Did You Know...
...that Charles Goodyear performed some of his experiments on rubber while in debtor's prison? He was there so often he referred to it as his "hotel". Chronically in debt because of poor business sense and ill health, Goodyear depended on the generosity of friends and family. Even after he unlocked the secret to vulcanizing rubber, he was unable to improve his financial situation. When he died, his estate was $200,000 in debt.
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| Number | Title | Issue Date |
| 7337822 | Retractable safety barrier A retractable barrier includes a rollup or otherwise retractable panel that can extend between two spaced apart support members. When not in use, the panel can retract onto one of the support members to permit passage. The barrier provides substantial impact resista... | 03/04/2008 |
| 7237591 | Retractable safety barrier A retractable barrier includes a rollup or otherwise retractable panel that can extend between two spaced apart support members. When not in use, the panel can retract onto one of the support members to permit passage. The barrier provides substantial impact resista... | 07/03/2007 |
| 7207370 | Retractable safety barrier A retractable barrier includes a rollup or otherwise retractable panel that can extend between two spaced apart support members. When not in use, the panel can retract onto one of the support members to permit passage. The barrier provides substantial impact resista... | 04/24/2007 |
| 7147030 | Operation group for curtains with winding up roll An operation group for use with a curtain winding roll is described relative to a first embodiment and a second embodiment (G1, G2), the first for automatically and the second for manually winding up curtains. According to the first embodiment (G1 | 12/12/2006 |
| 6976339 | Door frame support system A system for supporting a door frame, and in particular a metal door frame, during build-up of a wall about the door frame. Vertical alignment devices allow for placement of the door frame in a plumb configuration with respect to the floor and allows for fine adjust... | 12/20/2005 |
| 6955207 | Friction device for roll-up curtains and the like A friction device (10), applied to roll-up curtains and the like, includes a tubular roller (1), on which the curtain (2) rolls up, and which is rotatably carried on a horizontal axis. The friction device (10) includes a threaded shaft ( | 10/18/2005 |
| 6938667 | Automatic wind-up screen device An automatic winding screen device has a coil spring fixed to a bracket at one end of a winding box, the other end of the coil spring being fixed to a winding shaft, and a damper for alleviating impact and collision noise. Between the damper on a shaft fixed to the ... | 09/06/2005 |
| 6541929 | Apparatus and method for controlling vehicle power windows A power window control apparatus for controlling vehicle power windows (12-18) includes window control switches (52-58) for controlling power window control motors (20-26). When two window control switches (52-58) are simultaneously and momentarily actuat... | 04/01/2003 |
| 6536502 | Adjustable width child safety barrier A method is disclosed of installing a barrier device at a passageway. The method includes attaching a barrier housing containing a retractable barrier to a structural element on one side of the passageway, extending the barrier a desired distance from the... | 03/25/2003 |
| 6465980 | Device for controlling a drive motor of a roller blind Device for controlling a drive motor of a roller blind having stackable slats, the device identifying the type of end travel for the roller blind and operating by analyzing the variation in the drive torque. The automatic control adapts the control of the... | 10/15/2002 |
| 6426604 | Power window controlling device A power window controlling device, which detects an obstruction-caught state without misunderstanding even if the electric potential at the power source drops abruptly, which comprises switches, an electric motor, a drive system, a drive controller, a rot... | 07/30/2002 |
| 6114820 | Power window apparatus having safety unit A power window apparatus is provided for detecting pinching in accordance with the opened/closed position of the window and a state of rotation of a motor, the apparatus having a position sensor which detects a safety-control suspension region of the wind... | 09/05/2000 |
| 5838126 | Method and apparatus for opening or closing a door by measuring the instantaneous voltage and current in an associated motor A method of electronically controlling the opening and/or closing of a door by a DC motor. An instantaneous position of the door is determined. The voltage across the terminals of the DC motor or the current flowing through the windings of the motor is re... | 11/17/1998 |
| 5709349 | Motorized roller device equipped with adjustable automatic stop A device for the roll-up of blinds or the like that has a tubular motor mounted in a roller tube. An automatic stop and a detector for detecting that the motor is blocked, causing the motor to be stopped. The automatic stop has a screw carrying a travelin... | 01/20/1998 |
| 5521473 | Apparatus for driving and controlling power window while prohibiting drive of the motor during an initial period In an apparatus for driving and controlling a power window according to the present invention, a blanking period is provided to stop the comparison between a variation amount of motor current and a threshold value, during a predetermined period of time T ... | 05/28/1996 |
| 5355741 | Failsafe limit switch with automatic reset for rolling fire door A failsafe limit switch with automatic reset for a rolling fire door is usable together with a rolling door with a brake. There is a movable plunger between a secured position and a triggered position which compresses a spring as it moves from its trigger... | 10/18/1994 |
| 4759396 | Lock mechanism for roll bar on retractable awning A roll bar lock mechanism for use in a retractable awning of the type having a roll bar about which an awning canopy can be rolled includes an eccentric lock element mounted within the roll bar and pivotally moveable between two locking positions which ar... | 07/26/1988 |
| 4662423 | Device for operating roll-screen A device for operating a roll-screen having a winding roll for winding up a screen cloth thereon, which comprises a changeover wheel and a guide wheel in confronting relation with each other, one of which is rotated with the winding roll in screen raising... | 05/05/1987 |
