Research tool access based on research session detection
Patent No. 8,832,098
A system and method is described herein that automatically detects when a user of a search engine is conducting a research session about a particular topic and then presents the user with access to one or more research-related tools responsive to detecting that the research session is being conducted. The research-related tool(s) may include one or more tools used for collecting, organizing and sharing content about the particular topic. The automatic provision of access to the research-related tool(s) responsive to detection of the research session can advantageously improve the experience of the user conducting the research session.
Inventors: Liang-Yu Chi (San Francisco, Calif.), Jon C. Maddox (Richmond, Va.), Ashley Hall (Menlo Park, Calif.)
Assignee: Yahoo! Inc. (Sunnyvale, Calif.)
September 9, 2014
Kitchen appliance and method of using same
Patent No. 8,827,101
A kitchen appliance includes a housing that defines a cavity. The housing has a housing rim defining an opening to the cavity. A heating or cooling element is disposed within the housing to heat or cool the cavity. A container has a generally hollow interior and a container rim. A lid is sized and shaped to at least partially cover the opening of the container when placed on the container. The lid has an exterior surface and an opposing interior surface. At least one handle is pivotally mounted to one of the exterior surface of the side wall of the housing and the exterior surface of the lid. The handle is pivotable between an engaged position to retain the lid in sealing engagement with the container rim and disengage position to permit the lid to be removed from the container rim.
Inventors: Guoyao Ye (Glen Allen, Va.), Michael Garman (Midlothian, Va.), Michael G. Sandford (Chester, Va.), Mark C. Steiner (Midlothian, Va.), Arthur Wayne Hudgins (Richmond, Va.)
Assignee: Hamilton Beach Brands Inc. (Glen Allen, Va.)
September 9, 2014
Fusion polypeptide comprising NtHMA transporter
Patent No. 8,829,161
Various embodiments are directed to transgenic plants, including transgenic tobacco plants and derivative seeds, genetically modified to impede the transport of Cadmium (Cd) from the root system to aerial portions of transgenic plants by reducing the expression levels of HMA-related transporters. Various embodiments are directed to transgenic tobacco plants genetically modified to stably express a RNAi construct encoding RNAi polynucleotides that enable the degradation of endogenous NtHMA RNA variants. Reduced expression of NtHMA transporters in transgenic plants results in substantially reduced content of Cadmium (Cd) in the leaf lamina. Various consumable products that are substantially free or substantially reduced in Cd content can be produced by incorporating leaves derived from transgenic tobacco plants modified to reduce the expression of NtHMA transporters.
Inventors: Alec J. Hayes (Chesterfield, Va.), Chengalrayan Kudithipudi (Midlothian, Va), Rutger S. van der Hoeven (Midlothian, Va.)
Assignee: Philip Morris USA Inc. (Richmond, Va.)
September 9, 2014
Additive formulation for industrial cooling systems
Patent No. 8,828,273
Disclosed is a concentrated cooling water additive that is substantially non-corrosive within a pH range of 2-12 and contains polymeric dispersant(s) and aromatic azole(s) that exhibits improved stability, possibly as a result of the interaction of the hydrophobic groups in the dispersant polymer and the aromatic azole(s). This improved stability allows for both reduced corrosivity of the formula and reduced manufacturing costs. Benefits of the disclosed formulations include improved safety for handling and shipment, more concentrated formulations available in liquid form, reduced shipping costs and storage space, reduced heat of neutralization during product manufacture, reduced costs of manufacture due to removal of need for caustic or acid addition and reduced environmental compliance costs associated with washing and waste handling step.
Inventors: John Richardson (Hanover, Va.), Dale P. Stuart (Mechanicsville, Va.)
Assignee: Chemtreat, Inc. (Glen Allen, VA)
September 9, 2014
Field director assembly having arc-resistant conductive vanes
Patent No. 8,835,822
A field director assembly includes electrically conductive vanes configured to prevent arcing in an unloaded microwave oven.
Inventors: Nicole L. Blankenbeckler (Richmond, Va.), William R. Corcoran, Jr. (Kennett Square, Penn.), Dariusz Wlodzimierz Kawka (Midlothian, Va.), Mehrdad Mehdizadeh (Avondale, Penn.), Ronald Jack Riegert (Newark, Del.)
Assignee: E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. (Wilmington, Del.)
September 16, 2014
Nucleating agent and thermoplastic compositions comprising the same
Patent No. 8,835,542
A composition comprises a thermoplastic and a nucleating agent. The thermoplastic can be a polyolefin selected from the group consisting of polypropylene homopolymers, polypropylene copolymers, polyethylene, polyethylene copolymers, polybutylene, poly(4 methyl 1 pentene) and mixtures thereof. The nucleating agent can comprise a metal salt of a phenylphosphonic acid. The nucleating agent can comprise primary particles having a mean aspect ratio of about two or more. The composition can also comprise an acid scavenger, such as one or more metal salts of stearic acid. The composition can be used to produce thermoplastic articles using, for example, injection molding and thermoforming techniques.
Inventors: Daniel M. Connor (Richmond, Va.), Jason D. Sprinkle (Woodruff, S.C.), Darin L. Dotson (Moore, S.C.), Daike Wang (Greer, S.C.)
Assignee: Milliken & Co. (Spartanburg, S.C.)
September 16, 2014
Process for recovering metals from cyanide tailings
Patent No. 8,834,816
Gold and other metals in dissolved anionic form are removed from cyanide-derived aqueous mining effluent by passage of the effluent through an array of conduits in series connectivity, each conduit containing a stationary permeable bed of a particulate absorbent having selective affinity for dissolved anionic metal species, the flow of said effluent through said array being adjusted to produce sharply defined absorption zones.
Inventors: Norman B. Rainer (Richmond, Va.)
September 16, 2014
Product dispensing system with staggered perforations
Patent No. 8,833,601
A product dispensing system including a container having a plurality of walls that define an internal volume and an opening into the internal volume, wherein the container defines a first arrangement of perforations extending in a first row from the opening and a second arrangement of perforations extending in a second row from the opening, wherein the first perforations are staggered by a distance relative to the second perforations.
Inventors: Matthew E. Zacherle (Richmond, Va.), Caleb S. Loftin (Richmond, Va.), Aaron L. Bates (Moseley, Va.)
Assignee: MeadWestvaco Corp. (Richmond, Va.)
September 16, 2014
Banded papers, smoking articles and methods
Patent No. 8,833,377
Wrapper for cigarette manufacture includes transversely extending band regions applied by a printing technique, such as gravure printing. The band regions comprise starch, an anti-wrinkling agent such as 1,2 propylene glycol or glycerin, and optionally calcium carbonate. Any suitable printing technique can be used to apply the aqueous solution to the banded regions. The pattern of banded regions may be bands, stripes, two-dimensional arrays, undulated regions, and the like along and/or around the tobacco rod. The pattern can be applied in one or more layers. The pattern may be configured so that when a smoking article is placed on a substrate, at least two longitudinal locations along the length of the tobacco rod have film-forming compound located only on sides of the smoking article not in contact with the substrate.
Inventors: Ping Li (Glen Allen, Va.), Firooz Rasouli (Midlothian, Va.), Rajesh K. Garg (Richmond, Va.), Randall E. Baren (Glen Allen, Va.), Marc W. Rose (Mechanicsville, Va.), Peter J. Lipowicz (Midlothian, Va.), Tony A. Phan (Richmond, Va.), Timothy S. Sherwood (Midlothian, Va.), Szu-Sung Yang (Midlothian, Va.), Donald E. Miser (Chesterfield, Va.), Milton E. Parrish (Midlothian, Va.)
Assignee: Philip Morris USA Inc. (Richmond, Va.)
September 16, 2014
Folded pack for holding thin elongate products
Patent No. 8,833,552
A folded, substantially wedge shaped pack useful for holding thin, elongate products such as tobacco sticks includes a back panel, inner front panel, top panel and front closure panel, the front closure panel including a tab at a free end thereof engageable with a closure slot in the inner front panel. The closure tab slides into the closure slot by sliding along a bearing surface and the top panel establishes a raised fulcrum effect which tends to maintain the closure tab in the closure slot when the pack is in a closed condition.
Inventors: Robert T. Mitten (Glen Allen, Va.), Christopher J. Hession (Mechanicsville, Va.), Edward C. Fuller (Ashland, Va.)
Assignee: Altria Client Services Inc. (Richmond, Va.)
September 16, 2014
Process of forming an aramid copolymer
Patent No. 8,835,600
The invention concerns processes for forming a polymer comprising residues of 2-(4-amino phenyl)-5 (6) amino phenyl benzimidazole (DAPBI), paraphenylene diamine, and terephthaloyl dichloride, comprising the steps of: a) forming a solution of DAPBI and paraphenylene diamine dihydrochloride in a solvent system comprising an organic solvent and an inorganic salt; b) cooling the solution to a temperature of 30.degree. C. or less; c) adding a stoichiometric amount of terephthaloyl dichloride, relative to the total amount of the DAPBI and the paraphenylene diamine dihydrochloride, to the solution; and d) agitating the solution of step c) to form a polymer.
Inventors: Kiu-Seung Lee (Midlothian, Va.)
Assignee: E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. (Wilmington, Del.)
September 16, 2014
Research tool access based on research session detection
Patent No. 8,832,098
A system and method is described herein that automatically detects when a user of a search engine is conducting a research session about a particular topic and then presents the user with access to one or more research-related tools responsive to detecting that the research session is being conducted. The research-related tool(s) may include one or more tools used for collecting, organizing and sharing content about the particular topic. The automatic provision of access to the research-related tool(s) responsive to detection of the research session can advantageously improve the experience of the user conducting the research session.
Inventors: Liang-Yu Chi (San Francisco, Calif.), Jon C. Maddox (Richmond, Va.), Ashley Hall (Menlo Park, Calif.)
Assignee: Yahoo! Inc. (Sunnyvale, Calif.)
September 9, 2014
Kitchen appliance and method of using same
Patent No. 8,827,101
A kitchen appliance includes a housing that defines a cavity. The housing has a housing rim defining an opening to the cavity. A heating or cooling element is disposed within the housing to heat or cool the cavity. A container has a generally hollow interior and a container rim. A lid is sized and shaped to at least partially cover the opening of the container when placed on the container. The lid has an exterior surface and an opposing interior surface. At least one handle is pivotally mounted to one of the exterior surface of the side wall of the housing and the exterior surface of the lid. The handle is pivotable between an engaged position to retain the lid in sealing engagement with the container rim and disengage position to permit the lid to be removed from the container rim.
Inventors: Guoyao Ye (Glen Allen, Va.), Michael Garman (Midlothian, Va.), Michael G. Sandford (Chester, Va.), Mark C. Steiner (Midlothian, Va.), Arthur Wayne Hudgins (Richmond, Va.)
Assignee: Hamilton Beach Brands Inc. (Glen Allen, Va.)
September 9, 2014
Fusion polypeptide comprising NtHMA transporter
Patent No. 8,829,161
Various embodiments are directed to transgenic plants, including transgenic tobacco plants and derivative seeds, genetically modified to impede the transport of Cadmium (Cd) from the root system to aerial portions of transgenic plants by reducing the expression levels of HMA-related transporters. Various embodiments are directed to transgenic tobacco plants genetically modified to stably express a RNAi construct encoding RNAi polynucleotides that enable the degradation of endogenous NtHMA RNA variants. Reduced expression of NtHMA transporters in transgenic plants results in substantially reduced content of Cadmium (Cd) in the leaf lamina. Various consumable products that are substantially free or substantially reduced in Cd content can be produced by incorporating leaves derived from transgenic tobacco plants modified to reduce the expression of NtHMA transporters.
Inventors: Alec J. Hayes (Chesterfield, Va.), Chengalrayan Kudithipudi (Midlothian, Va), Rutger S. van der Hoeven (Midlothian, Va.)
Assignee: Philip Morris USA Inc. (Richmond, Va.)
September 9, 2014
Additive formulation for industrial cooling systems
Patent No. 8,828,273
Disclosed is a concentrated cooling water additive that is substantially non-corrosive within a pH range of 2-12 and contains polymeric dispersant(s) and aromatic azole(s) that exhibits improved stability, possibly as a result of the interaction of the hydrophobic groups in the dispersant polymer and the aromatic azole(s). This improved stability allows for both reduced corrosivity of the formula and reduced manufacturing costs. Benefits of the disclosed formulations include improved safety for handling and shipment, more concentrated formulations available in liquid form, reduced shipping costs and storage space, reduced heat of neutralization during product manufacture, reduced costs of manufacture due to removal of need for caustic or acid addition and reduced environmental compliance costs associated with washing and waste handling step.
Inventors: John Richardson (Hanover, Va.), Dale P. Stuart (Mechanicsville, Va.)
Assignee: Chemtreat, Inc. (Glen Allen, VA)
September 9, 2014
Field director assembly having arc-resistant conductive vanes
Patent No. 8,835,822
A field director assembly includes electrically conductive vanes configured to prevent arcing in an unloaded microwave oven.
Inventors: Nicole L. Blankenbeckler (Richmond, Va.), William R. Corcoran, Jr. (Kennett Square, Penn.), Dariusz Wlodzimierz Kawka (Midlothian, Va.), Mehrdad Mehdizadeh (Avondale, Penn.), Ronald Jack Riegert (Newark, Del.)
Assignee: E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. (Wilmington, Del.)
September 16, 2014
Nucleating agent and thermoplastic compositions comprising the same
Patent No. 8,835,542
A composition comprises a thermoplastic and a nucleating agent. The thermoplastic can be a polyolefin selected from the group consisting of polypropylene homopolymers, polypropylene copolymers, polyethylene, polyethylene copolymers, polybutylene, poly(4 methyl 1 pentene) and mixtures thereof. The nucleating agent can comprise a metal salt of a phenylphosphonic acid. The nucleating agent can comprise primary particles having a mean aspect ratio of about two or more. The composition can also comprise an acid scavenger, such as one or more metal salts of stearic acid. The composition can be used to produce thermoplastic articles using, for example, injection molding and thermoforming techniques.
Inventors: Daniel M. Connor (Richmond, Va.), Jason D. Sprinkle (Woodruff, S.C.), Darin L. Dotson (Moore, S.C.), Daike Wang (Greer, S.C.)
Assignee: Milliken & Co. (Spartanburg, S.C.)
September 16, 2014
Process for recovering metals from cyanide tailings
Patent No. 8,834,816
Gold and other metals in dissolved anionic form are removed from cyanide-derived aqueous mining effluent by passage of the effluent through an array of conduits in series connectivity, each conduit containing a stationary permeable bed of a particulate absorbent having selective affinity for dissolved anionic metal species, the flow of said effluent through said array being adjusted to produce sharply defined absorption zones.
Inventors: Norman B. Rainer (Richmond, Va.)
September 16, 2014
Product dispensing system with staggered perforations
Patent No. 8,833,601
A product dispensing system including a container having a plurality of walls that define an internal volume and an opening into the internal volume, wherein the container defines a first arrangement of perforations extending in a first row from the opening and a second arrangement of perforations extending in a second row from the opening, wherein the first perforations are staggered by a distance relative to the second perforations.
Inventors: Matthew E. Zacherle (Richmond, Va.), Caleb S. Loftin (Richmond, Va.), Aaron L. Bates (Moseley, Va.)
Assignee: MeadWestvaco Corp. (Richmond, Va.)
September 16, 2014
Banded papers, smoking articles and methods
Patent No. 8,833,377
Wrapper for cigarette manufacture includes transversely extending band regions applied by a printing technique, such as gravure printing. The band regions comprise starch, an anti-wrinkling agent such as 1,2 propylene glycol or glycerin, and optionally calcium carbonate. Any suitable printing technique can be used to apply the aqueous solution to the banded regions. The pattern of banded regions may be bands, stripes, two-dimensional arrays, undulated regions, and the like along and/or around the tobacco rod. The pattern can be applied in one or more layers. The pattern may be configured so that when a smoking article is placed on a substrate, at least two longitudinal locations along the length of the tobacco rod have film-forming compound located only on sides of the smoking article not in contact with the substrate.
Inventors: Ping Li (Glen Allen, Va.), Firooz Rasouli (Midlothian, Va.), Rajesh K. Garg (Richmond, Va.), Randall E. Baren (Glen Allen, Va.), Marc W. Rose (Mechanicsville, Va.), Peter J. Lipowicz (Midlothian, Va.), Tony A. Phan (Richmond, Va.), Timothy S. Sherwood (Midlothian, Va.), Szu-Sung Yang (Midlothian, Va.), Donald E. Miser (Chesterfield, Va.), Milton E. Parrish (Midlothian, Va.)
Assignee: Philip Morris USA Inc. (Richmond, Va.)
September 16, 2014
Folded pack for holding thin elongate products
Patent No. 8,833,552
A folded, substantially wedge shaped pack useful for holding thin, elongate products such as tobacco sticks includes a back panel, inner front panel, top panel and front closure panel, the front closure panel including a tab at a free end thereof engageable with a closure slot in the inner front panel. The closure tab slides into the closure slot by sliding along a bearing surface and the top panel establishes a raised fulcrum effect which tends to maintain the closure tab in the closure slot when the pack is in a closed condition.
Inventors: Robert T. Mitten (Glen Allen, Va.), Christopher J. Hession (Mechanicsville, Va.), Edward C. Fuller (Ashland, Va.)
Assignee: Altria Client Services Inc. (Richmond, Va.)
September 16, 2014
Process of forming an aramid copolymer
Patent No. 8,835,600
The invention concerns processes for forming a polymer comprising residues of 2-(4-amino phenyl)-5 (6) amino phenyl benzimidazole (DAPBI), paraphenylene diamine, and terephthaloyl dichloride, comprising the steps of: a) forming a solution of DAPBI and paraphenylene diamine dihydrochloride in a solvent system comprising an organic solvent and an inorganic salt; b) cooling the solution to a temperature of 30.degree. C. or less; c) adding a stoichiometric amount of terephthaloyl dichloride, relative to the total amount of the DAPBI and the paraphenylene diamine dihydrochloride, to the solution; and d) agitating the solution of step c) to form a polymer.
Inventors: Kiu-Seung Lee (Midlothian, Va.)
Assignee: E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. (Wilmington, Del.)
September 16, 2014