Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company

Kenneth A Aho

Richard A Miller

Jeffrey J Melby

Sanford Cobb, Jr

John C Nelson

John F Dreyer

Scott G Theirl

Francis M Farrell, Iii

An optical device having a transparent body and including two prism surfaces formed thereon. The composite structure exhibits two axis stability in that the angular relationship between the input beam and the output beam remains fixed for slight movement of the device about two orthogonal axes.

Directed reflection optical device

A lighting element has a light source positioned so as to provide a beam of light at a grazing angle to a light extractor. The extractor has a plurality linear triangular prism on the side struck by the beam of light. The prisms lie in a smooth arcuate curve.

High aspect ratio lighting element

A passive railroad crossing warning device has two input optical windows that receive light from the headlight of an oncoming locomotive. The light is redirected to an output optical window where a combiner causes it to exit at a predetermined angle to make it visible to motorists approaching the railroad crossing.

Passive railroad crossing warning system

A light fixture has an optical cavity having a first region and multiple additional regions, each of the additional regions, each of the additional regions having an optical window. Light from a light source in the first region is directed out of the optical windows in each of the additional regions.

Multiple cavity light fixture

The present invention is a light fixture having a reflector designed to discard preselected amounts of light from a light source. The percentage of the light discarded will vary over the surface of the reflector in order to provide a predetermined output intensity distribution.

Uniform intensity profile catadioptric lens

A back-lit display utilizes a light transmissive film having a smooth surface and a structured surface. The structured surface has a series of triangular prisms running parallel or concentric to one another. A reflector is placed adjacent to the smooth surface so that light entering the film at an angle that is close to parallel to the smooth surface will emerge from the film at a predetermined angle with respect to the incoming beam. A display, that could be a liquid crystal display, is positioned so that light reflected by the film passes through it.

Back-lit display

An automotive lighting element has a lower surface with a plurality of ridges and grooves. Those ridges and grooves are reflectorized so that light emitted by a light source in the lighting element will be reflected back into other portions of the reflector rather than out of the lighting element with a large upward vertical component.

Automotive lighting element

A light transmissive film having a smooth surface and a structured surface. The structured surface has a series of triangular prisms running parallel or concentric to one another. A reflector is placed adjacent to the smooth surface so that light entering the film at an angle which is close to parallel to the smooth surface will emerge from the film at a predetermined angle with respect to the incoming beam. A light fixture utilizing the film is also disclosed.

Reflective film

A Fresnel-type reflector having the physical shape of a cone. In a preferred embodiment, the reflector is made by forming a reflective coating on a structured surface of a thin flexible film and forming the film into the shape of a cone. The structures on the surface are designed to cause the reflector to imitate the optical properties of a parabolic reflector when the reflector of the invention is formed into the shape of a cone.

Cone shaped Fresnel reflector

A container for shipping, storing and mixing at least two fluids has a covered cylindrical outer container for containing a first fluid and a coaxial, smaller diameter inner container for the second fluid. The inner container is closed at the end adjacent the cover of the outer container by a piston and at the opposite end by a removable seal. A plurality of mixing blades are spaced around the inner container and are coupled to a drive plate in the cover of the outer container for rotation therewith. The drive plate has an axial opening for a pusher rod to enter and push the piston down the inner container to expel the second fluid into the first fluid in the outer container, the fluids then being mixed by rotation of the drive plate.

Fluid container

A container for two fluids to be mixed just prior to use in which a rigid, fluid-tight, primary container contains the first fluid and has a cover formed with two spaced parallel slots. An elongate, flexible, plastic bag contains the second fluid within the primary container and has its ends extending out of the slots in the cover of the primary container, and a squeegee is mounted in one of the slots to squeeze the fluid from the plastic bag as it is pulled therethrough. A strip of tape covers the projecting ends of the bag and is removably adhered to the cover therearound to seal the container and retain the ends of the plastic bag during shipment and storage to maintain the fluids separate until they are to be mixed for use.

Growing community of inventors

Chisago City, MN, United States of America

Kenneth A Aho