Patents by Inventor Ming D. Zhang

Ming D. Zhang 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: 5497989
    Abstract: In a pinball machine a ball trough is provided for moving the ball between the drain hole and the shooter lane. The ball trough comprises a channel fixed to the playfield and has a first end adjacent the drain hole and a second end proximate to the shooter lane. A rotatable carrier is movable between a first position and a second position for carrying the ball from the channel to the shooter lane and has a load opening, an exit opening, and a passage therebetwen. The load opening is positioned adjacent to the second end when the carrier is disposed in the first position and the exit opening is disposed adjacent to the shooter lane when the carrier is disposed in the second position. The passage may have an arcuate surface on which the ball will ride as the carrier approaches the second position for urging the ball out the exit opening.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 10, 1995
    Date of Patent: March 12, 1996
    Assignee: CAPCOM Coin-Op, Inc.
    Inventors: Mark D. Ritchie, Ming D. Zhang, Robert S. Morrison