Did You Know...
...that the video game, Pong, was invented by a guy who graduated at the bottom of his engineering class? Nolan Bushnell spent more time running the games at a local amusement park than he did on his studies at the University of Utah. His dreams of working for Disney's amusement empire were dashed when the company wouldn't hire him. Taking a boring job, Nolan daydreamed about electronic versions of popular games. He invented Pong, the first video game, and went on to found Atari Co.
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| Number | Title | Issue Date |
| 8002163 | Friction welding apparatus A friction welding apparatus includes a first holder for holding a first work piece, a second holder for holding a second work piece, a thrust mechanism and a shaft. The thrust mechanism moves the second holder toward or away from the first holder. The shaft is conn... | 08/23/2011 |
| 7975897 | Friction welding machine and operating method A friction welding machine (1) has two headstocks (5, 6), two spindles (8, 9) with a spindle drive (12, 13) and a workpiece holder (22). The first headstock (5) is arranged stationarily at the frame (2). The second he... | 07/12/2011 |
| 7431194 | Joining structural members by friction welding An apparatus and method for joining structural members to form preforms and structural assemblies are provided. The structural members are positioned so that joining surfaces thereof define an angled aperture, such a slot or frustoconical bore, that receives a corre... | 10/07/2008 |
| 7370784 | Friction stir welding apparatus and robot employing the apparatus A friction stir welding apparatus capable of stably applying a pressure force without enlarging the apparatus, and a robot having thereof are provided. A rotating tool (22) is provided with a rotational shaft (26) and a hollow surrounding shaft (27 | 05/13/2008 |
| 7367487 | Method for friction stir welding, jig therefor, member with friction stir-welded portion, and tool for friction stir welding A recess portion with a substantially circular cross-section is provided in the upper end surface of a supporting jig. When a probe of a device for friction stir welding is buried in the upper end surface of a layered portion, material in the vicinity of the buried ... | 05/06/2008 |
| 7357292 | Friction stir welding tool A friction stir welding tool is described and which includes a shank portion; a shoulder portion which is releasably engageable with the shank portion; and a pin which is releasably engageable with the shoulder portion. ... | 04/15/2008 |
| 7353978 | Method of making tailored blanks using linear friction welding A method of making tailored blanks in accordance with one embodiment comprises the steps of friction welding a first joining surface of a first structural member having a substantially non-rectangular parallelogram profile to a first portion of a joining surface of ... | 04/08/2008 |
| 7309228 | Hydraulic pump system for a patty-forming apparatus An improved hydraulic system is provided for a reciprocating mold plate, patty-forming apparatus wherein food product is delivered under pressure from a pump cylinder to mold plate cavities. The plunger is driven during a first phase by force from a hydraulic cylind... | 12/18/2007 |
| 7279055 | Method for the rotational friction welding of plastic parts and device for carrying out the method Method and device for the rotational friction welding of plastic parts. A method for the rotational friction welding of plastics wherein a rotationally symmetrical plastic body is set in rotation and, as it rotates, is pressed against a welding location of a ... | 10/09/2007 |
| 7275675 | Friction stir weld tools A friction stir weld tool sleeve is supported by an underlying support pin. The pin material is preferably selected for toughness and fracture characteristics. The pin sleeve preferably has a geometry which employs the use of an interrupted thread, a plurality of fl... | 10/02/2007 |
| 7275677 | Synchronized tubular friction welding arrangement Method and apparatus for friction welding termination elements at first and second ends (21, 23) of a cylindrical shaft (15) in alaignment with an axis. A shaft receiver (17) receives the cylindrical shaft (15), and a first chuck (70 | 10/02/2007 |
| 7267258 | Method for metallically connecting rods by oscillating friction welding The process for metallically connecting the faces of rods. Axially normal dressing at least two rod free ends, then placing the cross sectional surfaces of the rod free ends one against another under pressure. Oscillating the two rod free ends in the opposite direct... | 09/11/2007 |
| 7255258 | System and associated friction stir welding (FSW) assembly, controller and method for performing a friction stir welding operation A system and associated friction stir welding (FSW) assembly, controller and method for performing a friction stir welding operation are provided. The friction stir welding system includes a FSW device, such as a CNC machine, that includes an actuator capable of mov... | 08/14/2007 |
| 7165710 | Method and apparatus for fastening steel framing with a spin weld pin A spin weld pin according the principles of the present invention can be rotated at a high speed relative to two or more framing members by a torque transmitting device. An axial force is applied to the pin as it rotates so that the pin contacts the framing members ... | 01/23/2007 |
| 7156277 | Friction stir welding method and apparatus A friction stir welding (FSW) method and apparatus are provided by which power needed for FSW is reduced and a compact FSW tool can be used. In the FSW method, metal members are lapped one on another and a rotating probe of an FSW tool is inserted into a contact por... | 01/02/2007 |
| 7156275 | Welding head, welding system, method and computer program for friction stir welding Welding head 1 for friction stir welding, adapted for connection and driving of a tool 2 intended for simultaneous friction stir welding from two opposite surfaces on an object for welding, comprising a tool holder 9, a force-generating device | 01/02/2007 |
| 7083076 | Joining structural members by friction welding An apparatus and method for joining structural members to form preforms and structural assemblies are provided. The structural members are positioned so that joining surfaces thereof define an angled aperture, such a slot or frustoconical bore, that receives a corre... | 08/01/2006 |
| 7080770 | Method and system of inertia friction welding A method and system of inertia friction welding that enables the production of inertia friction welds in which the final upset can be controlled to an operator specified target. The method utilizes any profile-based upset control technique, including but not limited... | 07/25/2006 |
| 7011244 | Centering insert and a method of assembling and welding together two pipe elements A centering insert device for centering two pipe elements that are to be welded together end to end, the device comprising a central body supporting a plurality of clamps. The clamps located at the center section planes have a circular conforming effect in at least ... | 03/14/2006 |
| 7006948 | Diagnostic method for manufacturing processes A method for use in a system for diagnosing the causes of manufacturing defects involves process characterization. A set of forms is identified for a workpiece and for a piece of manufacturing equipment that acts upon the workpiece. The forms for the workpiece are p... | 02/28/2006 |
| 6957761 | Inertia or friction welding of conical components into elliptically-shaped holes in a pipe or tube A method of joining tubular structures using friction welding is disclosed. The invention provides a method of joining a first tubular structure having a conical contact surface to a second tubular member with an elliptical contact orifice by placing the conical sur... | 10/25/2005 |
| 6955283 | Adaptable mandrel for spin forming There is provided a mandrel for spin forming that has a backing plate with removably attached mandrel portions and mandrel spacers, such that the mandrel is adaptable to numerous configurations. The various configurations of the mandrel are used to provide different... | 10/18/2005 |
| 6923032 | Forming tool movement unit, particularly for manifold closing machines A forming tool movement unit, particularly for manifold closing machines, comprising a rotating head supporting forming tools slidable in mutually opposite radial directions with coordinated movements, a supporting frame on which a supporting element is slidable in ... | 08/02/2005 |
| 6886732 | Friction stir welding device with detector for detecting torque current of friction stir welding tool A machining device comprising five axial kinetic coordinate systems that can be controlled simultaneously, three axes of which, are linear moving axes and two axes of which are rotary axes, with one axis of the five axes being provided with a tool rotating function,... | 05/03/2005 |
| 6863207 | System for high speed centrifugal welding An apparatus is disclosed for performing high speed welding of two or more materials. The apparatus includes an outer vessel having an inner surface and a central axis. At least one inner vessel is positioned within the outer vessel and adapted to receive at least t... | 03/08/2005 |
| 6779704 | Friction stir welding of metal matrix composites, ferrous alloys, non-ferrous alloys, and superalloys using a superabrasive tool A probe for friction stir welding MMCs, ferrous alloys, non-ferrous alloys, and superalloys, as well as non-ferrous alloys, the probe including a shank, a shoulder, and a pin disposed through the shoulder and into the shank, wherein the pin and the shoulder at least... | 08/24/2004 |
| 6767071 | Lightweight spindle A spindle for use in an automobile chassis is provided. An aluminum knuckle with an axial through hole defined in its interior is provided along with a substantially cylindrical steel stem with an interlocking feature defined on one end. The interlocking feature has... | 07/27/2004 |
| 6736305 | Method and apparatus for friction welding The present invention relates to rotary friction welding and non-rotary motion friction welding, providing means for controlling ductilities of the components during the welding process so as to bias the welding process in favor of a first component or to match the ... | 05/18/2004 |
| 6691910 | Method of joining different metal materials by friction welding A rod material made of Ti alloy has a larger diameter portion at the end, which is joined with the end of material made of Ti--Al intermetallic compound, by friction welding, to form a poppet valve for an internal combustion engine. Instead of providing s... | 02/17/2004 |
| 6669075 | Tapered friction stir welding tool A friction stir welding tool is provided for joining together workpieces utilizing friction stir welding processes. The inventive tool includes a support body rotatable about a first axis and having a distal end defining a shoulder. A rotatable pin extend... | 12/30/2003 |
| 6648206 | Friction stir welding using a superabrasive tool A probe for friction stir welding MMCs, ferrous alloys, non-ferrous alloys, and superalloys, as well as non-ferrous alloys, the probe including a shank, a shoulder, and a pin disposed through the shoulder and into the shank, wherein the pin and the should... | 11/18/2003 |
| 6634540 | Method and device for welding elongated elements The present invention concerns a method for welding the far ends of two elongated elements together, whereby the above-mentioned far ends are heated up to forging temperature by rotating a ring clamped between them. A flat ring is provided between the far... | 10/21/2003 |
| 6554175 | Friction stir welding machine and method A friction stir welding machine includes a table for supporting parts to be welded and a frame extending over the table. A first drive is supported by a first element of the frame and is operatively connected to a spindle having a tool. The first drive mo... | 04/29/2003 |
| 6457629 | Object consolidation employing friction joining Friction heating and bonding are used to consolidate sequentially applied metals, plastics or composites to previously deposited material so as to form a bulk deposit in a desired shape. Monolithic or composite sheets, tapes and filaments can be consolida... | 10/01/2002 |
| 6386419 | Friction pull plug welding: top hat plug design Friction Pull Plug Welding is a solid state repair process for defects up to one inch in length, only requiring single sided tooling, or outside skin line (OSL), for preferred usage on flight hardware. The most prevalent defect associated with Friction Pu... | 05/14/2002 |
| 6173880 | Friction stir weld system for welding and weld repair A friction stir weld system for welding and weld repair has a base foundation unit connected to a hydraulically controlled elevation platform and a hydraulically adjustable pin tool. The base foundation unit may be fixably connected to a horizontal surfac... | 01/16/2001 |
| 6170731 | Method and apparatus for friction torque welding A friction welding method and apparatus for holding and joining thermo-plastic resin elements together by rotational torque friction. The method includes precise orientation of the joined surfaces together, applying pressure to the elements and precisely ... | 01/09/2001 |
| 6095395 | Friction welding drill and fuse fitting apparatus A friction welder drill and fuse fitting apparatus. This invention relates generally to a friction welder fitting apparatus and method for combining the operation of drilling a hole into a substrate workpiece and fusing a friction welding fitting onto tha... | 08/01/2000 |
| 6070606 | Method of attaching supply conduit to a solenoid operated valve A method of non-releasably quick-connecting a tubular metal conduit to the inlet of a non-metallic valve body. A closure having a tube-receiving bore is then pre-assembled with a frictionally engaging spring washer and seal rings therein and is then secur... | 06/06/2000 |
| 5942314 | Ultrasonic welding of copper foil A method and apparatus is disclosed for ultrasonically welding at their edges a strip of their copper foil to a second strip of supporting metal, preferably aluminum or stainless steel having a thickness greater than the copper foil. The welded strips are... | 08/24/1999 |
