Patents by Inventor William Wayne Wichman

William Wayne Wichman 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: 7340790
    Abstract: Disclosed are systems, methods, devices and kits for dispensing laundry additive materials into the drum of an automatic washing machine as that machine is used to carry out a fabric laundering operation. To bring about such dispensing of additives, a lidded housing structure is placed within the drum of an automatic washing machine, an insert, containing one or more laundry additives in each compartment, is placed within the lidded housing structure, the lid is closed and the machine is run through the several stages of its laundering cycle. Selectively actuatable puncturing element are provided to optionally open at least one compartment of the insert upon closing of the housing structure lid, thereby dispensing the contents of that opened compartment into the washing machine drum as wash additive materials and/or to open one or more compartments of the insert later in the laundering cycle to dispense contents of those compartments into the washing machine drum as rinse additive materials.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 12, 2004
    Date of Patent: March 11, 2008
    Assignee: Procter & Gamble Company
    Inventors: Yousef Georges Aouad, Liben Hailu, Terence Graham Curtis, Lawrence Joseph Kelly, William Wayne Wichman, Jonathan Norman Robert Hodges