Did You Know...
...that several people are credited with the invention of the flush toilet? Most people have heard of Thomas Crapper (1837-1910), the sanitary engineer who invented the valve-and-siphon arrangement that made the modern toilet possible. Another claimant to "the throne" was British inventor Alexander Cumming who patented a toilet in 1775. Then there's a nameless Minoan (a native of ancient Crete) who lived 4,000 years ago who supposedly was ahead of his time and created the first flush toilet!
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| Number | Title | Issue Date |
| 7370723 | Loading machine A loading machine is disclosed with at least one drive train, with at least one overload protection device for the drive train and with sensors for determining an overload state in the drive train. Critical operating conditions of the loading machine can be determin... | 05/13/2008 |
| 7344000 | Electronically controlled valve for a materials handling vehicle A materials handling vehicle is provided comprising: a base; a carriage assembly movable relative to the base; at least one cylinder coupled to the base to effect movement of the carriage assembly relative to the base; and a hydraulic system to supply a pressurized ... | 03/18/2008 |
| 7270297 | Hoist for aircraft cabin construction A device is provided for hoisting a module for mounting into an overhead space, such as the crown of an aircraft fuselage. The device includes a frame that supports the module, and a lifting device that lifts the first frame to properly place the module. The lifting... | 09/18/2007 |
| 7194358 | Lift collision avoidance system The present invention is directed to systems, devices and methods for avoiding collisions and detecting objects proximate to a surface. In one embodiment, a system for collision avoidance includes at least one sensor adapted to sense an object above a lift device an... | 03/20/2007 |
| 7134515 | Utility transport system The present invention comprises a utility transport truck having electro-pneumatic controls for coupling and decoupling of devices which are in weight and sensitivity categories that make manual movement without power assist difficult or impossible. ... | 11/14/2006 |
| 7121372 | Lift truck with variable range with at least three wheels A lift truck with variable range with at least three wheels and a telescopic arm. The lift truck includes a steerable rear wheel and two front wheels, a driver station and a motor propulsion group secured to a chassis. The chassis has a compact configuration and is ... | 10/17/2006 |
| 7086819 | Single lever with button for selectively controlling either tilt or lift of a forklift mechanism In a load handling apparatus for a counterbalance type forklift, a single tiltable operating lever is disposed on a body of the forklift, a mast which is tiltable in an anteroposterior direction is disposed on the forklift, a liftable fork is disposed on the mast, a... | 08/08/2006 |
| 7063338 | Truck with support legs Narrow aisle truck that on each side includes two forward extending support legs, which each leg is provided with two support wheels. The two outer support wheels are displaced somewhat to the rear in relation to the inner support wheels, and, in the corner space ou... | 06/20/2006 |
| 7018158 | Operating member and armrest for industrial vehicle An industrial vehicle has an armrest. The armrest extends in a front-and-rear direction of the vehicle. A plurality of operating members for controlling a loading operation of the vehicle is arranged on a front side of the armrest. The operating members include a fi... | 03/28/2006 |
| 6991067 | Obstruction sensing system utilizing physical shielding to prevent errant detection An obstruction sensing system is provided for a lift vehicle (10) with a lift platform (20). The system includes a plurality of sensors (32) mounted to the lift platform (20) and a control system (18) coupled with a drive system of... | 01/31/2006 |
| 6928774 | Enveloping body The invention relates to a covering body for masts of construction cranes, electricity lines, or the like with an outer covering which is designed to partially or totally encase a mast in the direction of extension and/or peripheral direction and which furthermore h... | 08/16/2005 |
| 6719098 | Stability control apparatus for industrial vehicles An apparatus for restricting pivoting of a pivotal axle in a forklift. The forklift has an axle that is supported pivotally relative to a body frame. A damper is arranged between the body frame and the axle to permit and restrict pivoting of the axle. An electromagn... | 04/13/2004 |
| 6595330 | Work platform control system for a boom-type vehicle A vehicle, such as an extendible boom forklift, that includes a personnel work platform (PWP). The personnel work platform includes a shut-off switch that is connected to the electronic controls for the extendible boom forklift. The operational controls o... | 07/22/2003 |
| 6536559 | Goods lift A storage lift has two columns, and a hoisting shaft for a conveyor unit (2) movable up and down between the two columns. A light grille (5) is arranged in the storage lift on the end of the conveyor unit (2) facing a charging and discharging opening (1).... | 03/25/2003 |
| 6345694 | Industrial truck with elevatable driver's platform and method for the operation thereof An industrial truck with a forward propulsion unit for horizontal movement of the industrial truck, a driver's platform that can be raised or lowered by a vertical propulsion unit, at least one control device to control the vertical propulsion unit and th... | 02/12/2002 |
| 6273669 | Single lever with button for selectively controlling either tilt or lift of a forklift mechanism In a load handling apparatus for a counterbalance type forklift, action and speed conditions of tilting a mast and lifting and lowering a fork are operated by use of a single operating lever and a single switch attached to the operating lever. Also, a con... | 08/14/2001 |
| 6164415 | Hydraulic control apparatus for industrial vehicles A lift control valve is switched based on the manipulation of a lift lever, so that a lift cylinder extends or retracts to move a fork, supported on a mast, to move up or down. A check valve, which is actuated with a pilot pressure, is placed between the ... | 12/26/2000 |
| 6138795 | Position detector for industrial vehicles An apparatus in a forklift for detecting the height of a fork in stages. Two sensors are arranged longitudinally on the mast. Each sensor includes a switch that has two states. The state of each switch can be changed by movement of the fork. Each switch i... | 10/31/2000 |
| 6129184 | Variable torque braking device The present invention concerns a variable-torque braking device. The device is characterized in that it includes a secondary control (14, 17) which allows exertion on a friction-lining pad (9) of an additional moving-system braking torque as a function of... | 10/10/2000 |
| 6125970 | Hydraulic device for forklift A hydraulic device for a forklift is disclosed. The forklift includes a tilting mast and a fork supported by the mast so that the fork is lifted and lowered. A tilt cylinder operates to tilt the mast by means of oil supplied by a tilt valve. A restricting... | 10/03/2000 |
| 6092976 | Delayed-action empty-seat safety interlock for forklift controls A tilt control valve controls the flow of hydraulic oil to actuate the tilt cylinders of a forklift mast. The tilt control valve is switched between two positions by the forklift operator by means of a tilt lever. When at one position, the tilt control va... | 07/25/2000 |
| 6068088 | Releasable semiconductor wafer lifter basket A wafer lifter basket assembly includes a wafer lifter basket and a base, the base including a bracket and a bracket holder. The wafer lifter basket is mounted to the bracket, and the bracket holder is releasably connected to the bracket holder via spring... | 05/30/2000 |
| 5791440 | Speed limiting method and apparatus for lift truck A method and/or apparatus for reducing the maximum speed of a lift truck when a fork carriage exceeds a fork carriage trip height and a limit switch positioned at the trip height to detect trip height has failed. Using lift truck control signals, a calcul... | 08/11/1998 |
| 5746291 | Floor conveyor vehicle A floor conveyor vehicle, particularly a stacker, has a brake device and an adjustable floor panel guided in the vertical direction by way of a device and is held in several working positions by a locking device. The floor panel is guided in the vertical ... | 05/05/1998 |
| 5462136 | Prevention of slack lift chains on a man-up lift truck The present invention features a method and an apparatus for preventing lift chains from becoming slack in a lift truck with a "man-up" feature installed. Lift trucks are generally those vehicles that feature hydraulically controlled lift masts with a cha... | 10/31/1995 |
| 5044472 | Dual operator position for material handling vehicle A materials handling vehicle, such as a turret stockpicker, is provided with control circuits and hardware to allow an operator to control the vehicle from either a standing or seated position while providing all of the safety interlocks that ensure prope... | 09/03/1991 |
| 4848520 | Telescopic mast assembly A telescopic mast for a fork lift truck is disclosed. The telescoping sections of the mast are arranged with the innermost section as the base section, which remains attached to the frame of the truck. The telescoping hydraulic tubes or cylinders are arra... | 07/18/1989 |
| 4762203 | Lift truck lowering system A hydraulic relief valve terminates release of fluid to lower a lift truck load carriage if the load carriage becomes supported by external structure during one stage of lowering, and an electrical switch terminates release of fluid, and may disable truck... | 08/09/1988 |
| 4716990 | Hydraulic driving circuit for a forklift truck An improved hydraulic driving circuit for a forklift truck is disclosed. The flow control valve for controlling the rate of descent of the inner masts and the safety descent valve for preventing sudden descent of the inner masts are provided respectively,... | 01/05/1988 |
| 4679645 | Mechanical device for transmitting signals through a swivel connection An electromechanical device for transmitting a binary ON-OFF or an analog signal through a rotary connection between two parts of a mechanical system. It is applicable to rotary connections in general but particularly as a warning system for work platform... | 07/14/1987 |
| 4598797 | Travel/lift inhibit control A lift truck of the order-picker type is provided with an automatic control system for safe-guarding the operation against certain conditions. The electronic control system is responsive to an electrical height signal corresponding to the height of the li... | 07/08/1986 |
| 4499971 | Material handling vehicle having improved chain monitoring An improved system for monitoring lift chains included within mast assemblies in material handling vehicles disables downward movement of the forks upon detection of a first level of slackness in a lift chain. Since upward movement of the forks is not dis... | 02/19/1985 |
| 4265337 | Fork lift truck speed control dependent upon fork elevation A speed control circuit is provided for a lift truck which is driven by an electric truck drive motor powered from a power source through a motor controller. The motor controller is responsive to a power control signal generated by summing a speed sensor ... | 05/05/1981 |
| 4235308 | Locking brake for articulated vehicle The front and rear sections of the vehicle are normally free to rock relative to one another about a fore-and-aft extending, horizontal axis to the extent necessary to compensate for lateral variations in ground contour between the front and rear of the v... | 11/25/1980 |
| 3993166 | Overload signalling system for fork lift trucks and the like An electrical alarm system, which responds to improper and/or unsafe loading of a fork-lift truck or other load-sustaining apparatus equipped with a suitable sensing transducer, is controlled by a high-gain electronic differential switch whose comparisons... | 11/23/1976 |
| 3941213 | Fork lift with limit switch controlled retractable guard A fork lift with a retractable overhead guard has limit switches built into the mast and one rail of the retractable guard which prevent the fork lift from being raised above a predetermined height when the guard is lowered, and when the fork lift has bee... | 03/02/1976 |
