ALEXANDRIA, Va., July 23 -- United States Patent no. 12,364,940, issued on July 22, was assigned to Cummins Filtration IP Inc. (Columbus, Ind.).
"Filter with shielded internal gasket" was invented by Charles W. Hawkins (Sparta, Tenn.), Ismail C. Bagci (Cookeville, Tenn.) and Hendrik N. Amirkhanian (Cookeville, Tenn.).
According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "A spin-on fluid filter with improved attachment and sealing with the filter head. The filter has a gasket positioned at the end of threads used to connect the filter to a filter head. The described design protects the gasket from excessive engine heat, cut or tear damage during installation, and the roll out effect of installation torque. In addition...