Patents by Inventor William E. Ruehl

William E. Ruehl 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: 6550874
    Abstract: An adjustable hanging file system for a drawer having side panels utilizes frame members comprised of spaced skirts with a connecting crown to thereby define a u-shaped cross section and bracket members inserted between the skirts to support the frame members. Additional hanging bracket members incorporated with cross rail frame members support the cross rail frame members on frame members attached to a file drawer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 24, 2001
    Date of Patent: April 22, 2003
    Assignee: CompX International Inc.
    Inventors: Gregg W. Walla, Richard J. Tracy, E. Grant Swick, William E. Ruehl
  • Publication number: 20030038565
    Abstract: An adjustable hanging file system for a drawer having side panels utilizes frame members comprised of spaced skirts with a connecting crown to thereby define a u-shaped cross section and bracket members inserted between the skirts to support the frame members. Additional hanging bracket members incorporated with cross rail frame members support the cross rail frame members on frame members attached to a file drawer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 24, 2001
    Publication date: February 27, 2003
    Inventors: Gregg W. Walla, Richard J. Tracy, E. Grant Swick, William E. Ruehl
  • Patent number: 6109708
    Abstract: A drawer system is provided having a frame, first and second drawers that are each slidable guidingly on the frame between open and closed positions, and a locking mechanism. The locking mechanism has a first blocking element mounted for movement relative to the frame between a blocking position and a neutral position and a second blocking element mounted for movement relative to the frame between a blocking position and a neutral position. A first actuating surface is provided on the first drawer, with a second actuating surface being provided on the second drawer. The first blocking element in its blocking position prevents the second blocking element from moving from its neutral position into its blocking position. The second blocking element in its blocking position prevents the first blocking element from moving from its neutral position into its blocking position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 23, 1998
    Date of Patent: August 29, 2000
    Assignee: Timberline Lock Ltd.
    Inventors: Gregg Walla, E. Grant Swick, William E. Ruehl
  • Patent number: 5153553
    Abstract: A fuse having a rated current for protecting electric or electronic circuitry comprises a body having a blow chamber. A fusible element is contained within the body and extends through the blow chamber. A contact is disposed on the body electrically connected to the fusible element for making an electrical connection between the fuse and the circuitry. The blow chamber is sealed around the fusible element so that thermal energy in the fusible element can increase within the blow chamber for causing the element to open when an elevated current is applied to the element. The blow chamber is sufficiently sealed around the element for retaining a pressure created therewithin by vaporization of a portion of the element; that pressure is sufficient to cause an arc produced by fusion of the element to extinguish. The body is of sufficient strength to contain the pressure within the blow chamber for allowing the fuse to fail gracefully.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 8, 1991
    Date of Patent: October 6, 1992
    Assignee: Illinois Tool Works, Inc.
    Inventors: William E. Ruehl, Bjarne Frederiksen, John Alice, E. Grant Swick
  • Patent number: 5113169
    Abstract: A fuse assembly has snubber/indicators which are visible through translucent lenses provided within the fuse cover, for indication and inspection of the fuse operability. The snubbers provide a shearing load upon the fuse filament so as to more positively separate the fuse segments of a ruptured filament, which snubbers may also envelop and insulate the conductor posts and separate the ruptured fuse elements so as to inhibit arcing within the "blown" fuse.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 1, 1990
    Date of Patent: May 12, 1992
    Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
    Inventors: William E. Ruehl, Bjarne Frederiksen, E. Grant Swick
  • Patent number: 4968264
    Abstract: A fuse carrier operable as a surge-current protector for cross-connecting two circuits utilizes standard amperage fuses arranged in an offset alignment and secured in a housing cavity against rotational, longitudinal, and transverse movement with the fuse blades maintained in an aligned and separated position and separate by a platform with an upright protruding member, which fuses are provided in a narrow-housing configuration.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 1989
    Date of Patent: November 6, 1990
    Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
    Inventors: William E. Ruehl, Richard H. Heidorn
  • Patent number: 4954672
    Abstract: A ground start key switch for use with a modular duplex adapter to permit momentarily shorting a pair of jack terminals includes a switch actuator mechanism adapted to be mounted onto the modular duplex adapter having a pair of jack terminals and a conductor member attached to the switch actuator mechanism. The switch actuator mechanism includes a resilient lever arm which is depressible for causing engagement of the conductor member with the pair of jack terminals so as to electrically short the pair of jack terminals together. When the resilient lever arm is released, the resiliency thereof returns the conductor member thereof to its normal position at which the conductor member is disengaged from the pair of jack terminals such that the latter are not longer shorted together.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 1989
    Date of Patent: September 4, 1990
    Assignee: Illinois Tool Works, Inc.
    Inventor: William E. Ruehl
  • Patent number: 4654743
    Abstract: A transient voltage protector is provided for telephone lines and the like. An insulating plastic housing is provided with two pairs of terminals having female connections at the lower ends for association with selected terminals of a telephone terminal block. The upper ends of these terminals are of a male type and extend above the top of the housing for receipt of further elements such as bridging clips, plug-in fuse units, or line status indicators. An offset and raised portion of the housing carries a pair of zener diodes having lower wire terminals connected to two of the aforesaid terminals. The upper wire terminals of the zener diodes are connected to a grounding terminal having an upper portion extending above the housing in the form of two spaced tines for receipt of a common ground wire between the tines. The various terminals and the zener diodes and the housing have complementary structure for positioning of the terminals and the diodes within the housing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 5, 1985
    Date of Patent: March 31, 1987
    Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
    Inventors: William E. Ruehl, Richard H. Heidorn, E. Grant Swick
  • Patent number: 4626633
    Abstract: A switched telephone tester comprises a tester body defining a connector portion of complementary configuration for receiving a modular telephone plug, a light emitting element responsive to a given voltage for emitting light, and a switch coupled with the tester body and with the light emitting element and movable relative to the tester body to a first position for placing the light emitting element in electrical circuit across tip and ring contacts of the modular telephone plug and a second position for taking the light emitting means out of circuit across the tip and ring contacts, to thereby test for the presence of a voltage across the tip and ring contacts.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 4, 1985
    Date of Patent: December 2, 1986
    Assignee: Illinois Tool Works, Inc.
    Inventors: William E. Ruehl, E. Grant Swick
  • Patent number: 4620070
    Abstract: A telephone line tester comprises a tester body having a connector portion of complementary configuration for insertion into a modular telephone jack; a light emitting element having a light body and a pair of elongate leads extending outwardly of the light body; guides in said tester body for guiding the elongate leads to and across the connector portion to a position for engagement with tip and ring contacts respectively of the modular telephone jack when the connector portion is inserted into the modular telephone jack. Preferably, the light emitting element comprises a bipolar LED adapted to emit a first color of light in response to a voltage of a first polarity thereacross and a second color of light in response to a voltage of opposite polarity thereacross, and to emit no light in response to substantially no voltage thereacross. The invention also contemplates a method of forming a telephone line tester of the foregoing type.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 4, 1985
    Date of Patent: October 28, 1986
    Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
    Inventor: William E. Ruehl
  • Patent number: 4596439
    Abstract: A transient voltage protector is provided for telephone lines and the like. An insulating plastic housing is provided with two pairs of terminals having female connections at the lower ends for association with selected terminals of a telephone terminal block. The upper ends of these terminals are of a male type and extend above the top of the housing for receipt of further elements such as bridging clips, plug-on fuse units, or line status indicators. An offset and raised portion of the housing carries a pair of zener diodes having lower wire terminals connected to two of the aforesaid terminals. The upper wire terminals of the zener diodes are connected to a grounding terminal having an upper portion extending above the housing in the form of two spaced tines for receipt of a common ground wire between the tines. The various terminals and the zener diodes and the housing have complementary structure for positioning of the terminals and the diodes within the housing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 5, 1985
    Date of Patent: June 24, 1986
    Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
    Inventors: William E. Ruehl, Richard H. Heidorn, Edwin G. Swick
  • Patent number: 4592117
    Abstract: A drop wire clamp is provided for suspending a coaxial cable drop wire or the like. The clamp is of molded plastic resin material comprising a body having converging clamping surfaces on the interior thereof, and a two part wedge having external tapered surfaces engageable with the body converging clamping surfaces to wedge the two parts of the wedge together. The two parts of the wedge have confronting surfaces defining a channel for gripping a cable. The channel undulates transversely longitudinally thereof, and a pair of smaller adjacent, parallel channels of similar undulating construction are provided on either side of the first-mentioned channel for gripping a messenger wire. An extension of the body is provided with an eyelet for hanging over a hook or the like.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 11, 1985
    Date of Patent: June 3, 1986
    Inventors: William E. Ruehl, John N. Schavilje, Edwin G. Swick
  • Patent number: 4588240
    Abstract: A bridging clip is provided for telephone circuits and the like comprising a pair of sheet metal legs initially converging, and diverging at the extremities to facilitate application of the bridging clip. Pairs of ribs which are relatively crossed are provided on the inner confronting surfaces of the legs at the areas of inflection between the converging and diverging portions of the legs, thereby increasing contact pressure and minimizing contact resistance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 17, 1985
    Date of Patent: May 13, 1986
    Inventors: William E. Ruehl, Edwin G. Swick
  • Patent number: 4588152
    Abstract: A wire clamping clip for mounting on a stucco wall is constructed as a block member having a workpiece engaging surface and an exposed top surface. A recess is formed in the workpiece engaging surface for receiving a wire. A throughbore is formed in the block adjacent to the recess and a plastic bushing having a cross sectional dimension of the same shape and slightly smaller than the cross sectional dimension of the throughbore is positioned in the throughbore. A hardened pin with a sharpened end is slidingly received in a tight frictional engagement through the center of the plastic bushing and has an enlarged head for abutting against the top end of said bushing and having a length longer than said bushing so that its sharpened end extends beyond the lower end of said bushing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 1984
    Date of Patent: May 13, 1986
    Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
    Inventors: William E. Ruehl, Joseph P. DeMarco
  • Patent number: 4582288
    Abstract: This invention relates to a block member adapted to secure a cable or wire to a support surface. The block member has a pair of cylindroconical bores with each being adapted to receive a pointed pin therethrough. Each pin has a frustoconical end with an included angle which is less than the included angle of the frustoconical portion of the cylindroconical bore. Around the open end of each bore is an impact absorbing ring. The ring is of the same material as the block member and is adapted to substantially absorb the excess energy that the tool used to drive the pins may contain by crushing on impact. The block member has each bore disposed within a freely depending sleeve to permit the axis of the pin and bore to shift, to a point where the axes could move to thereby permit the pointed end of the pin to avoid a substantially impenetrable object.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 16, 1982
    Date of Patent: April 15, 1986
    Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
    Inventor: William E. Ruehl
  • Patent number: 4554609
    Abstract: A transient voltage protector is provided for telephone lines and the like. An insulating plastic housing is provided with two pairs of terminals having female connections at the lower ends for association with selected terminals of a telephone terminal block. The upper ends of these terminals are of a male type and extend above the top of the housing for receipt of further elements such as bridging clips, plug-on fuse units, or line status indicators. An offset and raised portion of the housing carries a pair of zener diodes having lower wire terminals connected to two of the aforesaid terminals. The upper wire terminals of the zener diodes are connected to a grounding terminal having an upper portion extending above the housing in the form of two spaced tines for receipt of a common ground wire between the tines. The various terminals and the zener diodes and the housing have complementary structure for positioning of the terminals and the diodes within the housing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 5, 1984
    Date of Patent: November 19, 1985
    Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
    Inventors: William E. Ruehl, Richard H. Heidorn, Edwin G. Swick
  • Patent number: 4553802
    Abstract: A modular bridging clip adapted for use with telecommunications terminal blocks including a non-conductive compartmented housing for retaining a plurality of resilient conductive bridging clips whereby said clips can be readily applied or removed simultaneously from a like number of rows of terminal contacts. Each compartment includes slot means for accepting at least a pair of adjacent in line terminal contacts within the bridging clip contained therein and also includes means for easing the removal of said clip from the contact.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 14, 1983
    Date of Patent: November 19, 1985
    Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
    Inventor: William E. Ruehl
  • Patent number: 4527312
    Abstract: A stackable hinging printed circuit board support is provided, comprising an integral plastic molding. The support is provided with an intermediate notch and an adjacent wall section which is sufficiently thin as to permit flexing for pivoting of one printed circuit board away from another. The support has an upstanding circular segment pilot for fitting in a circular aperture of an overlying printed circuit board. The support has at its bottom a W prong structure dimensioned for insertion in a circular aperture of a printed circuit board so as to coact with the upstanding circular segment pilot of an underlying support to wedge the pilot in the aperture. The W prong of one support is received in a recess provided in the body of a subjacent support.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 1983
    Date of Patent: July 9, 1985
    Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
    Inventors: William E. Ruehl, Joseph P. DeMarco
  • Patent number: 4520748
    Abstract: A differential-vacuum alarm device is disclosed. The device comprises a housing divided into three chambers by two walls. One wall isolates one chamber from the other two. The other wall, preferably transverse to the first wall and integral therewith, substantially isolates the second chamber from the third. The second wall preferably carries a vibratable reed which is activatable when air, moving via effects of differential vacuum, passes from the second chamber into the third. The housing further includes a cover, preferably snap engageable with the housing. The walls are preferably integral with, and depend from, the cover. Inner surface portions of the housing preferably include integral, U-shaped channels for receiving edge portions of the walls. With the wall edge portions engaged in the channels and the cover snap engaged with the housing, the three chambers are substantially isolated, one from the other. A housing bottom, forming a floor common to the three chambers, includes three through apertures.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 19, 1983
    Date of Patent: June 4, 1985
    Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
    Inventors: Francis G. Frano, William E. Ruehl
  • Patent number: 4493580
    Abstract: The disclosed invention is a plastic fastening device which can be easily manipulated into engagement with an apertured panel. The device includes a fastening means extending perpendicular from one side of a base. The fastening means has a generally hook-shaped configuration characterized by a trunk portion, a curved transition portion and a tip portion. The fastening device has a generally elongated stem which is used as a lever arm to move the fastening means from a skewed, partially engaged position with respect to the panel to a final fully engaged position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 4, 1984
    Date of Patent: January 15, 1985
    Assignee: Illinois Tool Works, Inc.
    Inventor: William E. Ruehl