Did You Know...
...that the inventor of the electric motor was a blacksmith named Thomas Davenport? Described as "a brilliantly unsuccessful inventor", Davenport invented the first rotary electric motor. In 1836 he headed out -- on foot -- from his Vermont home to file a patent application at the Patent Office in Washington, D.C. By the time he got there, he had squandered away his money and couldn't afford the $30 filing fee so he turned around and went home. When he later mailed in his application with money he'd raised, the Patent office was destroyed in a fire. He did finally get credit for his invention on Feb. 5, 1837.
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| Number | Title | Issue Date |
| 6877528 | Microfluidic system including a bubble valve for regulating fluid flow through a microchannel A microfluidic system includes a bubble valve for regulating fluid flow through a microchannel. The bubble valve includes a fluid meniscus interfacing the microchannel interior and an actuator for deflecting the membrane into the microchannel interior to regulate fl... | 04/12/2005 |
| 5117794 | Fuel injection system A bistable fluidic switch is switched from its stable state by a pin inserted in the power nozzle of the bistable fluidic switch, the pin being controlled by an electromagnetic actuator which is controlled from an electronic computer. The fluidic switch e... | 06/02/1992 |
| 5067509 | Gas jet actuator using coanda effect A gas jet actuator device is described for imparting controlled vibrations o an object to which the device is connected. The device comprises a conduit defining an inlet section which is connectible to a source of gas pressure, and a fork section downstrea... | 11/26/1991 |
| 5040560 | Method and apparatus for controlled modification of fluid flow Substantial alteration of the flow conditions in a fluid stream are effected by the application of controlled disturbances to the boundary of or within the stream by one or more piezoelectric actuators. The actuators have resonance frequencies substantial... | 08/20/1991 |
| 4554941 | Fluid vibration apparatus Apparatus for generating a pressure pulse in a fluid comprising a pipe, an opening into said pipe for filling said pipe with fluid, a piston mounted in the pipe, and coupled to a vibrator output. An air bleeder is mounted through said pipe at a location t... | 11/26/1985 |
| 4418721 | Fluidic valve and pulsing device A high capacity fluidic valve is disclosed which is useful for creating psure pulses in a drill string for communicating diagnostic information from the bottom of a well bore to the surface during drilling. The device of the present invention comprises e... | 12/06/1983 |
| 4267856 | Fluid oscillator A fluid oscillator is shown for producing pulsations in a flow of fluid. The oscillator has a housing which includes a fluid inlet channel for connection to a supply of fluid under pressure, a fluid outlet channel, and a valve chamber located between and ... | 05/19/1981 |
| 4157161 | Windshield washer A windshield washer comprises a nozzle in which a liquid jet is formed and repetitively transversely swept before egressing from the nozzle body. The swept jet breaks up into liquid droplets which impinge upon a wide area of a windshield. In a preferred e... | 06/05/1979 |
