Abstract: A tie-down cleat removably secured at the vehicle's license plate area with the same screw used for securing the license plate. The cleat serves as an attachment point for a rope, etc. that is being used to maintain a vehicle's trunk lid or cargo hatch door in a substantially fixed unlatched position with respect to the vehicle when the trunk or cargo area is overfilled or otherwise preventing the lid or door from being latched and in a fully closed position. In another embodiment the cleat is provided with a slot for insertion of a top license plate portion for securing the cleat, with or without attachment also by the license plate screw. The slot can also be sized to receive the top of a vehicle window for securing the cleat at the vehicle window to serve as rope attachment points for securing an item to the vehicle's roof.

Abstract: A co-aptive surgical instrument has a pair of opposite facing co-aptive surfaces for grasping tissue. The co-aptive surfaces are formed with a matrix layer which is preferably of a metal such as nickel with a plurality of hard crystalline particles which are preferably a diamond grit which is captured in the matrix. To insure sufficient capture of the particles in the matrix so as to avoid loss of particles while at the same time providing the maximum possible protrusion of the particles and maximum coverage of the surface by such particles, the particles are oriented in juxtaposition to evenly cover the surface and the matrix is made to have a depth which is at least fifty percent of the average diameter of the particles.