Abstract: A shoulder immobilizer and arm apparatus are provided for enhanced comfort and ease of use for rehabilitating a shoulder. The shoulder immobilizer includes a double figure-9 strap configuration to support the weight of an injured arm and shoulder comfortably. The shoulder immobilizer can be stepped down for modular construction and use depending on a user's needs. The shoulder immobilizer may be configured to cooperate with a corresponding arm apparatus, including an open-frame sling allowing for elbow extension and a simplified strap configuration.

Abstract: A gripping device for being suspended from a load handling device for lifting and moving containers stacked in stacks in a grid storage structure including a plurality of tracks arranged in a grid pattern above the stacks of containers. The gripping device includes a frame; a gripping mechanism mounted on the frame configured to releasably grip a container from below the frame; a fixing device mounted on the frame configured to fix a free end of a reeled cable; and a cable tensioner configured to put the cable under tension in use. The cable tensioner includes a track; a carriage slidably mounted on the track; and a biasing device configured to bias the carriage.

Abstract: A method and load-handling device for lifting and moving containers are disclosed, the load-handling device including: a body having an upper portion and a lower portion, the upper portion being configured to house one or more operation components, the lower portion being arranged beneath the upper portion, the lower portion including a container-receiving space for accommodating at least part of a container; and a container-lifting mechanism including a container-gripping assembly configured to releasably grip a container and a raising and lowering assembly configured to raise and lower the container-gripping assembly, wherein the raising and lowering assembly including a single motor configured to raise and lower the container-gripping assembly.

Abstract: A load handling device for lifting and moving one or more containers stacked in a storage system with a grid framework structure supporting a plurality of tracks arranged in a grid pattern, the load handling device comprising: A) a driving mechanism; and B) a vehicle body having a footprint that occupies a single grid cell in the storage system, the vehicle body housing including: i) a rechargeable power source; ii) a first space configured for accommodating a container and the rechargeable power source is housed in a second space; and iii) a lifting device to releasably grip a container and lift the container from the stack into the first space, wherein the rechargeable power source is arranged above the first space such that the centre of mass of the load handling device is in the second space.

Abstract: A load-handling device is provided for lifting and moving containers stacked in stacks in a storage system. The load-handling device includes a body; a wheel assembly arranged to support the body; a container-lifting mechanism configured to lift a container into or out of the body; and a wheel-positioning mechanism with wheel-engaging functionality for selectively engaging either a first set of wheels of the wheel assembly with a first set of rails or tracks of the storage system, or a second set of wheels of the wheel assembly with a second set of rails or tracks of the storage system. A wheel-engaging device can include at least one non-vertically-orientated linear actuator and/or at least one eccentric-rotation-based wheel-engaging device.

Abstract: An ultrasonic range sensor comprises at least one transducer adapted to generate an ultrasonic pulse having a first axis of transmission and detect a reflected signal that is associated with the ultrasonic pulse and propagates along the first axis of transmission. The ultrasonic range sensor also comprises a deflecting region adapted to reflect the reflected signal along a second axis different from the first axis of transmission. In one embodiment, the second axis is deflected from the first axis by a non-zero angle determined by a characteristic of the deflecting region.