Did You Know...
...that several people are credited with the invention of the flush toilet? Most people have heard of Thomas Crapper (1837-1910), the sanitary engineer who invented the valve-and-siphon arrangement that made the modern toilet possible. Another claimant to "the throne" was British inventor Alexander Cumming who patented a toilet in 1775. Then there's a nameless Minoan (a native of ancient Crete) who lived 4,000 years ago who supposedly was ahead of his time and created the first flush toilet!
PatentStorm News
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 |
| 7984928 | Safety coupling A safety coupling for the releasable connection of a nozzle to a duct system is disclosed. The safety coupling is adjustable between a coupled position, in which the coupling parts are coupled together to lock the connection of the nozzle to the duct system, and a d... | 07/26/2011 |
| 7354078 | Pipe joint device An object of the present invention is to provide a pipe joint device, according to which two pipe members can be easily connected and disassembled without causing the abrupt discharge of the fluid from the pipe members. A ring shaped first retaining member is mounte... | 04/08/2008 |
| 7354077 | Quick connect/disconnect coupler with locking strap A coupler with an elongated inner member with an axial channel therethrough that is adapted to be removably disposed within a passage extending through an outer member. The inner member has a surface at one end that is adapted to engage and seal on a surface of the ... | 04/08/2008 |
| 7338092 | Quick-release connector fitting A plastic rift connector fitting comprises an annular housing, water line fitting, and sleeve components for pressurized water systems. The housing has a plurality of locking mechanisms to quickly lock and release the water line fitting. A flange and O-ring on the w... | 03/04/2008 |
| 7290977 | Powered coupling of attachment hydraulics An actuator operated apparatus for mounting and hydraulically coupling a working attachment to a mounting plate of a work vehicle. The apparatus receives a portion of pressurized fluid from the work vehicle to actuate a pair of wedges that slidably move to lock or u... | 11/06/2007 |
| 7281687 | In-flight refueling system and method for facilitating emergency separation of in-flight refueling system components An in-flight refueling system and method are provided for facilitating the emergency separation of the components of a probe and drogue in-flight refueling. The in-flight refueling system and method provides a fuse device capable of being installed between, for inst... | 10/16/2007 |
| 7258369 | Multicoupling device A multicoupling device for lines, especially hydraulic lines, wherein first and second coupling parts (7, 8) are provided with a plug (5) or a collar (6) for coupling units (1, 2) whose number corresponds to the number of connections to b... | 08/21/2007 |
| 7240927 | Connection assembly used for connection between a fuel nozzle and a filling hose A connection assembly has a male connector, a first engaging ring securely mounted on the male connector, a female connector and a second engaging ring securely received in the female connector. The first engaging ring has first claws formed to abut a periphery defi... | 07/10/2007 |
| 7228760 | Cycle pedal with adjustable axial positioning The pedal comprises a pedal body having hooks, and a cartridge containing a pedal axle and which is received in a transverse recess of the pedal. This recess is provided with a tapping coacting with a screw, thread on the cartridge to permit the continuous adjustmen... | 06/12/2007 |
| 7213845 | Tube joint A tube joint comprises a retaining mechanism which retains the locked state by preventing a sleeve from any rotation in the circumferential direction which would be otherwise caused by any unexpected external force. The retaining mechanism includes a ratchet which i... | 05/08/2007 |
| 7213847 | Exhaust fume diverter A diverter for vehicle exhaust fumes inhibits or prevents the accumulation of exhaust fumes in a trailer towed by a vehicle. The diverter includes a flexible component (67) which is able to accommodate misalignment between the vehicle and trailer during trans... | 05/08/2007 |
| 7156423 | Plastic tube joint A connector assembly for creating a plastic tube joint in a length of plastic tubing having a distal end, a proximal end and a hollow lumen includes forming a flare in the tube proximate the proximal end thereof by means of a flared ferrule disposed in the lumen and... | 01/02/2007 |
| 7152886 | Preconditioned air connector assembly for aircraft A connector for coupling a preconditioned air source to an aircraft is provided. The connector comprises actuating members rotatably secured to a body. In one embodiment, the actuating members are supported, at least partially, by an integrated bearing assembly. The... | 12/26/2006 |
| 7088245 | Remote-readable identification tag and method for operating the same A remote-readable identification tag (T) that is provided with at least two resonance circuits (81 . . . 8n) and at least one transmitter/receiver antenna system (1) coupled with the circuits. The at least two circuits have a respectively differ... | 08/08/2006 |
| 7021345 | Ball and socket breakaway fitting A hose breakaway fitting for a fuel hose and fuel dispenser that comprises of an inner ball-shaped valve section and an outer socket-shaped breakaway section. The valve section is connected to the dispenser's fuel outlet and the breakaway section is connected to one... | 04/04/2006 |
| 7021667 | Connector apparatus and system including connector apparatus A connector apparatus is configured to replace a separation module in a system for dispensing a fluid. When it is desired to purge the system of a dispensed fluid, the connector apparatus, having the same configuration of an inlet and an outlet as the separation mod... | 04/04/2006 |
| 7000952 | Duct separation restraint apparatus and method A coupling apparatus and method for coupling two duct sections together to form a joint therebetween. The apparatus includes a catcher ring component formed coextensive with the edge of one section of duct, and a catcher finger component formed coextensive with an e... | 02/21/2006 |
| 6931843 | Exhaust unit for engines particularly for high-performance vehicles A plurality of pipes adapted to be jointed to the exhaust ports of one line of an engine are joined together into a manifold comprising an equal number of pipe stubs, each receiving one of said pipes. The pipe stubs lead to a box from which extends a conduit that is... | 08/23/2005 |
| 6910911 | Break-away electrical connector An electrical connector has a plug portion and a terminal portion. The plug portion is couplable to the terminal portion to provide an electrical connection between a device and a peripheral item which is securely coupled to the device during normal operation of the... | 06/28/2005 |
| 6880859 | Conduit coupling assembly A conduit coupling assembly is provided for interconnecting a pair of fluid conveying members placed in a confronting relationship within the coupling assembly. The coupling assembly includes a longitudinally split coupler having a pair of coupling halves rotatable ... | 04/19/2005 |
| 6871878 | Make-break connector for heat exchanger One embodiment of the present invention is a make-break connector for use, for example, with a heat exchanger, which make-break connector includes: (a) two or more connectors; and (b) a make-break mechanism affixed to one of the connectors. ... | 03/29/2005 |
| 6843506 | Safety device A safety device (23) for a fluid hose (14) having at one end one part (19) of a separable connector (18) by means of which the hose (14) may be connected to another pipe (21) carrying the other part (20) of the connec... | 01/18/2005 |
| 6837523 | Piping with integral force absorbing restraining system A force absorbing restraining system for a number of pipe sections, each having an integral restraining system which is subsequently connected and works in conjunction with the integral restraining system of adjacent pipe sections. It is known that during an explosi... | 01/04/2005 |
| 6835310 | Device for coupling together a tube and a filter housing The invention relates to a device for using various types of coupling system to connect together a tube (2) and a filter housing (3). According to the invention, the device comprises: a head plate (21) independ... | 12/28/2004 |
| 6722701 | Quick connect coupling having a shielded fuse An invention coupling for LP gas or similar fuel source systems is disclosed. The coupling includes a nipple having a nose and a recess, a nut notably disposed in the recess and a fuse disposed between the nut and the nose. The coupling automatically decouples from ... | 04/20/2004 |
| 6709019 | Quick connector with automatic release A quick connector including a first connecting member attached to an object, a second connecting member releasably attached to the first connecting member and a release mechanism for detaching the first and second connecting members, wherein the release mechanism au... | 03/23/2004 |
| 6688323 | Gas tank to pressure regulator coupling A coupling for connecting a cylinder valve on an LPG tank to the inlet of a pressure regulator for gas consuming equipment comprises a nipple having an upstream end for connection with the cylinder valve and a downstream end for connection with the pressu... | 02/10/2004 |
| 6641174 | Safety device for connecting cryogenic fluid piping and cryogenic fluid container comprising at least one piping provided with such a safety device A device for connecting cryogenic fluid containers includes a connection having screw-threaded connection portions and a flange having at least one pair of openings spaced by a predetermined distance. The device also includes a retaining strap of L shape ... | 11/04/2003 |
| 6588807 | Quick connector for fluid handling An improved quick-disconnect connector assembly for connecting hoses, having a female element for connection to a first hose and a male element for connection to a second hose. The female element has an axial bore having a sealing mechanism for sealably r... | 07/08/2003 |
| 6574850 | Method for manufacturing shock absorbing type steering shaft A shock absorbing type steering shaft comprising a tubular outer shaft having a female serration and a solid inner shaft having a male serration. After the outer diameter surface of the outer shaft is pressed inwardly in the radial direction to plasticall... | 06/10/2003 |
| 6568476 | Triggering mechanism for disconnecting a riser from a riser connector A triggering mechanism for a triggering valve (1) of a hydraulic emergency unlock circuit for unlocking hydraulically operated gripping members of a riser connector which connects a lower end of a riser (2) to a wellhead on a sea floor. The triggering mec... | 05/27/2003 |
| 6547284 | Automatic or manual quick release latch There is provided a new and useful fluid conduit coupling apparatus which allows quick connection and disconnection with substantially no introduction of ambient fluids or air into the process fluid. In one aspect of the invention there is provided a quic... | 04/15/2003 |
| 6412828 | Quick safety connection for removably joining pipes A quick safety connection for the removable joining of pipes, comprising a male connector and a female element adapted to fit and to be locked inside one another. A controlled locking mechanism is adapted to immobilized the male connector axially in a pos... | 07/02/2002 |
| 6378909 | Disconnect/reconnect tool for a hose coupling A disconnect/reconnect tool (10) for selectively disconnecting and reconnecting the coupling components of a hose coupling (12). The disconnect/reconnect tool (10) includes a body (28) provided with a threaded bore (36), and a threaded shaft (38) for bein... | 04/30/2002 |
| 6302147 | Automatic dry release valve coupling There is provided a new and useful fluid conduit coupling apparatus which allows quick connection and disconnection with substantially no introduction of ambient fluids or air into the process fluid. In one aspect of the invention there is provided a quic... | 10/16/2001 |
| 6269836 | Breakaway anti pollution safety valve in a fluid duct Two flanged cylinders, one of which slides inside the other, are kept selectively in firm contact with each other by the engagement of elastic elements and their terminal booths with grips. The elastic elements and grips are fixed, respectively, on the ou... | 08/07/2001 |
| 6161872 | Breakaway connector for compressed natural gas hoses A breakaway system for a compressed natural gas fueling hose. The system includes an upper ring that surrounds the fueling hose. A lower portion includes three concentric disks that are arranged as a gimbals. An outer disk is coupled to the upper ring wit... | 12/19/2000 |
| 5967174 | Spill containment system The patent discloses apparatus for removing and containing spills occurring upon filling of a delivery tank truck. The spill catching basin and more particularly the drains mounted to the tops of tanks are modified to deliver liquid spilled into the basin... | 10/19/1999 |
| 5961153 | Exhaust repair kit for exhaust system and methods therefor An exhaust repair kit, including methods of manufacture and use thereof, in mounting a damaged pipe end to a flanged pipe end in a vehicle exhaust system comprising a length of tubing having a first portion and a second portion. The first portion being si... | 10/05/1999 |
| 5881769 | Breakaway coupling A breakaway coupling comprising a nipple and coupler normally engaged together by a canted coil spring. The coupler includes a coupler valve and the nipple includes a check valve. The canted coil spring is disposed in the coupler and receives the nipple a... | 03/16/1999 |
