Control instrumentality having detent mechanism

Claim 1

IN COMBINATION: (A) POWER MEANS; (B) AN ACTUATOR DRIVEN BY SAID POWER MEANS; (C) CONTROL MEANS FOR SAID POWER MEANS COMPRISING (1) A FIXED ELEMENT AND (2) A MANUALLY OPERABLE ELEMENT WHICH IS MOVABLE RELATIVE TO THE FIXED ELEMENT IN OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS TO AND FROM A PREDETERMINED POSITION AT WHICH THE MOVABLE CONTROL ELEMENT IS ADAPTED TO EFFECT OPERATION OF THE POWER MEANS; (D) BIASING MEANS ACTING UPON THE MOVABLE CONTROL ELEMENT TO YIELDINGLY RESIST MOVEMENT THEREOF TO SAID PREDETERMINED POSITION; (E) MEANS TO DEFINE AND YIELDINGLY HOLD THE MOVABLE CONTROL ELEMENT IN SAID PREDETERMINED POSITION THEREOF AGAINST THE FORCE EXERTED THEREON BY SAID BIASING MEANS, SAID LAST NAMED MEANS COMPRISING (1) A DETENT MEMBER CARRIED BY ONE OF SAID ELEMENTS AND MOVABLE RELATIVE TO THE ELEMENT BY WHICH IT IS CARRIED TOWARD AND FROM A DETENT DEFINING POSITION OF ENGAGEMENT IN A GROOVE IN THE OTHER ELEMENT, WITH WHICH GROOVE THE DETENT MEMBER REGISTERS WHEN THE MOVABLE ELEMENT IS IN ITS SAID PREDETERMINED POSITION, AND (2) A SPRING FOR URGING SAID DETENT MEMBER TOWARD ITS DETENT DEFINING POSITION; (F) DETENT CONTROL MEANS COMPRISING (1) A MOVABLE PART INDEPENDENT OF THE DETENT MEMBER, (2) MEANS FIXED WITH RESPECT TO ONE OF SAID ELEMENTS MOUNTING SAID MOVABLE PART THEREON FOR MOTION RELATIVE TO SAID ELEMENT AND TO THE DETENT MEMBER BETWEEN DETENT ENABLING AND DETENT DISABLING POSITIONS, THE MOVABLE PART BEING CLEAR OF THE DETENT MEMBER IN ITS SAID DETENT ENABLING POSITION. (3) AN ABUTMENT ON THE MOVABLE PART OPERATIVELY ASSOCIATED WITH SAID SPRING TO RENDER THE SAME EFFECTIVE TO URGE THE DETENT MEMBER TOWARD ITS DETENT DEFINING POSITION IN THE DETENT ENABLING POSITION OF THE MOVABLE PART AND TO RENDER THE SPRING INEFFECTIVE TO HOLD THE DETENT MEMBER IN ITS DETENT DEFINING POSITION IN THE DETENT DISABLING POSITION OF THE MOVABLE PART; AND (G) MEANS OPERATED BY SAID ACTUATOR FOR MOVING SAID MOVABLE PART TO ITS DETENT DISABLING POSITION IN CONSEQUENCE OF MOVEMENT OF SAID ACTUATOR TO A PREDETERMINED POSITION.