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 |
| 7427375 | Diffuser for an annealing furnace A diffuser (24) for an annealing furnace has a plurality of radially extending generally and vertically oriented vanes (40) for radially directing furnace gases. The vanes have top edges (42) defining a generally planar support and the top edges... | 09/23/2008 |
| 6939131 | Support for a part to be subjected to heat treatment in an oven, and a method of heat treating a metal part A support slug (2) used for the heat treatment of a part (3), particularly for the hardening of a steel part, comprises a guide element (221) that is used to guide the part (3) towards a supporting surface (230) of the support slug... | 09/06/2005 |
| 6495094 | Apparatus and method for suppressing growth of oxide film on coil An apparatus and a method for suppressing growth of an oxide film on a coil which is a spirally wound, rolled strip are disclosed. A rolled strip subjected to rolling by hot rolling equipment is wound spirally by a down-coiler to make a coil. Covers are d... | 12/17/2002 |
| 5961322 | Water cooled inner cover for annealing furnace An annealing furnace inner cover cooperates with a furnace base to define a treatment chamber within which a charge of metal such as steel is housed for annealing, wherein the inner cover carries at least one interior cooling conduit through which cooling... | 10/05/1999 |
| 5697778 | Daisywheel convector plate for batch coil annealing furnace An improved convector plate is provided for a batch coil annealing furnace. The plate includes a top annular plate, an identical bottom annular plate and an annular diverter plate in between. A plurality of slotted openings are provided in the top and bot... | 12/16/1997 |
| 5364266 | Method and apparatus for increasing furnace capacity The present invention provides an inexpensive furnace modification which increases the productivity of the furnaces without requiring extensions to the furnace member or the surrounding building. Existing inner covers are extended a predetermined amount t... | 11/15/1994 |
| 5048802 | Diffuser system for annealing furnace with chain reinforced, nodular iron convector plates A convection diffuser and charge support system for an annealing furnace utilizes a diffuser base assembly to support a stack of coiled rolls of steel that are to be annealed inside a furnace enclosure. The coils are arranged in a vertical stack atop the ... | 09/17/1991 |
| 4793801 | Method for retaining the configuration of an aperture formed through a coil This invention relates to an apparatus and method for retaining the configuration of an aperture formed through a coil when the coil is supported on a saddle. The saddle has a pair of spaced apart upstanding legs. The apparatus includes a first and a seco... | 12/27/1988 |
| 4725474 | Batt of refractory material A refractory batt for supporting green ceramic or refractory ware during firing thereof, wherein said batt includes a groove or recess diagonally oriented in each quadrant, with the bottom of the recess or depression merging smoothly at the ends into the ... | 02/16/1988 |
| 4632369 | Coil-annealing spacer Disclosed is a coil-annealing spacer which comprises a pair of upper and lower discs, each having a round hole in the central portion thereof, and longitudinal ribs disposed between the discs and secured thereto and extended radially or spirally radially ... | 12/30/1986 |
| 4611791 | Diffuser system for annealing furnace with water cooled base A convection diffuser and charge support system for an annealing furnace utilizes a diffuser base assembly that includes a vane-carrying center casting which underlies a charge support plate, and which is perimetrically surrounded by a pair of outer and i... | 09/16/1986 |
| 4516758 | Diffuser system for annealing furnace A convection diffuser and charge support system for an annealing furnace utilizes a diffuser base, a base-encircling ring, and convector plates which are preferably formed as castings of nodular iron. The diffuser base defines an array of horizontally-ext... | 05/14/1985 |
| 4445852 | Diffusers A load support diffuser adapted to support a vertical stack of coils in an annealing furnace and means for cooling a protective atmospheric gas within said furnace, the diffuser comprising a flat circular base plate, a plurality of outer load support memb... | 05/01/1984 |
| 4423857 | Spacer for batch coil annealing This invention provides a spacer for vertically separating coils in an annealing furnace. The spacer includes a lower segmental plate and an upper segmental plate, and ribs between the segmental plates and affixed thereto. A porous medium is disposed betw... | 01/03/1984 |
| 4412815 | Loading system for an annealing furnace charge and components therefor The invention provides a loading system for the charge of an annealing furnace of the kind intended for the treatment of a stack of coils mounted one on top of the other with their central cores in register with one another, a protective heat exchange gas... | 11/01/1983 |
| 4310302 | Batch coil annealing furnace baseplate The present invention is a method and apparatus for heat treating at least one work item, such as a coil, having an axial passage and being axially stacked on a base support means disposed within a cover means which is located on the base support means. T... | 01/12/1982 |
| 4287940 | Cooling apparatus for diffusers A diffuser adapted for transmitting thermal energy by conduction across metallic members and by convection of a heat-treating gas in an annealing furnace is comprised of a base, a diffuser member having a plurality of radial gas passages, and an in-line c... | 09/08/1981 |
| 4165868 | Method and apparatus for heating coils of strip Coils of strip to be annealed are placed in a furnace with their eye vertical and are heated to the annealing temperature by heating elements on the furnace above and below the level of the coils. An improved convector coil support includes a single metal... | 08/28/1979 |
| 4155706 | Batch annealing furnaces A support for a workpiece to be heated, the support comprising a laminate of metal strip arranged in face-to-face relation with the adjacent normally upper strip edges forming a support surface.... | 05/22/1979 |
| 4079921 | Apparatus and method for continuous treatment of metal coils or the like Apparatus and process are disclosed whereby open coils having spaces between the convolutions may be treated in a longitudinally extending furnace by passage of treating gases between the convolutions of the coils, the coils being introduced at one end of... | 03/21/1978 |
| 3975145 | Open coil heat shielding Apparatus for and process of heat treating open coils of strip metal, such as strip steel, by passing hot gases or atmospheres through spaces between spaced convolutions of the coil, in which a shielding structure is provided at the upper end of the coil ... | 08/17/1976 |
| 3948595 | Apparatus for the high temperature annealing of metallic coils A method and means for the high temperature annealing of metallic coils whereby a coil to be annealed is held, with its axis in a horizontal position, in the annealing furnace by support means passing through the eye of the coil. The support means compris... | 04/06/1976 |
| 3939296 | Annealing furnace base plate supports In an annealing furnace of the type comprising an outer enclosure surrounding an insulated heating chamber and wherein the bottom of the heating chamber comprises a metallic coil carrying car having one or more base plates upon which the coils of metal to... | 02/17/1976 |
