Bizarre Patents
Combination Beverage Container and Spittoon
A combination beverage container and spittoon includes a bottom portion including outer wall and a first inner wall defining a spittoon space.
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| Number | Title | Issue Date |
| 5073982 | Apparatus for connecting multiple passive stars in a fiber optic network A fiber optic local area network including a plurality of passive star couplers each capable of connecting to a plurality of users. One connection input to and output from each passive star coupler is connected to a respective output and input of an activ... | 12/17/1991 |
| 5070487 | Magneto-optic media recording system including a directed magnetic bias flux A magneto-optic recording system includes a scanning wheel head around which is wound a magneto-optic recording tape in spiral fashion. A first magnetic pole piece surrounds the tape outward of the wheel. A second pole piece extends between an aperture on... | 12/03/1991 |
| 5062142 | Data processor producing a medial axis representation of an extended region The medial axis representation of an image stored in an input memory is created in an output memory using only a moving 3-pixel by 3-pixel window to "view" the stored image. The medial axis contains no breaks.... | 10/29/1991 |
| 5062092 | Jukebox having rotatable disk stack Apparatus for presenting a desired one of a stack of N information disks with a selected one of its two information surfaces in a desired orientation to an information utilization device. The apparatus includes a mechanism for rotating the disks as a stac... | 10/29/1991 |
| 5014285 | Frequency shift keying communication system with selectable carrier frequencies A frequency shift keying system for transmitting a signal which is a function of supplied data, includes first and second frequency generators producing first and second frequencies which differ in value by an amount which is a function of the maximum bau... | 05/07/1991 |
| 5001355 | Photon energy activated radio frequency signal switch A photon energy activated PIN diode is reverse biased by a continuously supplied direct current voltage. The PIN diode is rendered conductive for passage of a radio frequency input signal when it is illuminated. Continuous illumination of the PIN diode is... | 03/19/1991 |
| 4965547 | Signal converter circuit A circuit which converts one parameter to another such as from temperature to electricity. The circuit comprises a three winding differential transformer with one winding connected to output terminals and each end of the other windings connected to a sour... | 10/23/1990 |
| 4949051 | Phase lock clock recovery with aided frequency aquisition In a burst mode fiber-optic transmitter-receiver or bus interface unit (BIU), the clock recovery process by a phase lock loop (PLL), or more generally a servo loop, detects the frequency difference between the PLL oscillator and the transmitter oscillator... | 08/14/1990 |
| 4929284 | Water removable solder stop A solder stop composition and a method of preventing a melt condition in a meltable metal alloy on a substrate, such as a circuit board, wherein the composition applied on the alloy contains a water soluble binder, a viscosity control agent, a thermal ins... | 05/29/1990 |
| 4840457 | Angled strut diaphragm spring The inability of the lens of an optical disc recorder to focus rapidly may be the salient factor limiting the data transducing rate. In order to provide smooth motion of the focus head and to maximize its speed, a focus lens assembly for an optical disc r... | 06/20/1989 |
| 4839884 | Multiple wavelength optical source and multiplexed light communication system An external-cavity laser includes low-level, broad spectrum light sources and plural light amplifiers. The external cavity includes a common partially reflecting mirror, and a common diffraction grating which couples the mirror to the light amplifiers. Th... | 06/13/1989 |
| 4833046 | Metal-hydrogen secondary battery A secondary electrochemical cell includes a source of hydrogen as the hydrogen-providing reactant and an alkali or alkaline earth metal as the metal reactant. Hydrogen may be from H2 gas or a metal hydride. By separating the two reactants by a ... | 05/23/1989 |
| 4833478 | Automatic direction finder antenna array An automatic direction finder antenna array having a plurality of pairs of oppositely positioned antenna elements arranged radially from a common center with each pair forming a cardioid radiation pattern when energized. Switching apparatus energizes succ... | 05/23/1989 |
| 4829739 | Method for construction of a truss structure A truss structure for use in a gravity-free environment is disclosed together with methods and apparatus for constructing the same. The structure, characterized by high stiffness and a precise self-determined geometry and having a prism-form with square r... | 05/16/1989 |
| 4818638 | System for hydrogen thermal-electrochemical conversion A system for converting heat energy into electricity includes a conversion cell comprising a pair of spaced-apart electrodes having an electrolyte therebetween. The electrolyte is selected to pass negatively-charged hydrogen ions and to inhibit the passag... | 04/04/1989 |
| 4811371 | Floating-diffusion electrometer with adjustable sensitivity The effective capacitance of the floating diffusion in a floating-diffusion electrometer is modified to adjust electrometer sensitivity. This is done by changing the direct potential applied to a gate electrode proximate to the floating diffusion.... | 03/07/1989 |
| 4800952 | Thaw flow control for liquid heat transport systems In a liquid metal heat transport system including a source of thaw heat for use in a space reactor power system, the thaw flow throttle or control comprises a fluid passage having forward and reverse flow sections and a partition having a plurality of ble... | 01/31/1989 |
| 4788450 | Backup power switch A P-channel field-effect transistor includes an inherent junction diode. As it is normally used, the inherent diode is back-biased and therefore effectively out of circuit. An uninterruptible power supply arrangement including primary and backup voltage s... | 11/29/1988 |
| 4778028 | Light viscoelastic damping structure A light viscoelastic damping structure has a plurality of damping strips widely separated on the surface of a lightweight panel. The strips may be arranged parallel or at right angles to each other. Each damping strip includes a viscoelastic damping layer... | 10/18/1988 |
| 4779054 | Digital inphase/quadrature product detector The detector is responsive to a modulated intermediate frequency (IF) or radio frequency (RF) signal for producing four sample signals spaced at 90° one-quarter IF (or RF) cycle apart, the first and third sample signals corresponding to the amplitude of ... | 10/18/1988 |
| 4760948 | Leadless chip carrier assembly and method A leadless ceramic chip carrier (LCCC) is soldered to mating conductor pads on a circuit board by depositing a layer of solder paste on peripheral contact pads and on an array of central pads on the board. The same solder paste type and melt temperature a... | 08/02/1988 |
| 4760540 | Adaptive interference cancelling system and method An adaptive interference cancelling signal processing system includes N+1 processors for cancelling N interfering auxiliary signals from a primary signal. During a prelook or inactive period of the primary signal when a component of interest is not presen... | 07/26/1988 |
| 4758843 | Printed, low sidelobe, monopulse array antenna A printed circuit dipole monopulse antenna includes a planar printed circuit substrate having a plurality of dipole antennas and a feed network including a sum and difference hybrid printed thereon. Low sidelobe and monopulse operation are provided along ... | 07/19/1988 |
| 4754447 | Multidisk spindle A multidisk spindle includes a plurality of mounting plates affixed to a shaft for mounting an equal plurality of record disks thereon such that the disks are parallel to each other and perpendicular to the rotational axis of the shaft. The shape of the m... | 06/28/1988 |
| 4732804 | Ablative and flame resistant composition A novel material is disclosed which is the reaction product of acrylic acid and a novoloid fiber. The material has excellent ablative and flame resistant properties.... | 03/22/1988 |
| 4725792 | Wideband balun realized by equal-power divider and short circuit stubs A balun comprises a one-to-two, equal-power, matched power divider having branch transmission lines whose lengths differ by 1/2 wavelength at a design frequency. The shorter of these two branch transmission lines has two 1/4 wavelength long, shorted stub ... | 02/16/1988 |
| 4723411 | Power conversion system utilizing multiple stirling engine modules A power conversion system is constructed of a plurality of identical Stirling engine modules paired off in opposed, aligned relation with their respective expansion spaces in juxtaposition. Two engine module pairs are arranged in a common plane and in mut... | 02/09/1988 |
| 4721660 | Electrically regeneratable fuel cell An electrically regeneratable fuel cell is disclosed which has positive electrodes comprised of an alloy of about 50 to 55 percent by weight of silver and about 50 to 45 percent by weight of indium. The fuel cell of this invention is chargeable to a highe... | 01/26/1988 |
| 4714981 | Cover for a semiconductor package A cover for a semiconductor package includes a composite layer on its upper most surface containing a passive circuit. The passive circuit may include a number of passive components to fulfill various functions such as capacitive coupling and decoupling, ... | 12/22/1987 |
| 4709370 | Semiconductor laser driver circuit A driver for driving the anode of a laser diode includes a constant-current differential switch comprising NPN transistors. Two sources supply constant current into the node where the differential switch drives the laser diode: one source supplies bias cu... | 11/24/1987 |
| 4708281 | Apparatus and method for applying solder flux to a printed circuit board In a wave soldering apparatus including a station for forming a standing wave of foamed flux, a preheater station, and a standing wave of hot molten solder station, a flux removing apparatus for reducing the thickness of flux on a coated printed circuit b... | 11/24/1987 |
| 4706010 | Linear solar array voltage control system A voltage regulator for controlling the voltage of a bus powered by N solar cell arrays. Digital shunts are coupled to N-1 of the arrays. A linear shunt is coupled to the remaining array. Current passing through the remaining array is sensed by the linear... | 11/10/1987 |
| 4697159 | Tuning capacitors with selectable capacitance configurations for coupling between microwave circuits A tuning capacitor arrangement for a microwave circuit including, on a substrate, first and second conductors to be capacitively joined. The tuning capacitor arrangement includes first and second capacitors each having connective tabs terminating on the s... | 09/29/1987 |
| 4689632 | Reflector antenna system having reduced blockage effects A reflector antenna system with reduced blockage effects is provided by placing a compensating reflector between the surface of the main curved reflector and its primary feed to intercept illuminating radiation which would otherwise be blocked by the feed... | 08/25/1987 |
| 4686629 | Logic cell placement method in computer-aided-customization of universal arrays and resulting integrated circuit An improved automatic placement process for placing logic cells in a universal array. Unused basic units are assigned to rows to reduce the congestion of the wiring in high congestion regions of a universal array. These assigned unused basic units are all... | 08/11/1987 |
| 4684888 | Apparatus subject to random accelerative motion for sensing motion of a magnetically susceptible part A magnetically susceptible part motion sensor where the sensor is subject to random accelerative conditions. The sensor comprises a first accelerometer and magnet combination and a second accelerometer and nonmagnetic body combination. The accelerometers ... | 08/04/1987 |
| 4668984 | Optical pattern generation technique A rotatable drum is arranged around a surface lying generally parallel to the axis of rotation, a plurality of bar code patterns, the individual bars making up each pattern extending normal to the rotational axis. A light beam in a plane is projected onto... | 05/26/1987 |
| 4656481 | Calibration instrument for continuous wave microwave doppler radar A calibration instrument for calibrating a continuous wave microwave doppler radar includes a piezoelectric sounder and means to energize the sounder to produce an acoustic signal to simulate motion of a body to the radar.... | 04/07/1987 |
| 4648588 | Articulated manipulation device An articulated vacuum arrangement. A plurality of vacuum fingers are pivotably coupled to a base member, each vacuum finger comprising an arm extending from the point of pivot to an orifice to the atmosphere, each arm defining an air passage channel. The ... | 03/10/1987 |
| 4647931 | Dual frequency identification system An identification system comprising one or more tags and an interrogator. A tag is responsive to a radio frequency signal transmitted from the interrogator for phase modulating the signal alternately with a first frequency and a second frequency depending... | 03/03/1987 |
