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Patent No. 5823386

Reward Candy Dispenser for Personal Computers

A personal computer peripheral, battery powered reward candy dispenser which immediately presents students with a single candy for each problem completed correctly.

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Attorney: Allen, Dyer, Doppelt, Franjola & Milbrath, P.A.


Number of patents: 33
Last date: November 18, 1997

NumberTitleIssue Date
5687830Item discrimination apparatus and method
An item discriminating method and apparatus are provided for discriminating between an acceptable and unacceptable item. An apparatus for item discriminating preferably includes characteristics for determining selected characteristics of an item under tes...
11/18/1997
5664275Vibratory oscillator swimming pool cleaner employing means for facilitating self starting and for avoiding clogging
A cleaner for swimming pools includes a housing having a pressure differential chamber with an opening defined by opposing walls and an oscillator pivotally mounted within the opening on a pivot axis extending between the walls. A seal is loosely fitted w...
09/09/1997
5649746Self-purging vehicle braking system and method of purging gas from same
A self-purging vehicle braking system and method of purging gas from same are provided by the present invention. The braking system preferably includes a disk brake and a master cylinder in fluid communication with the disk brake. The master cylinder pref...
07/22/1997
5633593Apparatus for sensing proximity of a moving target
An apparatus for sensing the proximity of a moving target is provided which includes a sensor for sensing a range of distances between a reference point and a moving target. The sensor preferably has a detector for detecting a distance signal representati...
05/27/1997
5633021Apparatus for making a three-dimensional article
A three-dimensional article making apparatus includes a processor operatively connected to a dispenser and positioner for constructing the article based upon the article defining data. The processor operates the dispenser to construct an enlarged surface ...
05/27/1997
5630656Anti-locking brake system, rear brake delay valve, and method for same
A vehicle braking system is provided for delaying the flow of brake fluid to the rear brakes to reduce the risk of locking the rear brakes. The braking system preferably has a master cylinder, a pair of disk brakes respectively positioned on a pair of rea...
05/20/1997
5627309Method for determining presence of water
A sensor can detect the difference in potential between itself and the fluid into which it is immersed, a signal generated by the probe representing this difference in potential. This signal is used to activate an oscillator circuit. By varying the condit...
05/06/1997
5606826Drive and track apparatus for variable speed closure
A cable drive for elevator doors has first and second drive pulleys eccentrically mounted 180° out-of-phase on the same drive motor shaft so that the cable feed rate is greater at the middle, than at the start and end of each drive cycle. Feeder pulleys ...
03/04/1997
5601159Brake assembly for model vehicles and method
A brake assembly and method are provided wherein a shaft having a bore rotates about a rod such that a flexible ring member positioned within a groove of the rod expands into frictional contact with the shaft bore wall for restricting rotation of the shaf...
02/11/1997
5597960Pump station flowmeter
A pump station flowmeter is disclosed including a pump status comparator for creating level status without being connected to any level sensors by comparing pump status to a list of association between expected pump status and levels. The wet well dimensi...
01/28/1997
5597010Safety cap for fluid valve
A safety cap for preventing unauthorized access to a refrigerant valve is described. The safety cap has a locking piece that attaches to the valve's threaded portion and covers the valve's access port. A collar surrounds the locking piece and is mechanica...
01/28/1997
5591901Fluid sensor
A sensor can detect the difference in potential between itself and the fluid into which it is immersed, a signal generated by the probe representing this difference in potential. This signal is used to activate an oscillator circuit. By varying the condit...
01/07/1997
5591341Method and system for water bioremediation utilizing a conical attached algal culture system
A conical floway culture system for cleansing water of pollutants is presented that has a downward slope between the central region and the outer edge and a wall for retaining water within the floway. The water-impervious bottom surface has a texture cond...
01/07/1997
5589932Spectrophotometric method and apparatus for the characterization of blood and blood types
A method and apparatus for determining the type of a blood sample are provided wherein a turbidity spectrum of the blood sample is collected over a predetermined wavelength range, from which is calculated an extinction spectrum. This extinction spectrum i...
12/31/1996
5588681Valve mounting device useful with flexible pipe
A valve mounting device holds a valve in a fixed position and prevents rotation of the valve during operation of the valve handle. The device includes a tubular sleeve dimensioned to receive a valve body and in one embodiment has a notch for receiving a v...
12/31/1996
5582190Arthroscopic surgical device and method for evaluating and relieving the symptoms of temporomandibular joint disorders
A device and method are provided for evaluating and relieving the symptoms associated with joint disorders. The cannula device has two channels extending from the proximal end to the distal end. The first is used to retain an arthroscope; the second, an o...
12/10/1996
5581925Soft, pliable picture frame and method of framing a picture
A framed picture is constructed for protecting a frame thereof from damage such as when knocked over on a desk or table. The framed picture preferably includes a transparent sheet defining a picture covering, a picture positionally aligned adjacent the pi...
12/10/1996
5573669Method and system for water purification by culturing and harvesting attached algal communities
A floway for cleansing water of pollutants is presented that has an upstream weir wherein water to be cleansed is admitted, a downstream weir wherefrom water is discharged, and curbs extending between the weirs for retaining water along the sides. The bot...
11/12/1996
5573172Surface mount stress relief hidden lead package device and method
A hidden lead package device is configured to be placed between a leadless component such as a surface mount package (SMP) used to house a SAW device and a standard printed circuit board configured for solder joints in a leadless contact with the printed ...
11/12/1996
5572431Apparatus and method for thermal normalization in three-dimensional article manufacturing
A method and apparatus for forming a three-dimensional article includes dispensing build material and thermally normalizing predetermined portions thereof at predetermined intervals during construction of the article. The thermal energy may be provided by...
11/05/1996
5570879Body supported sports target and method
To entertain fans at sporting events, such as baseball, basketball backboards, palm trees, hockey and soccer goals are provided as targets for fans to participate by tossing objects at the target. Targets are strapped to a person moving through the stands...
11/05/1996
5569252Device for repairing a meniscal tear in a knee and method
A fastener, driving device, and method are provided for repairing a tear in soft tissue of a patient, a particular exemplary embodiment comprising a meniscal tear in a knee. The fastener has a variable-pitch helical protrusion along a central portion that...
10/29/1996
5568854Coin discrimination method
An electronic coin detector and method for sensing the presence of a valid coin and for providing an indication of the valid coin's type. A coin is guided into position between a first set of inductor coils. The coin is then guided through a channel surro...
10/29/1996
5568111Ferrite common mode choke adapted for circuit board mounting
A common mode choke has a generally rectangular ferrite body for surface mounting on a printed circuit board. First and second spaced apart slotted openings extend vertically between the top face and the bottom face of the ferrite body. At least one pair ...
10/22/1996
5564904Method of evacuating a single fluid in an enclosure containing a mixture of fluid
A sensor can detect the difference in potential between a probe and the fluid into which it is immersed, and a signal generated by the probe representing this difference in potential is used to activate an oscillator circuit. By varying the conditions at ...
10/15/1996
5561985Heat pump apparatus including earth tap heat exchanger
A ground-coupled direct expansion heat pump apparatus includes an earth tap heat exchanger including a plurality of earth contacting tubes connected together in side-by-side relation. A first earth contacting tube defines a vapor refrigerant passageway an...
10/08/1996
5560220Method for testing an earth tap heat exchanger and associated apparatus
A method for identifying a leaking earth tap heat exchanger includes measuring an electrical resistance between the electrically conducting tubing of the earth tap heat exchanger and the surrounding soil or water to determine if the electrically insulatin...
10/01/1996
5555176Apparatus and method for making three-dimensional articles using bursts of droplets
An apparatus includes a processor for controlling a build material dispenser and a dispenser positioner to construct a three-dimensional article in successive layers based upon article defining data, and wherein the processor operates the dispenser to dis...
09/10/1996
5549415Septic tank drainfield installation device and method
A drainfield pipe support device includes a pair of elongated anchor members generally parallel to each other and separated for receiving drainfield pipe sections therebetween. The elongated anchor members penetrate a grade surface for holding the anchor ...
08/27/1996
5546188Intelligent vehicle highway system sensor and method
An object sensor and method using pulsed laser range imaging technology is adapted for determining the velocity and three dimensional profile of a vehicle passing the sensor for classifying the type of vehicle for use in Intelligent Vehicle Highway System...
08/13/1996
5542641Wall hanger, mounting kit, and method
The wall hanger of the present invention is designed to minimize the damage done to a wall when hung thereon. The wall hanger has a plurality of narrow bores angling generally downward through which straight pins may be inserted to anchor the wall hanger....
08/06/1996
5542374Animal litter of clay and western red cedar
An absorbent material useful as an animal litter contains generally a wood product and clay particles. Specifically, the wood product in the preferred embodiment is wood particles from Western Red Cedar trees, which are nontoxic and nonaromatic. The clay ...
08/06/1996
5542347Fry pan cooking shield and method
Arcuate shield segments form a collar around the perimeter of a frying pan cooking surface while suspended within the pan side walls for containing splattering grease within the fry pan. Tabs extending from lower edge portions of the shield segments permi...
08/06/1996
 
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