Did You Know...
...that the Slinky toy was the result of a failed attempt by engineer Richard James to produce an antivibration device for ship instruments? His goal was to develop a spring that would instantaneously counterbalance the wave motion that rocks a ship at sea. Instead, he developed the Slinky.
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| Number | Title | Issue Date |
| 8151651 | Flowmeter transducer magnetic clamping Tangential forces present at the mating area between a clamp-on transducer and a pipe can be made very small in order to provide a higher quality, more stable acoustic coupling. In some cases this is accomplished by providing a low friction bearing on a surface of a... | 04/10/2012 |
| 8142071 | Thermoelectric thermal transfer sensor Thermal transfer measurements are useful for measuring either a mass flow rate or the specific heat of a fluid. Thermoelectric devices are desirable for this because of their ability to simultaneously heat one portion of the sensor while cooling another. However, th... | 03/27/2012 |
| 8132962 | Asymmetric specific heat meter An asymmetric heat flux sensor has two sensing surfaces separately thermally coupled to the end plates of a thermoelectric module so that one is heated and the other cooled. The heated sensing surface is constrained to have a wettable area much larger than the area ... | 03/13/2012 |
| 8042994 | Specific heat meter with improved accuracy The accuracy of instruments used to measure the specific heat of heat transfer fluids is limited by the accumulation of bubbles, debris or loose surface films on an active measurement surface. Accumulated bubbles, debris or loose film may be reduced or eliminated by... | 10/25/2011 |
| 7995318 | High frequency power converter Power at a selected frequency in the high frequency region of the spectrum is supplied by a power converter having a wide range of input voltages. The power converter uses a source oscillator and a NOR gate. The source oscillator generates a rectangular wave at the ... | 08/09/2011 |
| 7942260 | Cup insert with food holder A sanitary single-use container for both food (e.g., an individual portion of bread) and drink (e.g., an individual portion of wine or grape juice) is designed to be placed over the mouth of a chalice, as may used in a communion service. The container is compatible ... | 05/17/2011 |
| D637053 | Chisel tip | 05/03/2011 |
| D632151 | Channeled chisel tip | 02/08/2011 |
| D631715 | Beveled chisel tip | 02/01/2011 |
| 7870793 | Transit time flow sensor with enhanced accuracy Ultrasonic transit time flow meters using transducers mounted on insertion probes spaced apart along a pipe axis provide an economical way to measure fluid flow. The accuracy of these flow meters can be improved by providing additional transducers to measure the cur... | 01/18/2011 |
| 7841485 | Anti-contamination seal and drinking straw for a beverage container Beverage containers can be sealed against various sorts of contamination by a sealing member having, on its underside, generally circular channels arranged to hold a drinking straw. When the liquid is to be dispensed, the flexible sealing member is pulled off the ri... | 11/30/2010 |
| 7841243 | Speed of sound and pipe size detector An ultrasonic transit time approach is used for measuring both a speed of sound of a fluid and a diameter of a pipe through which the fluid flows. A reflecting structure is provided to split an acoustic beam generated by a transducer into two portions. One of these ... | 11/30/2010 |
| 7823463 | Ultrasonic flow sensor using two streamlined probes A time-of-flight ultrasonic flow meter uses transducers placed on streamlined heads of probes that are spaced out along a pipe. The placement of the transducers and probes is selected so that an acoustic signal can propagate between the transducers on the two probes... | 11/02/2010 |
| 7778005 | Electric disabling device with controlled immobilizing pulse widths A capacitive discharge stun-gun uses a flyback output circuit in which a semiconductor switch operates under control of a controller or suitable logic circuitry. The flyback circuit can deliver 50-65 kV pulses to a pair of electrodes in order to ionize air adjacent ... | 08/17/2010 |
| 7775706 | Compensated heat energy meter The specific heat of working fluids used in commercial heating systems commonly change with temperature and composition. Conventional heat metering systems assume a fixed value of the specific heat at a nominal temperature. This source of inaccuracy is removed by me... | 08/17/2010 |
| 7704555 | Electrochromic device with self-forming ion transfer layer and lithium fluoro-nitride electrolyte A method of preparing an electrochromic device involves forming multiple layers of selected materials on a substrate in a vacuum processing chamber. A first of these layers is an electrode layer deposited directly on the substrate and used for making contact to a su... | 04/27/2010 |
| 7703337 | Clamping arrangements for a transducer assembly having a piezoelectric element within a foam body A clamp-on acoustic flow meter for measuring the rate of flow of a fluid in a pipe uses a transducer stack mounted in a housing that includes a rigid polymeric foam body in which the stack is embedded. This transducer configuration is used in combination with a clam... | 04/27/2010 |
| 7684938 | Self-cleaning ultrasonic flow sensor Acoustic windows that are portions of an ultrasonic sensor used to measure a rate of flow of a fluid are wetted whenever the fluid is present. These windows may become coated with a contaminant film during operation. The contaminant may be removed by applying an aco... | 03/23/2010 |
| 7669483 | Flowmeter transducer clamping Tangential forces present at the mating area between a clamp-on transducer and a pipe can be made very small in order to provide a higher quality, more stable acoustic coupling. In some cases this is accomplished by providing a low friction bearing on a surface of a... | 03/02/2010 |
| 7628081 | Acoustic pulse flow meter A time-of-flight flow meter that is particularly useful for measuring the flow of gases, such as steam, uses a spark gap periodically energized with an electrical pulse to generate an acoustic pulse. The pulse is detected by upstream and downstream acoustic detector... | 12/08/2009 |
| 7628080 | Magnetic flow meter providing quasi-annular flow An in-line magnetic flow meter has an electrically insulated quasi-annular voltage sensing path defined between an internal wall of a meter body and an outer wall of an axially disposed hollow tube. Although less than 100% of the fluid flow passes through the sensin... | 12/08/2009 |
| 7619804 | Electrochromic polarizer The polarization of a beam of radiation can be changed by passing the beam through an electrochromic device (ECD) and applying voltages to the ECD to selectively change the absorption of components of the beam and to change its polarization. This method can operate ... | 11/17/2009 |
| 7587947 | Magnetic flow meter with selective electrode positioning A magnetic flow meter has an electrically insulating member extending inward from an inner wall of a flow tube and extending along a selected axial portion of the tube. At least one pair of electrodes are placed adjacent opposite sides of the insulating member at a ... | 09/15/2009 |
| 7586667 | Electronic electrochromic device and method A solid-state electronic electrochromic device (ECD) operates electronically rather than relying on the ionic motion that is common in electrochromic devices. The electronic ECD has at least one active layer sandwiched between two electrodes. The active layer is mad... | 09/08/2009 |
| 7574924 | Magnetic flow meter A magnetic flow meter employs resonant circuit principles to increase the strength of the magnetic field to produce larger electrode difference potentials so that environmental influences have less effect on the operation of the flow meter. The flow meter may use an... | 08/18/2009 |
| 7571655 | Magnetic flow meter with buffering electrodes The flow responsive voltages detected at the electrodes of magnetic flow meters are typically reduced in magnitude by an electrical impedance shunting effect of the fluid on the electrodes. This problem is resolved by providing buffering electrodes located near, and... | 08/11/2009 |
| 7568398 | Ultrasonic flow sensor with repeated transmissions A transit-time flow sensor determines a rate at which fluid flows by measuring a propagation time difference between upstream and downstream acoustic transmissions. This may involve providing an acoustic path consisting of sequentially traversed path segments and a ... | 08/04/2009 |
| 7559257 | Magnetic flow probe with conductive tip Problems of instability and non-linearity in probe-type magnetic flow meters are ameliorated by either or both of a conductor coating connecting a tip portion of the probe with a supporting probe stem and either a shrouding arrangement or skewed end plates parallel ... | 07/14/2009 |
| 7531239 | Transparent electrode An electrically conductive multilayer thin film structure and composition is transparent in both the visible and infrared portions of the spectrum. This multilayer film is readily deposited on a variety of substrates, including plastics, and survives such in service... | 05/12/2009 |
| 7520289 | Cafe umbrella mechanism A support apparatus for a café umbrella has a support arm pivotally attached to a generally vertical pole. In a preferred uneven-arm arrangement, a canopy-supporting end of the arm is further to one side of the pole than a second, actuator-connected end of the arm ... | 04/21/2009 |
| 7515140 | Capacitive sensor A capacitive sensor for detecting the presence of an object adjacent a panel is described. The sensor comprises an electrically conducting sensor element coupled to a capacitance measurement circuit. In use, the capacitive sensor is mounted with the sensor element a... | 04/07/2009 |
| 7490889 | Trailer hitch step for vehicles having a tailgate A step assembly for use with a truck load bed has an elongated support member that can be inserted into a hitch receiver. The support is pivotally connected to a step that can be moved into several positions. In a rearward position the step is far enough to the rear... | 02/17/2009 |
| 7480577 | Multiple sensor flow meter Combining a plurality of local flow measurements made at more than one location to generate a composite flow value can improve the accuracy of the overall measurement. The reliability and long term accuracy of a multi-sensor flow measurement are improved by a two-st... | 01/20/2009 |
| 7467502 | Interlocking box system Walls and other structures can be made from blocks assembled from relatively light-weight standard panels that fit together like a puzzle. The blocks are held together without the use of mortar. Each block is formed of six rectangular panels fitted together by slidi... | 12/23/2008 |
| 7469239 | System and method for using agent-based distributed reasoning to manage a computer network The present invention describes a system and method for using agent-based distributed reasoning to manage a computer network. In particular, the system includes interface agents to integrate event streams, distributed reasoning agents, and response agents, which run... | 12/23/2008 |
| 7437945 | Magnetic flow probe Problems of instability and non-linearity in probe-type magnetic flow meters are ameliorated by either or both of a conductor coating connecting a tip portion of the probe with a supporting probe stem and flat end plates parallel to the flow direction that are arran... | 10/21/2008 |
| 7437863 | Wrap dispensing apparatus A wrap dispensing apparatus for wrapping an article with wrapping material includes a base; a hub assembly; a threaded spindle mounted to the base and the hub assembly, and a brake assembly to control the movement of the threaded spindle. The threaded spindle suppor... | 10/21/2008 |
| 7378981 | Tip jar providing audible and visible signals A tip jar system comprises a receptacle for receiving a deposit of money and a signaling apparatus for sensing the presence of a person depositing the money in the receptacle and for responding to the sensed presence. The signal provided is generally of an amusing s... | 05/27/2008 |
| 7338054 | Self-contained utility cart A self-contained utility cart consisting of an upright casing that has forward and rearward areas and side areas. The casing has a multiple of compartments therein which can be accessible from the front or the rear of the cart. Some of the compartments are covered b... | 03/04/2008 |
| D560227 | Media player | 01/22/2008 |
