Abstract: A fastener clip having a plurality of fasteners for use in attaching a button to a garment or a piece of fabric. In a preferred embodiment, the fastener clip comprises a plurality of fasteners, each fastener being a flexible U-shaped filament having a foot at each end. The filament portion of the fastener is preferably rectangular in cross-section and has a non-uniform thickness, i.e., being thinner at the ends and thicker in the arcuate region, to maximize the strength of the fastener. The feet are appropriately dimensioned so that they may be inserted into a desired garment through a pair of button holes of conventional size and thereafter be retained by the underside of the garment. Each foot has rounded ends, a flat top surface and a compact size to minimize irritation with a person's skin. The fastener clip also comprises a pair of runner bars, each fastener being connected to the pair of runner bars by a pair of severable connector posts.

Abstract: An apparatus for dispensing plastic fasteners from fastener stock includes a gun shaped casing. A hollow needle having an inlet opening is mounted on the casing. A guide groove is formed on the casing for receiving the fastener stock, the guide groove being in communication with the inlet opening in the hollow needle. A feeder element for intermittently advancing fastener stock loaded into the guide groove is mounted on the casing. An ejector rod is provided for pushing plastic fasteners from the fastener stock through and out of the hollow needle one at a time. The ejector rod and feeder element are driven by an electric motor powered by a battery pack removably mounted in the casing and which contains rechargeable batteries. The battery pack includes a receptacle which is arranged to enable the batteries to be recharged with the battery pack in or out of the tool.

Abstract: An apparatus for dispensing an individual plastic fastener from continuously connected ladder stock including an elongated side member having a plurality of T-bars interconnected by severable connectors. In one embodiment, the apparatus includes a hollow, gun-shaped casing having a barrel portion and a handle portion. The front end of the barrel portion has an opening into which a hollow slotted needle is removably mounted. A triggering mechanism, which includes a pivotally-mounted trigger, is connected to the handle portion of the casing. A slider assembly, which is actuated by squeezing the trigger, includes a slider adapted to travel along longitudinally extending rails formed along the inside of the barrel portion of the casing.

Abstract: A needle for use as part of a fastener dispensing tool adapted for dispensing plastic fasteners of the type typically used to attach tags to products for marking and identification. In one embodiment, the needle is made from a single sheet of metal by a stamping and/or rolling technique, and comprises an elongated, generally cylindrical, hollow, slotted member having a stem portion and a base portion. The stem portion terminates at its front end in a relatively sharp tip. The base portion, which is sized and shaped for insertion in an opening in the nose of the tool, includes a pair of outwardly extending, spring biased tabs. A first portion of one of the tabs is sized and shaped to releasably engage a recessed area formed in one of the walls of the opening so as to prevent unintended removal of the base portion from the opening and to limit rearward insertion of the base portion into the opening.

Abstract: A fastener dispensing needle is manufactured by a machining process which includes bending a metal tube to assist in obtaining an important configuration for the tip of the needle. A flared portion of the needle tip determines the diameter of the hole made through the material of the object being penetrated by the needle. This flared portion is sized to make a hole at least large enough to overlap with the diameter of the central bore through the needle. This minimizes unnecessary stresses on the fastener as it is ejected from the needle, thus resulting in fewer undesired breakages of the fasteners. In addition, the area of the needle where the central bore and longitudinal groove merge into the tip portion of the needle is configured to minimize cutting action on the filament of the fastener, again resulting in fewer undesired breakages.

Abstract: A recursive noise reduction filter for video components reduces the noise bandwidth of a signal without degrading the signal spectrum. Demodulated chrominance or peak detected chrominance from a video signal output by a video system in reponse to a video test signal is input to the recursive noise reduction filter which acts as a comb filter to suppress noise significantly at frequencies other than harmonics of the horizontal line rate. The signal is scaled by a first attenuator having a scaling factor of (1-a), where (a) is less than one, and input to a summing circuit. Also input to the summing circuit is a delayed signal from a prior horizontal line scaled by the scaling factor (a). The output of the summing circuit is a filtered output signal. The signal is sampled only during horizontal lines that have the video test signal and is stored for subsequent accumulation with other horizontal lines also having the video test signal.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for dispensing of attachments comprising a pair of side members linked by a connector. A roll of fastener stock is fed to a reciprocatively driven slide head assembly at which the roll is advanced over an elastomeric feed belt to a pair of needles secured to a shuttle. Once inserted in the needles, an individual attachment is severed from the stock, and displaced over a preset distance by the shuttle into the path of a pair of ejector rods. The ejector rods force the side members of the attachment out of the needles for insertion in a fabric or other workpiece at the bottom of the head stroke. On return stroke of the head, the needles are withdrawn, ejector rods retreat, and the shuttle returns to its severing position in a manner to avoid mechanical interference. This design uses an electric motor driven fastener dispensing head, actuator slide and associated linkages for actuating the various mechanisms either on an on-demand or continuous basis.

Abstract: A range spring assembly for a differential pressure responsive device which includes a spring retainer plate configured for coaction with a movable portion of a device, such as a bellows or diaphragm. A flat spiral spring in spaced relation to the retainer plate is provided with a clamp disc. A plurality of helical range springs are equiangularly disposed about a circumference inwardly of the periphery of the retainer plate, each of the range springs having a first end thereof securely attached to the retainer plate adjacent the center thereof, with the other ends being selectively attachable to the clamp disc, whereby the range may be readily established by locking one or more ends of the helical springs for providing the desired spring bias for the selected range.

Abstract: For use in predicting machine failure a transducer sensor, such as piezoelectric crystal, is applied to a machine for sensing machine motion and structure borne sound, including vibration friction, and shock waves. The structure borne sound and motion sensed is converted to electrical signals which are filtered to leave only the friction and shock waves, which waves are processed, as by detecting the envelope and integrating beneath the envelope, resulting in a measure of friction and shock wave energy. This measure may be compared with that of a less used machine, say the same machine when new, to indicate the rise in energy due to change in machine parts.

Abstract: A differential pressure unit having overrange valves loosely mounted on a valve stem connected between the ends of a respective pair of movable bellows ends. A pair of spiral range springs bias both valves toward open positions. The valves include annular elastomers bonded to the edges of the apertured discs. The apertures in the discs act to allow the elastomers to seat and to unseat without causing lock-up. The discs are retained between plates and snap rings.

Abstract: A method of making a non-corrosive plastic bellows by ultrasonic welding inner and outer flanges of discs with cylindrical and half-cylindrical horns, respectively. The half-cylindrical horn and a fixture used therewith have lips to fit on opposite sides of a pair of contacting outer flanges and in between two pairs of flanges. The inner flanges are thus welded first.

Abstract: A differential pressure unit having overrange valves loosely mounted on a valve stem connected between the ends of a respective pair of movable bellows ends. A pair of spiral range springs bias both valves toward open positions. The valves include annular elastomers bonded to the edges of the apertured discs. The apertures in the discs act to allow the elastomers to seat and to unseat without causing lock-up. The discs are retained between plates and snap rings.

Abstract: A method of making a non-corrosive plastic bellows by ultrasonic welding inner and outer flanges of discs with cylindrical and half-cylindrical horns, respectively. The half-cylindrical horn and a fixture used therewith have lips to fit on opposite sides of a pair of contacting outer flanges and in between two pairs of flanges. The inner flanges are thus welded first.