Bizarre Patents
A banana protective device for storing and transporting a banana carefully.
PatentStorm News
Make the Most of Our Site
See this month's Top Inventors and Most Cited Patents.
Stay on top of the latest innovations by subscribing to an RSS feed.
Registered users: Manage your profile.
| Number | Title | Issue Date |
| 5663547 | Method of fund-raising with a keyless contribution and gift commitment management device A method of and device for streamlining, simplifying and inducing the giving of contribution or gift commitments by contributors or prospective gift givers [, and receiving thereof upon receipt that] involves dispersing through a crowd of prospective cont... | 09/02/1997 |
| 5627356 | Card for recording the number of game play media, a card dispensing device, and a card receiving device A card on which at least the number of game play media paid out to a player from a game machine is recorded and which is issued to the player. The card comprises a substrate and a recording portion, disposed on the substrate, for recording data. The recor... | 05/06/1997 |
| 5614703 | Hotel check-in system with wireless communication A method and apparatus for a guest having a valid general purpose credit card to register at a place of lodging having a computer, and which uses the general purpose credit card as a key to the assigned room. The method involves the inserting of a general... | 03/25/1997 |
| 5587578 | Method and apparatus for optimizing magnetic flux through an electronic label of a contact-free identification system The system comprises firstly an electronic label and, secondly, a label reader. The label comprises a foil made of a material that conducts magnetic fields and has a low coercive field. It is placed against the antenna and is parallel to the antenna to fo... | 12/24/1996 |
| 5585614 | Access control device This access control device has at least one local control device (10) connected to a central control device (11) containing a local computer (18), an issuing station (12) for control cards and a lockable entry installation (13). At the issuing station (12... | 12/17/1996 |
| 5578808 | Data card that can be used for transactions involving separate card issuers A multi-application data card is capable of substituting for a plurality of existing single-application data cards. The multi-application data card is preferably a smart card recording data relating to a card user and a plurality of card issuers. The foll... | 11/26/1996 |
| 5574269 | Processing system for processing information in card having plurality of functions A processing system for processing information in a card having a plurality of functions, comprising a reading unit for reading information stored in a card therefrom, a plurality of processing units, each of which corresponds to one of the plurality of f... | 11/12/1996 |
| 5567926 | Minibar system A system for operating minibars in hotel rooms based on a plurality of individual minibars, one in each of the hotel rooms, each of which is equipped with means for reading an electronic card coded for each hotel guest or according to the credit card of a... | 10/22/1996 |
| 5563934 | Pay phone call control apparatus for allowing calls using pre-paid cards A call control apparatus for a pay phone includes a reading unit, a calculating unit, and a call enable unit. The reading unit reads out value information of an inserted card. The calculating unit calculates a call time corresponding to a ratio of the val... | 10/08/1996 |
| 5539190 | System and method for secured metering of mail In accordance with the present invention, a system for securely metering mailpieces includes a plurality of local stations and a data center having a central database in communication with a Post Office. Each of the local stations includes apparatus for r... | 07/23/1996 |
| 5532928 | Computer system and method for waste accounting, reduction, and evaluation A method and system for allocating cost of treatment, storage, and disposal of waste material generated to sites of generation thereof. At least one database containing information including sites of waste material generation and routes of possible flow o... | 07/02/1996 |
| 5523737 | Universal intelligent group guidance system and method A system and method for guiding a party of people around a facility having a plurality of consecutively designated events to be visited by the party, each event having a front area port and an exit area port associated therewith, includes a system control... | 06/04/1996 |
| 5493490 | Electronic proposal preparation system for selling vehicles An electronic system for creating customized product proposals stores a plurality of pictures and text segments to be used as building blocks in creating the proposal. The pictures may include various products, environments in which the products may be us... | 02/20/1996 |
| 5491326 | Card metering system Meter cards, which are structurally identical with magnetic stripe vend cards, are used to collect and transfer transaction data from card actuated vending machines to a transaction terminal. The transaction terminal contains a card reader and a computer ... | 02/13/1996 |
| 5483048 | Apparatus and method for reading and writing value data in a card A card handling apparatus includes a reader/writer incorporated in a vending machine, and the reader/writer reads the encoded data representative of a present value, which is written in a first recording portion of a prepaid card, in accordance with decod... | 01/09/1996 |
| 5473143 | ATM/POS based electronic mail system The technical field of the invention generally concerns electronic mail systems. The present invention provides an ATM or POS system having a terminal (22, 24, 26, 28 or 34) and processor (18 or 36) which are connected to an ATM or POS data communications... | 12/05/1995 |
| 5461222 | Memory card A memory card on which a key symbol is printed is provided, which comprises a first memory for storing an image pattern corresponding to the key symbol and output for selectively outputting the image pattern from the first memory in accordance with an inp... | 10/24/1995 |
| 5451755 | Self-contained device for self-service delivery of electrical energy A self-contained device for self-service delivery of electrical energy, comprising a plurality of terminals, each capable of being connected to an electrical appliance, and a central management unit, operable independently of the terminals. The central ma... | 09/19/1995 |
| 5451756 | Process and equipment for counterfeit-proof operation of gambling machines with chip cards A process and equipment for safeguarding the operation of gambling machines with electronic cards in a manner that protects against counterfeiting and fraud. The microchip cards are numbered and a central computer stores at least the amount paid in for pl... | 09/19/1995 |
| 5442163 | Exposure apparatus An exposure apparatus equipped with a substrate supervisory device is contained in an air-conditioned chamber with a front door. The device has a library for storing a plurality of reticle cases with respective reticles therein, a bar code reader for read... | 08/15/1995 |
| 5422468 | Deposit authorization system This invention relates to an enhanced transaction approval system for processing transactions in which a deposit is tendered for the purchase of goods and services. Specifically, the credit authorization system for a deposit transaction permits the exclus... | 06/06/1995 |
| 5418353 | Non-contact, electromagnetically coupled transmission and receiving system for IC cards A non-contact IC card communication in which power consumption of a driver of a reader/writer is reduced and the size of a power supply circuit for operating the driver is made small. The driver has a low output impedance. A current detecting circuit incl... | 05/23/1995 |
| 5408078 | Portable point of sale terminal A point of sale terminal is disclosed that provides all of the usual point of sale terminal functions, but that is entirely field portable. Data pertinent to each purchase can be input to the terminal via a keyboard assembly, a touch-screen display or a s... | 04/18/1995 |
| 5406059 | Molding machine, particularly of the centrifugal type, for low melting materials, synthetic materials or the like Molding machine, particularly of the centrifugal type, for low-melting materials, synthetic materials or the like, including readers for reading reference markings located on one side of a mold; these readers are connected to a programmable logic controll... | 04/11/1995 |
| 5399844 | Inspection prompting and reading recording system An inspection prompting and reading recording system includes a portable computer having a display, a keyboard, a bar scanner, a memory, a processor, and a sound generator. Each group of components is provided with a respective bar code label. When the co... | 03/21/1995 |
| 5369258 | Postage applying kiosk A metering kiosk in which postage is applied to a finished mail piece such as a postcard which has been provided with bar codes to indicate paper orientation for receipt with the kiosk and indicate the destination of the postcard. The metering kiosk has a... | 11/29/1994 |
| 5362948 | Facsimile-use automatic order and sales management system A management system automatically manages order and sales operations by facsimile communication between an orderer and a supplier. The management method of this system comprises checking the steps of the kind and number of commodities written on an order ... | 11/08/1994 |
| 5359182 | Wireless telephone debit card system and method A wireless telephone debit card communications system comprising a radio telephone, a base station, and an end station. The radio telephone includes a processor; a reader for reading a credit amount and a telephone number of a debit card; a writer for cha... | 10/25/1994 |
| 5357091 | Card type input/output interface device and electronic device system using the same A card type input/output interface device includes a first connection part for transferring data between a main body of an electronic device and the card type input/output interface device, a second connection part which is coupled to the first connection... | 10/18/1994 |
| 5340966 | Automatic facsimile-receiving-sheet recognizing apparatus An automatic facsimile-receiving-sheet recognizing apparatus including: a device for automatically receiving facsimile information transmitted from an orderer; a device for detecting the position of a bar code, a mark sheet and a figure in a received shee... | 08/23/1994 |
| 5334821 | Portable point of sale terminal A point of sale terminal is disclosed that provides all of the usual point of sale terminal functions, but that is entirely field portable. Data pertinent to each purchase can be input to the terminal via a keyboard assembly, a touch-screen display or a s... | 08/02/1994 |
| 5315093 | Market research method and system for collecting retail store market research data A market research system and method are provided. A plurality of cooperating establishments are included in a market research test area. Each cooperating establishment is adapted for collecting and storing market research data. A computer system remotely ... | 05/24/1994 |
| 5298725 | Bar code security system A security management system that utilizes bar codes to document inspections made by security officers at various areas being inspected. The system includes software, data scanners, data transmitters, a personal computer and noncopiable bar code labels. N... | 03/29/1994 |
| 5294781 | Moving course data collection system A moving course data collection system for use in a large-scale store such as a supermarket or the like in which a portable scanner is provided to customers which allows customers to input article code data for articles in the store customers wish to purc... | 03/15/1994 |
| 5278750 | Production schedule making method A method for making a production schedule of an instant process which produces a plurality types of products and supplies the products to a plurality of following processes by trucks. A truck delivery schedule including a number of truck deliveries and ti... | 01/11/1994 |
| 5266780 | Human error preventing system using bar code reading collations The invention provides a human error preventing system wherein a worker is provided with a work slip indicating data as to the work to be performed in a form readable by the worker and with a work instruction bar code representing the work data. The worke... | 11/30/1993 |
| 5264683 | Method of collating photographic prints with photographic film A process for collating photographic film with prints made therefrom. During a reception process of a photofinishing order, data indicative of a customer's ID number recorded on an envelope is recorded in a magnetic recording layer of a photographic film.... | 11/23/1993 |
| 5247160 | Method for transmitting creditcard information for a group of bus passengers A system and method are disclosed for supplying a rental service provider such as a hotel or an automobile rental agency with advance printed notice of customers who are approaching the hotel or agency aboard a shuttle bus from a nearby airport, thereby e... | 09/21/1993 |
| 5241160 | System and method for the non-contact transmission of data A data transmission system for the non-contact transmission of data between a station and a portable data carrier. The station includes a station transmitter operating at a predetermined frequency for generating a first signal and a demodulator for detect... | 08/31/1993 |
| 5231271 | Management method of printed circuit boards in assembling process and management system therefor Finished printed circuit boards and their identity data are stored in an automatic warehouse and in a stock file, respectively. It is determined whether all necessary printed circuit boards inserted into the shelf of an electronic apparatus are stored in ... | 07/27/1993 |
