Pong, the Atari creation that launched the computer game craze, came with these instructions: "Avoid missing ball for high score."
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 |
| 6072129 | Impact detecting apparatus An impact detecting apparatus includes a housing, a fixed electrode located within the housing, a movable electrode located adjacent the fixed electrode and adapted to be electrically connected with the fixed electrode, and a conical slope located within ... | 06/06/2000 |
| 6064013 | Miniature, planar, inertially-damped, inertially-actuated delay slider actuator A miniature, planar, inertially-damped, inertially-actuated delay slider uator is micromachined on a substrate and consists of a "slider", with zig-zag or stair-step-like patterns on the side edges, interacting with similar vertical-edged zig-zag pattern... | 05/16/2000 |
| 5777285 | Automotive inertia switch An automotive inertia switch including a switch body which houses a movable plunger weight; a button guide structure with a cylindrical nest, a switch reset button, a wiper contact, and a compression spring. Switching action is caused by the vertical move... | 07/07/1998 |
| 5753872 | Acceleration switch In an acceleration switch, a magnetic contact opening/closing member is disposed at a horizontal initial position above a holding member. The end portion of the contact opening/closing member is pushed upward from the initial position by a ball that rolls... | 05/19/1998 |
| 5747761 | Manually resettable shock sensor switch A shock sensor for vehicles is provided with a housing having a sloping bottom wall and a ball that can move up the sloping wall when a shock in excess of a certain level is applied. A supporting member pushes the ball towards the bottom end of the housin... | 05/05/1998 |
| 5722759 | Lamp assembly with inverted pivot member A lamp assembly having a gravity-actuated switch which is adapted to be mounted to the underside of a hinged cover member of a vehicle to illuminate a compartment of the vehicle when the hinged member is opened to a predetermined extent. The lamp assembly... | 03/03/1998 |
| 5610338 | Rolling or tilting responsible switch A roll or tilt responsive switch includes a housing formed from an electrically conductive material and having an inclined face formed on the bottom to gradually rise concentrically outwardly substantially from the center of the bottom, and a header fixed... | 03/11/1997 |
| 5602429 | Safety shut-off device The invention is directed to a switch arrangement for signaling the movement and the inclination of the switch arrangement which is accommodated in a housing. The switch arrangement (2) includes a first switch (12) configured as an On/Off switch and a sec... | 02/11/1997 |
| 5575372 | Device for preventing shearing or pinching of a foreign object A device for preventing shearing or pinching of a foreign object is suitable for use in SMIF (Standard Mechanical Interface) systems. A barrier which is constructed as a solid body is fastened at and displaceable relative to one of two parts which can mov... | 11/19/1996 |
| 5481139 | Safety circuit breaker for vehicles This invention is an emergency, inertia-type circuit breaker that is opened when a vehicle is involved in an accident. Within a fraction of a second after the initial accident impact, current will flow to the unlocked side of electric powered door locks a... | 01/02/1996 |
| 5334963 | Inertia and inductance switches A switch device which includes a magnet movable within a passageway. A wire coil is provided about the passageway such that, as the magnet moves into the coil, a current is induced, thereby providing a signal pulse. The switch can be utilized for sensing ... | 08/02/1994 |
| 5285032 | Ball switch An improved motion-actuated switch comprising a housing, a normally open snap action switch mounted within the housing actuable by a lever arm having a triangular member formed of sheet material extending substantially vertically upward from the arm, and ... | 02/08/1994 |
| 5192839 | Acceleration sensor An acceleration sensor is constructed of a spherical inertia element made of a magnetic material and having a predetermined mass, an annular magnet defining a retainer hole on which the inertia element is allowed to rest and is retained until a predetermi... | 03/09/1993 |
| 5109218 | Hydrocarbon detection circuit A circuit for detecting hydrocarbons comprises an input circuit receptive of an input signal representative of the electron movement in an unknown sample to be detected for producing a first amplified signal and a signal processing circuit receptive of th... | 04/28/1992 |
| 5038006 | Electrical switch A force-actuated electrical disconnect switch for connection between major electrical components of a vehicle and an ungrounded battery terminal of the vehicle. In an operative configuration, a pendulum in coaxial alignment with a contact shaft biases a c... | 08/06/1991 |
| 5003190 | Acceleration pickup, especially for release of occupant protecting devices in the event of accident An acceleration pickup, especially for release of occupant protecting devices in power vehicles in the event of an accident comprises a housing, a spring element, a seismic mass cooperating with the spring element, a movable contact, and a magnetic system... | 03/26/1991 |
| 4927172 | Mechanical acceleration sensor A mechanical acceleration sensor includes a housing and a weight which is rotatably supported by the housing. An actuating member for triggering an output device is mounted on an actuating arm which is rotatable in the same direction as the weight and abu... | 05/22/1990 |
| 4859818 | Electric inertia-actuated circuit breaker An inertia-actuated circuit breaker for protecting an electrical circuit of a motor vehicle in the event of collision or overturning of the vehicle, the circuit breaker including a piston with a conductive element. The piston is axially slidable inside a ... | 08/22/1989 |
| 4638130 | Acceleration sensor An acceleration sensor comprises a housing formed with a hollow cavity deing a sensing direction. An acceleration sensing conductive mass is releasably mounted in the cavity. The mass is released by a cutting member which severs the releasable mounting o... | 01/20/1987 |
| 4533799 | Electric safety switch with removable conducting rod A switch is provided comprising an insulating case supporting two conducting terminals, and a removable conducting rod coming to bear against the terminals so as to establish electric contact. The rod is held in abutment against a portion of a case and ag... | 08/06/1985 |
| 4493956 | Impact switch A resettable impact switch is disclosed having a non-conductive body with a cavity therein. A pair of terminals extend from opposite sides of the body and have their reverse ends extending into the cavity. A pool of mercury is disposed in the cavity to el... | 01/15/1985 |
| 4378475 | Velocity sensitive impact switch An impact switch sensitive to horizontally directed forces and to inversion of the switch is disclosed. The switch includes a U-shaped ball chase in which is mounted a movable actuating mass such as a steel ball. A permanent magnet located at the bottom o... | 03/29/1983 |
| 4336426 | Inertia switch An inertia switch including a cone-shaped inertia mass element movable from a stable condition wherein it supports a movable switch plunger in a position for maintaining a pair of switch blades in an open condition, into a collapsed condition in response ... | 06/22/1982 |
| 4331848 | Inertia activated electrical power source Disclosed is an inertia activated power source in which the moving element is typically a mercury cell shearing a restraining wire at a predetermined G force. The moving cell is then caught between two spring contacts that extend exterior the case providi... | 05/25/1982 |
| 4326111 | Inertia switch device An inertia switch having an inertia mass, in the form of a ball resting in a conical seat, which mass is responsive to applied acceleration or deceleration in any direction in a horizontal plane and is arranged to operate changeover electrical contacts co... | 04/20/1982 |
| 4321438 | Safety switch for vehicle electrical system A pendulum-like, impact-responsive switch is provided to disconnect the battery from the electrical system of a car in the event of a collision to thereby prevent the ignition by sparking wires of fuel and other flammable material. Means are provided to c... | 03/23/1982 |
| 4314120 | Shock responsive device A device adapted to respond to a mechanical shock as in an earthquake or the like, and including a first movable element to be controlled, a second element which normally blocks movement of the first element but is displaceable by shock-induced movement o... | 02/02/1982 |
| 4308438 | Safety cut-out for motor vehicles A rocker having a ball-and-socket mounting, hence movable in any direction, is normally held in a fixed position by the conical tip of a catch assembly which is pressed by a spring against the head of the rocker. In the event of a concussion, the rocker p... | 12/29/1981 |
| 4298777 | Distress gas generating signal balloon apparatus A crash force sensor is disclosed which may be used to activate emergency location systems such as a transmitter or an inflatable aerial tethered balloon. The crash force sensor comprises a casing and a moveable seismic mass held within the casing. A plur... | 11/03/1981 |
| 4287398 | Inertia switches An inertia switch resettably breaks an electrical contact upon a change in the momentum of the switch body above a predetermined level or upon inversion of the switch body. An inertia sensing pendulum detects momentum changes upon the switch body and upwa... | 09/01/1981 |
| 4284862 | Acceleration switch An acceleration actuated switch is disclosed which is capable of distinguishing between random and brief acceleration forces on the one hand and sustained acceleration forces on the other hand. The device comprises a stationary electrical contact and a mo... | 08/18/1981 |
| 4255629 | Crash and rollover cutoff switch A crash-sensing switch assembly for breaking an electrical circuit has a weight pivotally supported on a horizontal surface with the center of gravity above the surface. The weight is free to move away from the surface if the assembly is inverted. Movemen... | 03/10/1981 |
| 4199670 | Manually re-set inertia switch assembly An electric circuit breaker for automatically breaking a circuit affected by a motor vehicle collision, including an internal connecting member pivotally mounted on a casing and urged in a clockwise direction, a latch mounted on the forward end of a pivot... | 04/22/1980 |
| 4191868 | Seismic safety cutoff switch A seismic safety cutoff device responsive to external forces such as earthquakes, for use with an electrical switch for controlling the flow of electricity, including a housing adaptable to a switch mechanism having a spring-biased control stem, the safet... | 03/04/1980 |
| 4178492 | Inertial electric switch The disclosure is of an inertial electric switch, characterized in that it comprises a housing including a conical seat on to which an inertial ball is pressed by a spring, a slider carrying electrical contacts and loaded by a spring and provided with a l... | 12/11/1979 |
| 4097698 | Seismonastic switches with inertia responsive controller A seismonastic control apparatus has a ball mounted in a concavity for unobstructed movement into contact with a displaceable disc which actuates a two-mode control device on predetermined tilting or shock loading of the apparatus. To increase the kinetic... | 06/27/1978 |
| 4081052 | Safety seat belt locking device for vehicles The present invention refers to a safety seat belt locking device for vehicles, comprising a relay with an adjustable time delay, a solenoid device connected to a locking-lever and an impact-responsive switch. If an impact occurs from any direction, which... | 03/28/1978 |
| 4072835 | Fluid type inertia switch having resettable plunger and cone shaped retainer A resettable switch is disclosed having a conductor maintained in contact with a reservoir of mercury to conduct current therethrough during normal operation. During impact or roll over, the mercury is spilled from the reservoir and prevented from returni... | 02/07/1978 |
| 4042797 | Electric safety switch with positive-action mechanism A safety switch has a mobile contact integral with a control lever which is removably held on a switch body in an operative contact-making position by a spring-biased disc. When the lever is tilted in any direction, or axially displaced, cam surfaces of t... | 08/16/1977 |
| 4028510 | Safety device actuatable by seismic vibrations An apparatus actuated by seismic vibrations and other vibrations is disclosed. A vertically or substantially vertically movable rod, a weight or mass in engagement or capable of engagement with the rod and a plurality of pivotable stays or support arms su... | 06/07/1977 |