condom from the rods.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 10, 2001
    Date of Patent: May 28, 2002
    Inventor: James R. Whitten
  • Patent number: 4472628
    Abstract: A transducer for sensing the magnitude of a parameter, such as mechanical displacement/motion, pressure, temperature, electrical voltage, current and the like, uses a multimode optical waveguide fiber. At least one portion of the fiber is subjected to bending in an amount changing with a change in the sensed parameter magnitude. The resulting microbending losses in the fiber vary the attenuation of light energy between an optical source and an optical detector, response to variations in the sensed parameter magnitude. The variations of the detector output may be monotonically continuous, or may be processed to assume one of a pair of levels for "on-off" switching purposes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 8, 1983
    Date of Patent: September 18, 1984
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventor: James R. Whitten
  • Patent number: 4436995
    Abstract: A transducer for sensing the magnitude of a parameter, such as mechanical displacement/motion, pressure, temperature, electrical voltage, current and the like, uses a multimode optical waveguide fiber. At least one portion of the fiber is subjected to bending in an amount changing with a change in the sensed parameter magnitude. The resulting microbending losses in the fiber vary the attenuation of light energy between an optical source and an optical detector, response to variations in the sensed parameter magnitude. The variations of the detector output may be monotonically continuous, or may be processed to assume one of a pair of levels for "on-off" switching purposes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 29, 1981
    Date of Patent: March 13, 1984
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventor: James R. Whitten
  • Patent number: 4099027
    Abstract: A speech scrambler for rendering unintelligible a communications signal for transmission over nonsecure communications channels includes a time delay modulator and a coding signal generator in a scrambling portion of the system and a similar time delay modulator and a coding generator for generating an inverse signal in the unscrambling portion of the system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 2, 1976
    Date of Patent: July 4, 1978
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventor: James R. Whitten
  • Patent number: 4091342
    Abstract: A time delay modulator is disclosed in which the instantaneous time base of a carrier signal is varied in accordance with a modulating signal. In one embodiment, modulation is achieved through the use of charge transfer delay lines and variable frequency clocks in which a carrier wave signal is applied to the input of the delay line and the carrier wave signal is propagated through the delay line at a rate determined by the output frequency of an oscillator which deviates from a nominal frequency by an amount proportionate to the magnitude of the modulating signal. In another embodiment, an analog-to-digital converter, a shift register and a digital-to-analog converter in serial configuration are each controlled by a voltage controlled oscillator. The carrier wave signal is connected to the input of the analog-to-digital converter and samples are taken in accordance with a clock input.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 20, 1977
    Date of Patent: May 23, 1978
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventor: James R. Whitten
  • Patent number: 4068306
    Abstract: A tomographic x-ray imaging system comprises a large plurality of parallel data acquisition channels which integrate and digitize signals from an array of x-ray detectors. Calibration pulses are injected into each data acquisition channel to permit measurement of drift in electronic gain and dc offset parameters. Separate x-ray detectors continuously monitor the intensity of the x-ray source.The measured values for channel gains, dc offsets, and source intensity are fed to a digital computer where they are automatically combined with x-ray transmission data to compensate for system drift and extend the period between calibration measurements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 12, 1976
    Date of Patent: January 10, 1978
    Assignee: General Electric Co.
    Inventors: Arthur C. M. Chen, William D. Barber, Walter H. Berninger, Gerald J. Carlson, Norman C. Gittinger, James R. Whitten
  • Patent number: 3956585
    Abstract: A ghost canceller for the cancellation of a ghost signal from a complex electrical signal including a desired signal component as well as the ghost is provided wherein an electronically variable delay line of the charge transfer type is incorporated in a negative feedback loop. Bucket-brigade and charge-coupled devices may be employed with associated variable frequency clock oscillators to provide remotely variable delay times in an easily implemented structure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 1974
    Date of Patent: May 11, 1976
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Walter J. Butler, Charles M. Puckette, James R. Whitten