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 |
| 8381896 | Ejection system A conveyer apparatus for transporting and processing tablets includes a conveyer and an ejection system. Each of the tablets includes a first side, a second side opposite the first side, and a belly band that interconnects the first and second sides. The conveyer in... | 02/26/2013 |
| 7506742 | Board unloading device and board unloading method A board unloading device is provided that can simplify unloading task and can be used to unload and pile a thin board. A board dropper unlocks clamping of the board in fallen condition of a transport hanger. A board container receives and houses the board when the b... | 03/24/2009 |
| 7260240 | Method and system for monitoring and controlling workpieces Methods and systems for monitoring the delivery of workpieces to a position by: storing a digital reference image of the position prior to the delivery of workpieces; storing a digital operating image of the position during delivery of workpieces; performing image a... | 08/21/2007 |
| 7162320 | Assembly line quality control Disclosed herein is a method of controlling an assembly line, comprising the steps of providing an article assembly line; designating, on the assembly line, an upstream processing station and a downstream processing station; delivering a first article to the upstrea... | 01/09/2007 |
| 7089768 | Washing machine with conveyor device A cabinet-shaped washing machine includes a conveyor belt to move laundry goods in circulation, with the laundry goods passing through various successive steps of the laundry cycle. Following the actual washing process, a downstream pre-dehumidification as well as a... | 08/15/2006 |
| 6988609 | Work measurement apparatus A work measurement apparatus 1 comprises a base 2 and a conveyor table 3 which is slidably disposed on the base 2 and includes a work receiving opening 6. A guide plate 4 is fixedly disposed on the conveyor table 3. A... | 01/24/2006 |
| 6975747 | Method and system for monitoring and controlling workpieces Methods and systems for monitoring the delivery of workpieces to a position by: storing a digital reference image of the position prior to the delivery of workpieces; storing a digital operating image of the position during delivery of workpieces; performing image a... | 12/13/2005 |
| 6915952 | Method of tracking tools To track a large number of tools, the tools are kept in sets with each set having a container. A silhouette of each tool stored in the container is printed at the point of storage along with a dat matrix code that has stored in binary code a description of the tool,... | 07/12/2005 |
| 6264420 | Device for monitoring sheets A device is provided for monitoring sheets from which cards with a monetary value and/or identity cards are punched, where the cards are arranged in rows on the sheets. The device is configured such that the number of cameras used is independent of the nu... | 07/24/2001 |
| 6151535 | Laboratory primary sample distributor with archiving mode A laboratory primary sample distributor has a source zone for the input of coded receptacles containing samples and delivered in input magazines. In a distribution mode under the control of a control unit, a conveyor belt moves the receptacles from the so... | 11/21/2000 |
| 6102185 | Low profile flow track storage module A low profile flow track is described for use in storage facilities, such as warehouses. The flow track requires no assembly upon the pallet rack frame, and does not add appreciable height to the space allotted between the pallet rack beams for storing co... | 08/15/2000 |
| 6000884 | Apparatus for controlling flow in air conveyor systems An air conveyor system has a blower in communication with a plenum. The blower provides air to the plenum to move the objects with respect to the plenum. The air conveyor system includes a plurality of dampers disposed at predetermined locations along the... | 12/14/1999 |
| 5971130 | Workpiece identification providing method, workpiece, workpiece identifying method and apparatus thereof, and sheet metal machining apparatus A workpiece identifying method is provided, being characterized in that a plurality of identification areas of plural columns and rows are plotted in an identification mark providing region provided in the area of the unused portion of a workpiece or a pr... | 10/26/1999 |
| 5942188 | Interactive control system for packaging control An interactive control system for controlling the automatic consolidation of contact lenses in a contact lens product flow, the interactive control system comprises a product line having random variations in product flow. A consolidation buffer receives t... | 08/24/1999 |
| 5891371 | Interactive control method for packaging control of time sensitive products An interactive control system for controlling the automatic packaging of contact lenses in a contact lens fabrication facility, the interactive control system consisting of a first robot device for periodically transferring individual arrays of a first pr... | 04/06/1999 |
| 5850036 | Apparatus for leak testing vehicle wheels An apparatus for checking leakage of a test gas through a wheel. The apparatus comprises wheel recognition apparatus for generating a first signal indicative of selected parameters of a wheel, a test cell for applying a differential pressure of a test gas... | 12/15/1998 |
| 5826692 | Device for transferring plates between a drive chain and workstations Plates supporting articles in the course of manufacture are driven by adherence on an endless chain and are transferred to workstations situated to the side of the chain where the manufacturing operations are carried out. The transferral of the plates tak... | 10/27/1998 |
| 5741988 | Lead frame detection apparatus In a lead frame detection device used between a bonding machine and a lead frame storage magazine, a lead frame contacting probe is provided on a pivotal contact assembly so that the pivotal movement of the contact assembly that is caused, via the contact... | 04/21/1998 |
| 5607642 | Interactive control system for packaging control of contact lenses An interactive control system for controlling the automatic packaging of contact lenses in a contact lens fabrication facility, the interactive control system consisting of a first robot device for periodically transferring individual arrays of a first pr... | 03/04/1997 |
| 5390868 | Bobbin conveyor system for carrying and discriminating among various kinds of bobbins A conveyor system for carrying various kinds of bobbins which can easily and reliably discriminate a wrong combination of a tray with a specific mark and a color bobbin of specific color, wherein a spinning bobbin wound on a color bobbin of specific color... | 02/21/1995 |
| 5347463 | System and method for line production management Information code for conveying devices on which an item to be processed is placed has the data of the same item to be processed stored as a set in a memory. The information code inputted into a register undergoes tracking corresponding to the conveyance o... | 09/13/1994 |
| 5264037 | Powder coating system An apparatus for and method of coating an article by the use of electro-static attraction of ionized particles which are subsequently cured. The apparatus includes a first foraminous conveyor for carrying the article through a powder coating zone and a se... | 11/23/1993 |
| 5233534 | Production system for garments or other products A production system for garments or other products includes a plurality of work stations for performing a series of work operations in which parts of a garment or other product are progressively manufactured. A conveyorized transport system extends betwee... | 08/03/1993 |
| 5222855 | Automated work center An automated work center for use in materials handling operations is disclosed. The work center includes a randomly accessible vertically moving temporary storage queue 11 for receiving containers 25 that hold material goods. A fixed loading ramp 20 is ar... | 06/29/1993 |
| 5208962 | Method and apparatus for affixing tags on lumber A method and apparatus is provided for labelling individual pieces of lumber by stapling a tag on the end portion of the lumber. A totally automated system is provided whereby the pieces of lumber move on a conveyor and over a sensor which activates a sta... | 05/11/1993 |
| 5161929 | Automated work center The present invention relates to an automated integrated work station for handling goods within distribution and production environments. In one of the preferred embodiments the work station is specifically adapted for consolidating goods.... | 11/10/1992 |
| 5084829 | Robot machining system having supply and discharge conveyor belts and pallets A work forming apparatus of this invention includes a robot which operates within a predetermined operational range, a working machine with a chuck, a supply loop, a discharge loop, supply pallets for accommodating material works, and discharge pallets fo... | 01/28/1992 |
| 5048664 | Reciprocating staging fixture A reciprocating staging fixture, to precisely stage an integrated circuit component in a lead tinning system. The staging fixture exactly positions components by capturing it on three sides. The fixture also retracts completely out of the way of overhead ... | 09/17/1991 |
| 4890715 | Method of and a device for coding workpiece carriers in a production plant Workpiece carriers are fed to successive work stations along conveyor tracks at which stations work operations are performed on individual parts on the carrier and in which a defect signal is allocated when appropriate. After a work operation has been per... | 01/02/1990 |
| 4882938 | Pick-up unit for withdrawing cigarette samples from a mass of cigarettes A pick-up unit for withdarwing sample cigarettes from a mass of cigarettes traveling perpendicularly to the cigarette axes; each cigarette occupying random positions within the mass as the latter travels in the aforementioned direction. The unit presents ... | 11/28/1989 |
| 4802094 | Process monitoring apparatus for process management in production and assembly lines A method and an apparatus of removing works from each of the facilities in a production line is described in order to facilitate changing of a work monitoring operation in accordance with, for example, a layout change in the production line and a change i... | 01/31/1989 |
| 4618932 | Control device for at least two circulating shelving systems In facilities having several systems of circulating shelving, because of the multiplicity of parts to be stored the regular use of a data processing system is required. For controlling the systems of circulating shelving by means of the data processing sy... | 10/21/1986 |
| 4607338 | Misgrip detection control system for use in a transfer press A misgrip detection control system for detecting unholding or misgrip of a workpiece from a transfer bar in a press. The system comprises a workpiece memory circuit for storing electrically data indicating whether a workpiece is in position of a corresponding ... | 08/19/1986 |
| 4494298 | Automatic assembling apparatus An automatic assembling apparatus includes a pair of parallel conveyers for transferring carriers, each carrier having four chassis and parts to be assembled on the chassis; a plurality of assembly stations, each having a movable table on which various as... | 01/22/1985 |
| 4460966 | Transfer machine control Transfer machine apparatus is provided, which includes a load station for receiving parts during at least some of the part reception periods in a succession of part reception periods, and which further includes a number of selectively located work units f... | 07/17/1984 |
| 4438685 | Wafer baking oven A wafer baking oven for making baked wafers from batter includes an elongated baking chamber with heating elements therein. A thermally insulated enclosure surrounds at least part of the baking chamber. The oven includes a front port adjoining the baking ... | 03/27/1984 |
| 4414566 | Sorting and inspection apparatus and method Sorting and inspection apparatus and methods which may be used for the identification and separation of articles of different characteristics, or the inspection of articles of similar characteristics to reject those of below minimum standards. A typical s... | 11/08/1983 |
| 3966048 | Inspection of glass articles Inspection apparatus for glass articles, particularly curved glass panes produced by a tempering and shaping furnace, including a jig providing a reference shape with which the shape of the article is compared, conveyors for feeding and removing the artic... | 06/29/1976 |
| 3952388 | Machine tool apparatus Machine tool apparatus for handling routine pallets and priority pallets with loading and unloading stations comprising a plurality of machine tools for performing machining operations on a workpiece mounted on a pallet; main conveyer means for carrying a... | 04/27/1976 |
| 3949194 | Check-out terminal A check-out terminal wherein coded data identifying articles being checked out is carried past an optical code reading system at a substantially constant distance away includes a tilted main conveyor belt and at least two subsidiary conveyor belts arrange... | 04/06/1976 |
