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!
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| Number | Title | Issue Date |
| 7322741 | Second hand reset device for a timepiece A setting device for a timepiece comprising a second-indicating element (1) and at least one other time-indicating element comprises a first manual control element (2) that can occupy a neutral position and a position for setting the other time-indicat... | 01/29/2008 |
| 7236428 | Multifunction timer device A multifunction timer device for providing a time/date stamp on objects includes a housing, a controller with a timer circuit contained in the housing, a display for displaying information from the timer circuit, and a multifunction input button. The input button is... | 06/26/2007 |
| 7131227 | Advertising medium for helmet or hat A method of advertising comprising providing a sheet of advertising material having a front surface, front surface having advertising information thereon. The method also includes providing a sporting helmet having a head accepting portion and a facemask and connect... | 11/07/2006 |
| 7075859 | Radio-controlled timepiece and control method for the same A watch has a crown for manual time adjustment, a receiver for receiving current time update signals by radio transmission, an internal counter for counting the passage of time according to an internal oscillator, and time display hands. The watch preferably does no... | 07/11/2006 |
| 7057629 | Control apparatus An object of this invention is to obtain a control apparatus capable of easily and speedily setting an output frequency, and it is constructed so as to change a change width of a frequency setting value in response to a rotational speed of a handle operation by an o... | 06/06/2006 |
| 6946813 | Step motor control device and electronic timepiece equipped with step motor control device A step motor control device detects a rotational driving state of a step motor. In a first detection period immediately after termination of the rotational driving state of the step motor, selected switch elements are controlled so that a first detection signal is o... | 09/20/2005 |
| 6914407 | Step motor control device and electronic timepiece equipped with step motor control device A control device detects a rotational driving state of a step motor having a coil. First and second switch elements are connected to each other in series, and a node of the first and second switch elements are connected to one side of the coil during use of the cont... | 07/05/2005 |
| 6898155 | Programmable reminder device having multi-event capacity A portable multi-event reminder device includes a battery-powered electrical timer circuit that is programmable with respect to selecting at least two overlapping time periods, so as to generate prompts for at least two functionally related but time-independent even... | 05/24/2005 |
| 6137252 | Controller of a stepping motor, control method for the motor and timing device A power-saving controller for controlling a stepping motor mounted in an electronic wristwatch. A pulse signal generator in the controller combines two pulse signals GPi and GPi+2 having different duty factors using a compositing signal CP, based on a ref... | 10/24/2000 |
| 5297112 | Setting a double face watch A double faced watch has a movement driving a first gearing actuating a first hands array cooperating with a first dial and a second dial 31 on its opposed face cooperating with a second hands array 32, 33', 43. An automatic winding mass 19 is pivoted con... | 03/22/1994 |
| 5111487 | Electronic timer apparatus Modulo timer apparatus including a chain of modulo counter stages is controllable by write signals generated by a central controller. The central controller is operative to generate a write signal corresponding to a selected counter stage, and a digital c... | 05/05/1992 |
| 5003492 | Display apparatus having data reset arrangement for fast changing of digital display The two-digit number displayed by a display apparatus (1) is adjusted by means of a microcontroller (4) in response to actuation of increment (5) and decrement (6) keys. Each new actuation of the increment key results in incrementation of the displayed nu... | 03/26/1991 |
| 4855971 | Time adjustment arrangement for digital displays An electronic timepiece or clock with a digital display, and with an arrangement for the setting or adjustment of the minutes and/or hour display through either a short or lengthier depression of a timing push button. A single timing push button is provid... | 08/08/1989 |
| 4611927 | Electronic timepiece having means for correcting the seconds indication A timepiece, able to indicate at least the hours, minutes and seconds, having a rotary stem movable into three axial positions: a stable neutral position in which the timepiece operates normally, a stable outer position and an unstable inner position. Whe... | 09/16/1986 |
| 4523858 | Combined electronic calculator and electronic alarm timepiece An electronic alarm timepiece comprises an alarm generation circuit for generating a plurality of alarm tones, and an alarm selection circuit for selecting a particular alarm tone from the plurality of alarm tones and for enabling generation of the partic... | 06/18/1985 |
| 4431314 | Presettable digital time-piece display system A multistage counter 3, 5, 7, 10 normally counts seconds pulses from a frequency divider 2. Counters 5 and 7 are units and tens minutes counters and are set by shifting a counter 21 by button B to provide a "1" on output 21d. When a button A is then held ... | 02/14/1984 |
| 4392217 | Device for controlling correction operations of a time display device A device comprises means for distinguishing a short depression from a long depression depending on the period of actuation of a control button (block 14), means for selecting in the case of a short depression a minutes correction mode in which the display... | 07/05/1983 |
| 4379642 | Apparatus for the selection or correction of data in an electronic watch The apparatus comprises commutating means 10 operated by the rotation in one direction or the other of the watch spindle 1, which rotation produces trains of commutation pulses that are phase-displaced with respect to each other. The watch circuit produce... | 04/12/1983 |
| 4376993 | Electronic watch with sequential readout and control An electronic data storage and retrieval system, particularly embodied in an electronic watch instrument interrogated and controlled by a timed sequence of voltage pulses generated by the user's actuation of a switch or by his tapping or otherwise impacti... | 03/15/1983 |
| 4370066 | Correction signal input system for electronic timepiece In an electronic timepiece having a central processing unit for processing current time and other data, and equipped with a crown and switch means coupled thereto for providing a correction signal comprising a pulse train of relatively high frequency, a b... | 01/25/1983 |
| 4367958 | Correction signal generating system for an electronic timepiece An electronic timepiece is provided with a correction signal generating system for producing correction pulses to modify current time or other data. The system includes a rotary switch, coupled to a timepiece crown to be rotated thereby and having a plura... | 01/11/1983 |
| 4351042 | Timepiece including a storage arrangement The invention comprises an arrangement which permits placing a timepiece o a state of minimum energy consumption for storage purposes. It includes a manual control arranged to act on an electronic circuit. When the manual control is briefly actuated the ... | 09/21/1982 |
| 4348753 | Electro-mechanical pulse generator An electro-mechanical pulse generator for producing electronic pulses to set or correct the readout of an electronic digital display. Two contact assemblies rotatable relative to one another cooperate to close at least two pairs of electric contact elemen... | 09/07/1982 |
| 4336609 | Digital input means for miniature type electronic devices A digital input means for miniature type electronic devices comprising an external actuator, mechano-electrical converter and circuit means. The mechano-electrical converter is excited to deliver an output signal which is then supplied to the circuit mean... | 06/22/1982 |
| 4321697 | Process and circuit for the setting of an electronic digital display A process and circuit for the setting of an electronic digital display for a desired time period, particularly the cooking time of a microwave oven. The setting is effected through a series of stepping pulses controlling the registers of counter-display u... | 03/23/1982 |
| 4316276 | Key-operated solid-state timepieces A solid-state electronic timepiece in which the output of a high-frequency time base is divided down to produce low-frequency timing pulses that are applied to a display actuator adapted to selectively control a multi-digit electro-optic display to presen... | 02/16/1982 |
| 4308607 | Electronic timepiece An electronic timepiece equipped with a switch means to produce switching pulses in response to actuation of an external operation member, and means for detecting the time intervals between pairs of the switching pulses and producing first control signals... | 12/29/1981 |
| 4275463 | Electronic timepiece An electronic timepiece having a stepping motor which can be driven at a normal frequency and at a relatively faster correction frequency includes a manually actuable switch and circuitry responsive to two successive actuations of the switch within a firs... | 06/23/1981 |
| 4263666 | Device for correcting digital display used in electronic timepieces A device for correcting the contents of a display, which is used in electronic timepieces equipped with a display for indicating day, date, hour and minute, including a stem which has a crown at a tip portion thereof and is capable of being moved between ... | 04/21/1981 |
| 4258431 | Electronic timepiece having an analog display device and a digital display device An electronic timepiece having both time indicating hands and an electro-optical time display, wherein individual digits of the electro-optical display can be selected for correction and wherein correction of a digit causes the time indicating hands to ad... | 03/24/1981 |
| 4257114 | Electronic timepiece An electronic timepiece having a rotatable operating member such as a crown, with switch and pulse generation means coupled to the operating member whereby a number of pulses can be produced each time the operating member is rotated, these pulses being us... | 03/17/1981 |
| 4257113 | Electromechanical calendar timepiece An electromechanical calendar timepiece has a date display provided by two indicators carrying the "units" and tens data, respectively. The motor which drives these indicators can rotate at a normal speed or at a considerably higher speed. The units data ... | 03/17/1981 |
| 4255805 | Data introducing arrangement A countdown device such as a timer employing a digital display is provided ith a plurality of up/down counters, one for each digit column. A single control switch is provided which may be in the form of a push-button and the signal obtained therefrom acts ... | 03/10/1981 |
| 4253177 | Apparatus for manual adjustment of a clock An actuating element for the manual adjustment of a clock comprises a rotating collar face which is arranged around the time indicating device of the clock. In a mechanical or electromechanical clock, the rotating movement of the rotating collar face is t... | 02/24/1981 |
| 4246650 | Multi-function electronic timepiece The disclosed is an electronic timepiece which has storage circuits for respectively storing data regarding a variety of times such as an alarm time for different operating modes, stop watch, timer, etc., a data processing circuit commonly provided for al... | 01/20/1981 |
| 4245338 | Time correction system for an electronic timepiece An electronic timepiece having improved means for rapid setting of time, date or alarm time, whereby the number of setting pulses generated for each actuation of an external actuating member is varied depending upon the time intervals between successive a... | 01/13/1981 |
| 4232384 | Timesetting arrangement for electrical timepieces An electrically driven timepiece has a high frequency oscillator, a frequy divider and a time display capable of displaying at least minutes and seconds wherein correcting and setting of the display is obtained by means of a single user accessible switch... | 11/04/1980 |
| 4222010 | Control device for rapidly setting an electronic digital display In an electronic digital display control device, a pulse generator is actuated to produce pulses which are fed into a counter to control the setting on the display. A discriminator detects whether the frequency of the pulses exceeds a predetermined freque... | 09/09/1980 |
| 4199932 | Electronic timepiece with mixed time setting An electronic timepiece having an analog display including a time setting mechanism for correction of the hour hand independently of the other hands including an auxiliary circuit for supplying a rapid frequency train of pulses to a step motor for displac... | 04/29/1980 |
| 4196578 | Electro-mechanical watch An electro-mechanical watch for advancing the uncorrected watch indicating members to their correct time indicating positions, after a correction period during which one of the indicating members is adjusted and the advancement of the uncorrected members ... | 04/08/1980 |
