Patents by Inventor Thomas A. Devlin

Thomas A. Devlin 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: 5419769
    Abstract: A medico-surgical suction system has a container with an outlet connected to a vacuum pump and an inlet connected to a suction catheter via a dual-lumen tube assembly one end of which is connected to the container and the other end of which is has a suction control and a coupling for the catheter. A valve located in the outlet of the container is connected to the suction control via a minor lumen of the tube. A side lumen enables the vacuum pump to apply reduced pressure to one end of the valve which holds the valve off against the action of a spring. Actuation of the suction control allows air to flow to the valve via the minor lumen so that the effect of the reduced pressure is overcome and the spring opens the valve.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 23, 1992
    Date of Patent: May 30, 1995
    Assignee: Smiths Industries Medical Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: Thomas Devlin, Karl Ulrich, Frank Willis
  • Patent number: 5349950
    Abstract: A suction catheter assembly for use in removing undesirable fluid from a patient includes an aspirating catheter having a proximal end and a distal end, the distal end being suitable for insertion into a patient; a vacuum connecting member located in the vicinity of the proximal end of the catheter; a patient connecting member mounted to surround the aspirating catheter in the vicinity of the distal end of the catheter, the patient connecting member housing a wiper/seal member sealingly engaging with the outside surface of the catheter; a protective sleeve surrounding at least the majority of the length of the catheter and extending between the vacuum connecting member and the patient connecting member, the protective sleeve being adapted to permit the distal end of the catheter to be extended from the protective sleeve into the patient and to be withdrawn from the patient; and a separate one-way valve member within the patient connecting member so that the one-way valve permits gas flow therethrough from ins
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 25, 1993
    Date of Patent: September 27, 1994
    Assignee: Smiths Industries Medical Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: Karl Ulrich, Thomas Devlin
  • Patent number: 5300043
    Abstract: A closed system suction catheter assembly has a valve which controls suction applied at the patient end of the assembly. The valve has a pinch tube connected in line with the catheter and secured at each end to the housing of the valve. An occluder bar midway along a pivoted lever is urged up by a spring to pinch the tube closed against a fixed occluder and close the valve. The valve has a button protected by a rotatable guard which bears on an end of the lever so that the valve can be opened by pressing down on the button. A snap mechanism engages the occluder lever.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 23, 1992
    Date of Patent: April 5, 1994
    Assignee: Smiths Industries Medical Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: Thomas Devlin, Victor Cheung, Karl Ulrich
  • Patent number: 5267764
    Abstract: An arrangement for attaching ceiling anchors to ceiling rails, including a bifurcated support which is attachable to an elongated pole. The support is engagable with an installment head which is bifurcated to define a carrying space for ceiling anchors. The installment head is adapted to keep anchors from slipping off of the head as it is moved relative to a ceiling rail.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 6, 1992
    Date of Patent: December 7, 1993
    Assignee: Rose Displays, Ltd.
    Inventors: Michael S. Hoffman, Thomas Devlin, Amy Potts
  • Patent number: 4353063
    Abstract: A destination sign for buses is provided with means for adding a route number to the display device independently of the destination name displayed on the sign. The destination sign is of the electronic type in which a long destination name is displayed by showing two or more word units in time sequence on the same display device (10). The word units are stored in memory (18); a destination name selector (14) and logic means (16) addresses the desired combination of word units in sequence. A route number selector (24) generates a route number signal independently of the destination name selector. The memory and the route number selector are selectively coupled by switching means (20) to a character generator (22) which controls the energization of the display device according to the characters to be displayed in the destination message.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 1980
    Date of Patent: October 5, 1982
    Assignee: Vultron, Inc.
    Inventor: Thomas A. Devlin
  • Patent number: 4325062
    Abstract: A message display monitor for a bus is disclosed in combination with a bus destination sign. A changeable alphanumeric destination sign (10) is automatically controlled by a control system (16) to display a selected message from a message memory (14). The message is selected by a manually actuated selector (12) which addresses the memory (14) according to a manual input which is specified in a look-up table which contains multiple messages. An electronic alphanumeric display monitor (18), specifically an LED display, is connected with the message memory (14) through a monitor control system (20) so that it will show the bus driver the message selected from the memory.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 1979
    Date of Patent: April 13, 1982
    Assignee: Vultron, Incorporated
    Inventor: Thomas A. Devlin
  • Patent number: 4066300
    Abstract: A digital traction control system is disclosed for a motor vehicle having a plurality of driven wheels connected by a differential mechanism, characterized by the provision of a plurality of counters for counting pulses produced in accordance with the rotational velocities of the driven wheels, respectively, the counters being resettable when the count totals therein are within a given ratio. In the event that a driven wheel experiences a spin condition causing it to rotate at a higher rotational velocity than the other wheels, whereby the pulse count total of its associated counter exceeds the count total of the other counters outside the given ratio, a solenoid-operated brake is automatically activated to brake the faster wheel, thereby to transfer driving torque to the other driven wheel or wheels.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 29, 1976
    Date of Patent: January 3, 1978
    Assignee: Aspro, Inc.
    Inventor: Thomas A. Devlin