ALEXANDRIA, Va., Nov. 3 -- United States Patent no. 12,780,614, issued on Nov. 3, was assigned to NILEC SOLUTIONS LLC (Houston).

"Apparatus, system and method for the delivery of items onto surfaces including elevated surfaces" was invented by Timothy Allen Niedzwiecki (Atlantic Mine, Mich.) and Scott David Compton (Houston).

According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "An apparatus that is moved in space by lifting equipment while carrying one or more items delivers the one or more items onto target surfaces, including elevated surfaces and inclined surfaces. The apparatus directs the one or more items onto the target surfaces without manual assistance for removing the one or more items off from the apparat...