Abstract: A goose neck style vent has a base that registers with a surface opening of a building, and upstanding walls which form a portion of a curved air flow pathway above the vent opening. A top portion of the vent registers with the base to complete the curved air flow pathway and define an air outlet opening. The top includes a screen that hinges to cover the air outlet opening. A flapper valve is positioned across the curved air flow pathway and is hinged to the base at one end. The opposite free end of the flapper valve is urged to a closed position by gravity and to an open position by air pressure from below. An upstanding air deflecting baffle extends above the free end of the flapper, and limits air gusts passing through the screen and under the free end of the flapper valve.

Abstract: A hand held vacuum cleaner unit and docking assembly for a central vacuum system is shown. The hand held vacuum cleaner has a handle, a suction nozzle, a trigger switch to turn on a battery powered suction motor and an outlet port. The docking assembly fits into a central vacuum cleaner mounting plate, and provides a cradle to store the hand held vacuum cleaner. Recharging contacts, a latch mechanism, seals and an intake port are provided on the docking assembly. When the hand held unit is in the docking assembly it may be electrically charged, and emptied of dirt and debris by activation of the central vacuum system. The docking assembly also includes an access port for a conventional central vacuum hose.

Abstract: A hand held vacuum cleaner unit and docking assembly for a central vacuum system is shown. The hand held vacuum cleaner has a handle, a suction nozzle, a trigger switch to turn on a battery powered suction motor and an outlet port. The docking assembly fits into a central vacuum cleaner mounting plate, and provides a cradle to store the hand held vacuum cleaner. Recharging contacts, a latch mechanism, seals and an intake port are provided on the docking assembly. When the hand held unit is in the docking assembly it may be electrically charged, and emptied of dirt and debris by activation of the central vacuum system. The docking assembly also includes an access port for a conventional central vacuum hose.

Abstract: A greywater recovery and reuse system is shown, including a body for collecting, conditioning and discharging greywater. The body has an inlet connection to a source of greywater; a filter for filtering the greywater; a tank for receiving the filtered greywater; a disinfector for disinfecting the filtered greywater; a pump for discharging the conditioned greywater from said tank to a toilet that needs flushing water; a discharge connection to a sanitary sewer system; a fresh water connection and a control system for controlling the operation of the greywater recovery and reuse system. The system includes a controller for operating the system and dealing with certain alarm and status conditions. Methods of operating the system are also comprehended.

Abstract: A female electrical receptacle for mounting behind an inlet valve of a central vacuum cleaning system, having a base portion and a cover portion wherein the base portion defines three open topped channels and two side channels include an electrically conductive bayonet extending into said channel. The central channel retains the ground wire. Each bayonet is electrically connected to a female pin receptacle located toward one end of said base portion. The cover is sized and shaped to be field securable to said base portion to close said open top channels onto said bayonets, The female electrical receptacle further includes attachment features adjacent the pin receptacles, which are sized and shaped to engage with said inlet valve to permit said one end to be mounted behind said inlet valve and connected to a plug opening in said inlet valve.

Abstract: A hand held vacuum cleaner unit and docking assembly for a central vacuum system is shown. The hand held vacuum cleaner has a handle, a suction nozzle, a trigger switch to turn on a battery powered suction motor and an outlet port. The docking assembly fits into a central vacuum cleaner mounting plate, and provides a cradle to store the hand held vacuum cleaner. Recharging contacts, a latch mechanism, seals and an intake port are provided on the docking assembly. When the hand held unit is in the docking assembly it may be electrically charged, and emptied of dirt and debris by activation of the central vacuum system. The docking assembly also includes an access port for a conventional central vacuum hose.

Abstract: A bathtub drain and overflow fitting kit is provided having a drain fitting, an overflow fitting and/or an adapter fitting, for connecting the bathtub drain and overflow openings to the household waste plumbing. The overflow fitting has a ball and socket connection between its inlet and outlet. Preferably, the overflow fitting has an abutment member which limits the range of angles created by the joint socket and joint ball within a range of angles to about 10°. The kit includes a gasket having a first sealing portion, a second sealing portion, and a tapered sealing portion between the first and second sealing portions, and is configured so that the same gasket may be used at the drain opening or the overflow opening. The drain and overflow fittings have at their inlets retaining features that interengage matching retaining features on the gasket to hold during installation.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a grease trap system for wastewater systems, having an inlet pipe with a shut off valve, an outlet pipe with a shut off valve and a grease interceptor comprising a replaceable container body including means to trap fats, oils and grease within the body. The body has inlet and outlet slide couplers in opposed walls, and each coupler has an associated connecting means to sealingly fluidly connect the slide couplers to the inlet and outlet pipes. When the container body is disconnected from the pipes the slide couplers may also be sealed by a removable plug for transport. The slide couplers displace inwardly and outwardly relative to the container to give clearance between the pipes to remove the container. A method of replacing full containers with empty containers is also comprehended.

Abstract: A female electrical receptacle for mounting behind an inlet valve of a central vacuum cleaning system, having a base portion and a cover portion wherein the base portion defines three open topped channels and two side channels include an electrically conductive bayonet extending into said channel. The central channel retains the ground wire. Each bayonet is electrically connected to a female pin receptacle located toward one end of said base portion. The cover is sized and shaped to be field securable to said base portion to close said open top channels onto said bayonets, The female electrical receptacle further includes attachment features adjacent the pin receptacles, which are sized and shaped to engage with said inlet valve to permit said one end to be mounted behind said inlet valve and connected to a plug opening in said inlet valve.

Abstract: A passive vent for venting a building enclosure having an opening in a roof portion, the vent being adjustable for mounting on roof portions of different slopes. The vent has a base pivotally attached to a vent structure with a pair of pivot joints. The vent structure has a collar attached to a vent body having a cover. At least one gas permeable screen is positioned on the vent body between the cover and the collar. The base comprises a lower attachment structure for attaching the base to the roof portion over the opening. An aperture through the lower attachment structure permits gas to pass in to and out of the opening in the roof portion through the base. A wall including a pair of opposed curvilinear wall sections surrounds the aperture. The pivot joints define a pivot axis about which the vent structure pivots along a range of angles relative to the base.

Abstract: Multiparticulates of low-solubility drugs and carriers that result in rapid release of the drug are disclosed.

Abstract: A membrane-permeation test for evaluating pharmaceutical compositions is described. The method comprises the following steps: (1) providing a microporous membrane having a plurality of pores, the membrane having a feed side and a permeate side, wherein the feed side of the membrane is in fluid communication with the feed solution, and wherein the permeate side of the membrane is in fluid communication with a permeate solution; (2) administering a pharmaceutical composition to an aqueous solution to form a feed solution; and (3) measuring the concentration of drug in the permeate solution; wherein the feed side of the membrane is hydrophilic, and/or wherein the permeate solution comprises an organic fluid.

Abstract: A membrane-permeation test for evaluating pharmaceutical compositions is described. The method comprises the following steps: (1) providing a microporous membrane having a plurality of pores, the membrane having a feed side and a permeate side, wherein the feed side of the membrane is in fluid communication with the feed solution, and wherein the permeate side of the membrane is in fluid communication with a permeate solution; (2) administering a pharmaceutical composition to an aqueous solution to form a feed solution; and (3) measuring the concentration of drug in the permeate solution; wherein the feed side of the membrane is hydrophilic, and/or wherein the permeate solution comprises an organic fluid.

Abstract: Multiparticulates of low-solubility drugs and carriers that result in rapid release of the drug are disclosed.

Abstract: A method for pretreating a wastewater stream containing grease and food particles before the stream enters a sewer includes the steps of directing said wastewater stream to a separation area; directing said wastewater stream along a preferred flow path within said separation area, said preferred flow path being sized and shaped to permit said grease to rise out of said wastewater stream; trapping said grease which rises out of said wastewater stream; extending a wastewater outlet substantially across said separation area; accelerating said remaining wastewater, carrying said food particles, through said outlet from said separation area, thereby sucking said food particles away from said separation area; and directing said wastewater and said food particles toward said sewer system.

Abstract: A new mail transport protocol is proposed for use over a reliable byte-stream transport. This protocol is faster, simpler and more streaming than prior methods, and handles binary and unicode data more efficiently. The protocol requires fewer communication round trips between servers per message transferred than existing methods. It transmits and receives byte data as is without requiring further per-byte processing on advanced operating systems such as UNIX, and requires only new-line processing in text on legacy operating systems.

Abstract: A method for pretreating a wastewater stream containing grease and food particles before the stream enters a sewer includes the steps of directing said wastewater stream to a separation area; directing said wastewater stream along a preferred flow path within said separation area, said preferred flow path being sized and shaped to permit said grease to rise out of said wastewater stream; trapping said grease which rises out of said wastewater stream; extending a wastewater outlet substantially across said separation area; accelerating said remaining wastewater, carrying said food particles, through said outlet from said separation area, thereby sucking said food particles away from said separation area; and directing said wastewater and said food particles toward said sewer system.

Abstract: A wastewater separator to separate waste from a mixed wastewater stream including one or more of heavy waste, light waste and water. The wastewater separator comprises a separation container, a inlet and an outlet. The separation container comprises (1) a wastewater stream director within the separation container, the wastewater stream director being sized, shaped and positioned relative to the wastewater inlet to direct the wastewater stream along a preferred flow path to permit the light waste to separate from the wastewater stream in a first direction to a collection area and to permit the heavy waste to separate from the wastewater stream in a second direction towards a heavy waste removal area; and (2) a flow-directing outlet baffle within the separation container for directing the wastewater stream to the wastewater outlet from the heavy waste removal area to remove the heavy waste from the separation container.

Abstract: The present invention is related to an oral dosage form comprising an effective amount of an alkalizing agent and an azithromycin multiparticulate wherein said multiparticulate comprises azithromycin, a glyceride which comprises glyceryl monobehenate, glyceryl dibehenate, glyceryl tribehenate, or a mixture thereof and a poloxamer. Typically, the oral dosage form includes any suitable oral dosing means such as a powder for oral suspension, a unit dose packet or sachet, a tablet or a capsule.

Abstract: The invention relates to compositions and methods for reverse gene therapy, wherein a gene therapy vector encoding a gene product (e.g. a protein) which is usually only expressed in cells of an abnormal tissue is delivered to a cell of an animal afflicted with a disease or disorder to alleviate the disease or disorder. In one embodiment, a plasmid vector encoding HERG (A561V) protein is delivered to a cell of an animal afflicted with re-entrant atrial flutter-mediated cardiac arrhythmia.