Abstract: In a fuel injection system having a stepper motor (40) positioning the pump rack (32) in the fuel injection pump (18) to control the end of injection, a preloaded, compliant linkage (52,54,56) is interposed between the stepper motor output pinion gear (48) and the pump rack (32) to prevent a phase shift between the actual and the desired stepper motor position. The preload of the linkage (52,54,56) is set at greater than the normal operating load and less than the stepper motor output. The linkage includes a rack member (52) that is urged by a spring-loaded mechanism (76) against the output pinion (48) of the stepper motor (40) to maintain tooth engagement, and a clevis member (56) that is pivoted to allow the rack member to move away from the pinion in the event of a pump rack load of extremely high (tooth-damaging) magnitude. A closed throttle position is assured by a spring (99) urging the single-acting linkage against a stop (98).

Abstract: An adjustable monitor arm apparatus for a personal computer, cathode ray tube, or video display tube monitor comprises an attachment member for attaching the monitor arm apparatus to the edge portion of a table or desk, a lower swivel member adapted to swivel 360 degrees connected to the attachment member, an upper swivel member adapted to swivel 360 degrees, a pair of arms extending between the lower swivel member and the upper swivel member, a platform adapted to swivel on the upper swivel member, and a pneumatic gas cylinder mounted between the upper arm and the lower arm for raising o lowering the platfom without changing the atitude of the platform.

Abstract: Apparatus for filling containers from individual volumetric dispensers as both move rapidly along a straight-line path. The dispensers are moved in a closed loop and filled while travelling along another straight-line path opposite the dispensing straight-line path, by forcing flowable product upwardly into the open lower ends of the dispensers as they slide over a filler slot. To prevent flow of the product upward between the dispensers, a mechanism is provided which automatically locks the ends of the adjacent dispensers against each other to provide a seal against inter-dispenser product flow, and which automatically decouples the containers after their filling so they can turn with respect to each other, as is necessary as they negotiate curves in the closed-loop path along which they travel.

Abstract: A stepper motor (40) is used to position the pump rack (32A) via a preloaded compliant linkage (52,54,56) in a fuel injection pump (18), thereby exercising control over the end of injection event in response to various engine operating parameters. One part (52) of the compliant linkage (52,54,56) is engaged with the output shaft (46) of the stepper motor (40). The stop (96) is provided at the zero throttle position of the engaged part (52) of the linkage (52,54,56), at the exteme distal end of its positional range. A position sensor (100) is located at a predetermined reference position away from the stop (96) to provide a signal indicative of the engaged part (52) being at that position. When the stepper motor (40) is advanced to move the engaged part (52) away from the stop (96), the pulse count to the stepper motor is rereferenced when the reference position is reached.

Abstract: Food pieces, such as cubed apples, the exposed pulp of which tends to discolor upon exposure to air, are treated with an acidic aqueous solution which is effective in maintaining the natural color of the exposed pulp and which comprises citric acid, calcium chloride, and sodium chloride, with the treatment of such apples being preferably practiced by means of novel apparatus which uses a screw conveyor which receives the pieces of food at its inlet end and moves them from its inlet end to its outlet end automatically while the treating solution is continuously injected into the conveyor to coat the food pieces. Injection of the treating solution is controlled in response to control signals derived from a gamma ray weigh scale which weighs the food pieces continuously as they pass through the conveyor, so that the amount of treating solution injected is maintained in predetermined proportion to the rate at which the food pieces pass through the conveyor.

Abstract: A method of authenticating a person by comparing information from a currently taken skin-pattern with stored information from a previously taken skin-pattern is characterized in that the currently taken skin-pattern is produced on a contact surface, an image of the print of the skin pattern on the contact surface is projected onto a photo-detector device (20), the intensity variations of the print image in at least one region thereof impinging on the photo-detector device is assessed in digital form in a multiplicity of different sub-regions of the or each said region to create (in unit 21) a first digital signal train, a second digital train is derived from the stored skin pattern information (in store 23) and the first and second signal trains are compared (in 24) to determine the degree of coincidence therebetween, an assessment of the determined degree being used to decide (on indicator 27) whether the currently-taken and stored skin patterns are sufficiently similar to authenticate the person.

Abstract: The ratio C.sub.1 /C.sub.2 between the capacitances of two capacitors is obtained by connecting them into the frequency-determining circuit of an oscillator in at least three different combinations, namely C.sub.1 along, C.sub.2 along and both or neither of C.sub.1 and C.sub.2 ; the resultant oscillation frequencies are measured, and a signal representative of changes in C.sub.1 /C.sub.2 is derived from the oscillator frequencies, preferably by means of digital circuitry. In one preferred mode C.sub.1 /C.sub.2 is obtained by forming signals proportional to ##EQU1## and in another preferred mode proportional to ##EQU2## In still another preferred mode C.sub.1 /C.sub.2 -1 is obtained from the expression T.sub.1 -T.sub.3 /T.sub.2 -T.sub.3 and used as the indication of changes in C.sub.1 /C.sub.2. In the foregoing, f.sub.1, f.sub.2, f.sub.3 and f.sub.4 are the oscillator frequencies produced respectively by connecting C.sub.1 alone, C.sub.2 along, neither C.sub.1 nor C.sub.2, and both C.sub.1 and C.sub.

Abstract: A collator control system capable of stack, collect and collate operations, which automatically finds an appropriate set of empty bins for the desired mode of operation and provides indications of when the bins have been filled. The system operates on sheets of paper, some of which may be unfolded and others of which may be folded one or more times.

Abstract: A system for transferring medical diagnostic information from the diagnostic site to remote physicians' stations picks off an internal analog video signal from imaging diagnostic equipment (such as a CAT scanner or MRI equipment), converts it to an analog video signal of different, preferably standard, format, stores it, and when desired transmits the reformatted image information to the physician's terminal. Preferably the storage and transmission is in binary digitized form. At the physician's station, the received signal is stored, decoded and applied in appropriate analog video form to an associated CRT display for reproduction of the diagnostic images. The equipments at both the control site of the diagnostic station and at the remote terminals may constitute PC's (personal computers) plus an additional video monitor.

Abstract: A cable system for supplying information contained in a plurality of parallel signals on a first set of plug contacts of a first plug at a modem, to a second set of plug contacts of a second plug at a CPU, a remote terminal or the like, without requiring use of a large, expensive multiwire cable containing a wire for each signal. The cable system comprises a transmission line and two connector plug assemblies connected to opposite ends of the transmission line, one of the plug assemblies being adapted to mate with the plug contacts of the plug at the modem and the other to mate with the plug contacts at the CPU or remote terminal.

Abstract: A retractable utility knife comprises a handle having a front portion and a rear portion, a blade carrier slideably mounted in a passageway in the front portion of the handle for positioning a blade in retracted-protected, exposed-cutting, or advanced attachment-detachment positions, with the passageway extending to the front portion of the handle a sufficient distance to position a forward mounting lance of the blade carrier outside the handle to free the blade for detachment from the mounting lance by grasping the front portion of the blade and lifting it off the carrier.

Abstract: The method and apparatus for generating start of combustion signals associated with the combustion events in a diesel engine (10), and for using such signals to control the timing of fuel delivery to the engine. The combustion event is sensed, as by an electrostatic (230, 330) or optical (130, 430) sensor, and signal conditioning circuitry (32) provides a start-of-combustion (SOC) signal (34) which is directly and precisely indicative of the time of the onset of combustion. The sensors (130, 230) include self-cleaning capabilities (48, 248) for extended operating life on an engine. The sensors may be incorporated in the structure of a glow plug (330, 430). The SOC signal (34) is advantageously supplied to a timing control circuit (26) which delivers a timing control signal (28) to a fuel delivery device, such as the controller (16') associated with a fuel pump (16).

Abstract: Parallel signals which are to be converted to serial form by successive time-multiplex sampling are divided into two sets, a low-priority set which change relatively infrequently and hence require resampling at only a relatively low rate, and a high-priority set which can change more rapidly and hence require more prompt sampling upon the occurrence of a change in signal value. The low-priority signals are normally sampled and transmitted sequentially at a suitable relatively low rate, but upon the occurrence of a significant change in any of the set of high-priority signals, the sampling and transmission of the low-priority signals is automativelly interrupted and the high-priority signals are sampled and transmitted instead, after which sampling and transmission reverts to the low-priority signals. The net result is that a smaller transmission channel bandwidth can be used than if all signals were transmitted at a regular rate suitable for the high-priority signals.

Abstract: Apparatus for connecting a grass collector to the discharge chute of a power lawn mower. A lower front portion of a ring around the receiving mouth of the collector is hooked over a detent at the bottom side of the chute and pivoted upwardly until an upper portion of the ring rests in a nest formed by a pair of upper tabs and a lower tab extending outwardly from a pivoted safety door. The door is biased toward a closed position across the discharge opening of the chute, and is opened by a hook extending from an over-center latch, between the upper tabs. The hook extends around the nested upper portion of the ring, and when the latch is manually operated to its closed position the hook pulls against the ring portion to move it and the upper part of the door forwardly. This clamps the collector mouth to the chute, at the same time opening the safety door. The collector cannot be removed until the safety door has been returned to its closed position by manually operating the latch to its open position.

Abstract: A folder suitable for automatically folding successive sheets of paper, such as engineering drawings, by conveying them into a folder pocket to various distances depending upon where the fold is to be formed. To arrest the sheet at the proper position in the pocket, a photosensor senses when the leading edge of the sheet has reached a reference position in the pocket and, when the sheet has advanced further to the desired position, a solenoid-operated clamp is actuated to move transversely into the pocket and clamp the sheet momentarily in the desired position while the fold is being made. The amount by which the sheet advances beyond the reference position is controlled by producing an electrical pulse each time the sheet conveyor moves a predetermined amount, and counting these pulses to cause the clamp to be actuated when a count corresponding to the desired fold position has been accumulated.

Abstract: A free piston machine comprising a mounting, an inner movable mechanism comprising a central cross-member and guided in translation so as to be able to move with an alternating motion along the axis of the mounting and an outer movable mechanism comprising two outer cross-members connected by at least one tie-rod. The mounting includes a base (10) and a header (11) connected by at least one central one-piece structure. The inner movable mechanism comprises four inner drive pistons movable along drive cylinders (15a-15b) arranged at the corners of a rectangle and two compressor pistons sliding in compressor cylinders (17a-17b) whose axles pass outside of said rectangle.

Abstract: An adapter suitable for ready insertion into a fluid line extending between a source of electrically-conductive fluid and a part of a living body, to enable convenient electrical contact to the fluid. The adapter is T-shaped and has a through-bored portion on the opposite ends of which quick-disconnect luer-lock connectors are formed to receive the ends of the adjacent tubing sections. An electrical connector pin extends through the stem of the T, at right angles to the through bore, to contact the fluid in the through bore; the external end of the pin is provided with a quick-disconnect connector terminal so that it can easily be connected to and disconnected from associated electrical equipment, such as an ECG monitor. The body of the adapter may be of molded plastic, and the entire unit so inexpensive that it can economically be discarded after use. In addition to ECG monitoring the adapter is specially suitable for use in regional block anesthesia.