Did You Know...
...Chester Carlson was a patent agent who tired of having to make multiple copies of patent applications using the only duplication method available at the time: carbon paper. In 1959 he came up with a new copying system and took it to IBM for evaluation. The "experts" at IBM determined potential sales to be only 5,000 units because people wouldn't want to use a bulky machine when they had carbon paper. Carlson's invention was the xerography process, the company founded on the system is Xerox.
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| Number | Title | Issue Date |
| 8079155 | Plumb post apparatus having bipod legs and method of use thereof A plumb post apparatus for retaining a mason's line for laying a brick course, the apparatus comprising two vertical posts each having two legs of adjustable length that pivot outward to form stabilizers. The legs are secured to adjacent sides of the posts, thus ext... | 12/20/2011 |
| 7631435 | Bricklaying method and apparatus for plumbing control joints The invention relates generally to plumbing control joints in masonry walls, and apparatus for plumbing a control joint in a brick wall surface. A mounting bracket supports a bracket rod and cylindrical collar which may slide axially along and pivot about the bracke... | 12/15/2009 |
| 7461461 | Kwik leads An improved a tool for aiding in laying a brick wall a set distance from the base wall of a structure, and to confirm the verticality of the brick wall. The tool has an elongated member having a smooth face for contacting a wall of bricks, an end member is attached ... | 12/09/2008 |
| 7320181 | Masonry guiding tool A masonry guiding tool for attachment to a backing wall, comprising a base member for attachment to the backing wall and an elbowed plumb line holder. The plumb line holder comprises an elongated mounting portion defining a first axis therealong, the mounting portio... | 01/22/2008 |
| 7310917 | Hinged frame spreader A hinged spreader board of a pre-set length with shaped ends is pivoted open inside a frame to mate with the inside faces of the sides of a frame and maintain the sides apart by the length of the board while attaching the frame to a wall. Additional hinged sections ... | 12/25/2007 |
| 7310888 | Masonry story pole with adjustable braces A masonry story pole with braces includes: a.) an elongated vertical pole member for corner positioning to set horizontal lines for bricklaying, having a working area between a top end and a bottom end; b.) a bottom support bracket connected to the bottom end of the... | 12/25/2007 |
| 7089679 | Measuring apparatus and method therefor An apparatus for measuring linear distances comprising a wheel to be rolled along a surface to be measured, wherein the wheel comprises a plurality of incremental line markers to facilitate measurement of selected intervals, and wherein the wheel is maintained withi... | 08/15/2006 |
| 7055256 | Plumb bob square bracket A plumb bob bracket is disclosed for use in building construction having a first stud wall and a second stud wall each having an upper beam, a lower beam, and a plurality of vertical beams therebetween. The plumb bob bracket includes a first leg, a second leg attach... | 06/06/2006 |
| 6976316 | Magnetic plumb bob holder An inspection tool for measuring the true of metal door frames uses a plumb bob. The plumb bob is suspended from a holder which may be attached to a door frame by magnets in the body of the holder. The relationship of the holder dimensions models the relationship of... | 12/20/2005 |
| 6915613 | Collapsible concrete forms A concrete form unit includes opposing sidewalls which are preferably made of foamed plastic or other insulating material. Articulated spacers extend between and connect the sidewalls, and are capable of folding about themselves both at an elbow situated between the... | 07/12/2005 |
| 6912794 | Bricklayer's combination level and plumb A bricklayer's combination level and plumb having a first I-section beam, a second I-section beam, and a connector pivotally and slidably connecting the second I-section beam to the first I-section beam wherein the second I-section is angularly displaceable up to an... | 07/05/2005 |
| 6874239 | Self-holding and self-leveling device for survey range pole and method of use An apparatus used with a range pole and survey instruments for leveling and setting elevations and a method of use of the apparatus. A frame holds a range pole, on an embed plate, without assistance of a surveyor's assistant while a surveyor communicates with an iro... | 04/05/2005 |
| 6842992 | Building wall layout tool A building-wall-layout tool has a pair (29) of two line holders (1, 30, 31), each of which have spike legs (10, 12, 25) for being driven into ground material (13) proximate opposite ends (36, 42) of an intended wall (35) of ... | 01/18/2005 |
| 6796046 | Miter cut, plumb cut, and seat cut angle finding system A miter cut, plumb cut, and seat cut angle finding system has a handle, a spacing block with a pair of attachment holes there through, a pair of coupling pins, a rotatable straight blade and a knurl ended coupling screw. The handle has a plurality of plates. Each pl... | 09/28/2004 |
| 6729088 | Positioning jig for installing molding A jig adapted for easily positioning, properly orienting and installing a molding. The jig includes a body having a positioning portion configured to receive a molding. The body also includes a first positioning margin and a second positioning margin each emanating ... | 05/04/2004 |
| 6708418 | Brick laying form A method and apparatus for masonry brick laying of a column, such apparatus employing an apparatus for setting a layer of brick or other structural material, allowing the column of bricks to be placed in a straight, or spiral, format while keeping each layer within ... | 03/23/2004 |
| 6625951 | Floor laying and leveling system A system for laying and leveling a tile walking surface, i.e. indoor floor or outdoor patio or pathway, where the system relies upon the use of inserts embedded within the adhesive for securing the tile. A preferred insert is a single plastic member, pref... | 09/30/2003 |
| 6601309 | Apparatus for marking by light planes a corner angle in a work area A system for marking a corner angle in a working area with the aid of light planes, wherein a straight, elongate guide is disposed on each respective side of a planar working surface in the working area. Each guide carries a carriage that can be moved to ... | 08/05/2003 |
| 6578274 | Construction layout block Construction layout block can be provided with a triangularly shaped body with a triangular bottom; a base wall and two side walls extending up from the bottom; base wall junctures formed about intersections of the base wall and the side walls, and an ape... | 06/17/2003 |
| 5933974 | Combination square, level and plumbing tool A carpenter's square having a first and second leg at right angles to each other, and a third leg extending between the first and second legs. A magnetic strip on the first leg for attaching the tool to a metallic surface to be plumbed. A first notch in t... | 08/10/1999 |
| 5915809 | Masonry column guide An apparatus and process for assisting a mason in laying brick columns, the apparatus comprising a telescopic vertical mast, a vertical alignment assembly further comprising pivotally attached telescopic legs for maintaining the vertical mast plumb, a low... | 06/29/1999 |
| 5897816 | Concrete corner form A new Concrete Corner Form for expediting the process of laying out and setting up concrete forms. The inventive device includes a pair of corner support wall members integrally joined at one end and orthogonally oriented relative to one another, and a pa... | 04/27/1999 |
| 5873211 | Bracket for speed lead A bracket to hold a bricklayer's speed lead in position on a wall. The bracket, which is contoured to fit the speed lead, has two vertical flanges, one of which is longer than the other, a horizontal flange extending perpendicularly between the vertical f... | 02/23/1999 |
| 5542187 | Alignment assembly and method An alignment assembly and method is provided. The alignment assembly is located adjacent to one end of a structure to be erected, and cooperates with a like assembly located adjacent to an opposite end of the structure for vertically aligning a surface of... | 08/06/1996 |
| 5419055 | Construction apparatus Construction apparatus used for positioning column base brackets, for positioning hold down plates used to position anchor bolts for steel beams, for constructing brick or block walls and columns, and for positioning concrete forms.... | 05/30/1995 |
| 5274929 | Masonry guide A masonry guide for supporting a vertical masonry line parallel to, and at a fixed distance from, a structural shell is disclosed. A masonry line attachment means is slidably mounted on the guide to permit location of the masonry line at the desired dista... | 01/04/1994 |
| 5224309 | Temporary cleat for sheet goods A cleat for supporting sheet goods during alignment and fastening to underlying support structures. A pattern of holes is provided in the cleat for use in fastening the cleat to strapped or non-strapped mounting surfaces. The ends are shaped to provide a ... | 07/06/1993 |
| 5208990 | Masonry level apparatus A masonry level is arranged and configured as an elongate plate, including a planar top surface spaced from and parallel to a planar bottom surface, wherein a U-shaped handle is mounted medially of the top surface extending orthogonally and upwardly there... | 05/11/1993 |
| 5136785 | Apparatus for constructing masonry corners A device adapted to be mounted on a wall for vertically and horizontally aligning masonry corners. The device comprises a pair of members connected at a joint, the members defining an interior angle of approximately 90 degrees and a corresponding exterior... | 08/11/1992 |
| 5095633 | Cement block tool A mechanical device for laying a cement block upon a previously laid course consisting of two main body legs (7), (3), supporting a pivot arm and adjustable stop (4), (5), (6), for gauging a block to be laid and set in mortar in respect to a prior course ... | 03/17/1992 |
| 5079848 | Base-point anchor A base-point anchor that will allow anchoring of chalklines, plumb bob lines, string for layout lines and tape rules, comprising a body with adhesive locking apertures and an anchor aperture and a bulk adhesive adhering to the body and extruded into the a... | 01/14/1992 |
| 5003701 | Masonry clip A masonry clip used to align successive courses of bricks when laying an internal wall comprising an extension attached to form a right angle to a retainer leg with a slot cut into the extension to permit the visual alignment of the clip tied to a guide l... | 04/02/1991 |
| 5001839 | Building profiling tools A profiling tool, which is suitable for providing a reference for an internal or external brickwork corner at a right angle or a predetermined non-perpendicular angle, comprises a plate to be secured typically to a horizontal course of brickwork and a dat... | 03/26/1991 |
| 4995167 | Masonry guide A novel masonry tool kit that enables masons to plumb their work quickly and easily which saves time and money. The invention consists of two vertical members or story poles which operate in two systems. One system is used for outside corners and the othe... | 02/26/1991 |
| 4976041 | Base-point anchor A base-point anchor that will allow anchoring of chalklines, plum bob lines, string for layout lines and tape rules, comprising a body with adhesive locking apertures and an anchor aperture and a bulk adhesive adhering to the body and extruded into the ad... | 12/11/1990 |
| 4970797 | Mason's scale and masonry guide employing said scale A masons scale for use in laying courses of brick, adapted to allow a mason to calculate appropriate mortar thicknesses between rows of bricks when constructing a brick wall, so as to evenly space the rows of bricks in such wall. Such scale consists of a ... | 11/20/1990 |
| 4953341 | Spacers for laying tile and method of use A single piece spacer element is disclosed for insertion between spaces between tiles for uniform spacing of the tiles. The spacer element comprising a plurality of legs extending radially from a common juncture, with the legs being formed with beveled ed... | 09/04/1990 |
| 4939846 | Adjustable guide assembly for stone masons and method of use thereof An adjustable guide assembly for use by a stone mason in constructing a brick wall so that the bricks thereof are uniformly spaced forwardly from a preexisting subwall. The guide assembly includes an elongated guide member having a longitudinally extendin... | 07/10/1990 |
| 4924579 | Layout system for construction foundation placement A method and apparatus for laying out foundations prior to construction. Ideally, two stakes are provided for each corner to be formed in a construction project and line extends from each corner to an adjacent corner. Each stake is configured with a clamp... | 05/15/1990 |
| 4703564 | Apparatus for forming brick and block patterns on structural surfaces An under layer of a mortar material such as stucco is first applied to a structural surface such as a wall or floor. Over this under layer a second layer is applied generally of a different color than the first layer. A tool having a guide bar, an elongat... | 11/03/1987 |
