Abstract: A fluid leakage monitoring system that uses a main flowmeter attached to a main water pipe to measure a flow rate in the main pipe, and secondary flowmeters attached to branch pipes on the downstream side of the main pipe to measure flow rates in each of the branch pipes. The difference between the main pipe flow rate and the branch pipe flow rates is used to determine a fluid leakage flow rate. If the fluid leakage flow rate exceeds a predetermined first flow rate, a shut-off valve on the main pipe is closed.

Abstract: A one-man helicopter 1 in which a drive transmission 10 that transmits driving force to upper and lower rotors 5 and 6 comprises first and second planet gear mechanisms 100 and 200 provided with a common carrier 104. When the common carrier 104 is rotated by a motor 301, a differential motion is generated between the two planet gear mechanisms. This results in the rotors being rotated at different velocities, which can be used to control yaw. A fore-and-aft swing mechanism 400 and right-and-left swing mechanism 500 depend from the lower end of a vertical shaft 41 on which the rotors are supported. Moving a stick 8 forward or backward, or to either side, tilts the vertical shaft 41 in the same direction. When the stick 8 is not subjected to a controlling force, the vertical shaft 41 reverts automatically to its original vertical state. This configuration makes it possible to realize a coaxial twin-rotor type helicopter having a compact, structurally simple control mechanism.

Abstract: This invention relates to a needle attached suture manufacturing method and apparatus capable of cutting a suture exactly at the same length, with a simple construction and high efficiency. A transport/holding device 42 holds a suture Y and transports the suture straight forward toward a needle swaging device 20 a distance corresponding to a predetermined target value. Thereafter, the suture Y is cut at a certain position to obtain a suture strand. The suture strand is then inserted in an insertion hole formed at the end of a needle and is swaged by the needle swaging device 20. As an altered method, after the suture Y is inserted in the insertion hole of the needle, the suture Y is cut at a position away from the end of the needle a predetermined target distance.

Abstract: This invention relates to a needle supply device for use in a needle attached suture manufacturing apparatus or its equivalent to automatically supply curved needles one by one to a predetermined position of the apparatus in a state that the needle is accurately set in the same posture. The needle supply device has a passage defining member 32 including a needle storage portion 42, passages 44 and 46, and a needle discharge tray 55 in this order. By driving the passage defining member 32 to vibrate, needles N set on the needle storage portion 42 proceed along the passages 44 and 46 toward the needle discharge tray 55. There are provided selecting units 48, 50, and 52 each in a certain passage form on the way of the passages 44 and 46 to exclusively allow the needles N in the predetermined posture to pass while maintaining the predetermined posture.

Abstract: This invention relates to a method for manufacturing a needle attached suture and an apparatus therefor. A needle attached suture is obtained by inserting a suture into an insertion hole formed in the end of a needle N which is held by a needle retaining unit 16 and by swaging the end of the needle with the suture. The method and the apparatus have been developed to accurately position the end of the needle for swaging with the suture to stabilize the swaging strength between the suture and the needle. Before the swaging, the needle is held by the needle retaining unit 16, and the end of the needle N is pushed to a certain position by a rod 99 or its equivalent. Thereby, the end of the needle N relative to the needle retaining unit 16 is accurately positioned.

Abstract: An object of this invention is to provide a needle attached suture manufacturing apparatus, with a simple construction and reduced cost, capable of assuredly inserting the lead end of a suture in an insertion hole formed in the end of a needle before the end of the needle is swaged. In order to accomplish the above object, a needle swaging device 20 of this apparatus includes die support members 101 and 102 on which swaging dies 111 and 112 are mounted to be movable toward and away from each other. Suture guide plates 95 and 96 are mounted on the die support members 101 and 102 and are formed with guide grooves 95a and 96b, respectively. Before a swaging operation of the needle end by the swaging dies 111 and 112, the suture guide plates 95 and 96 move to a contact state or to a close contact state with each other when the swaging dies 111 and 112 are set to a pre-swaging position in contact with or in close contact with the end of the needle.

Abstract: A sewing machine for leather or the like is provided with a flat needle holding bar supported for up/down movement. The needle holding bar is further supported for rotational movement and a control motor is provided to rotate the needle as required to cause the flat surface of the needle to be parallel to the direction in which the thread runs. To this end the needle is rotated after the needle penetrates the leather but before it reaches bottom dead center to a position in which the flat portion is in its normal position for the thread running direction and upper and lower threads are twisted together whereafter the needle is rotated again to be parallel to the thread running direction.

Abstract: A method of sealing the nose a packaging flat tube band after opening thereof. The method comprises separately adsorbing the upper and lower films and separating these films away from each other thereby to open the nose, charging a matter to be packaged through the opened nose in the horizontal direction, welding the tube band at both sides of the packaged matter transversely, and cutting the portion of the flat the tube band adjacent to the feed side. These steps are repeatedly to sucessively seal the nose of the packaging flat tube band. Disclosed also is an apparatus suitable for carrying out this nose sealing method.