Abstract: A cryogenic cooling system includes a cryocooler coldhead having a cold stage. A gas circulator has a low pressure input orifice and a high pressure output orifice, and a valve has a primary port and a secondary port. The valve makes and switches fluid connections between the valve's primary and secondary ports and the gas circulator's input and output orifices. A heat exchanger has a primary portion and a secondary portion each in thermal contact with the cold stage. The primary (secondary) regenerator is positioned between the primary (secondary) port of the valve and the primary (secondary) portion of the heat exchanger. A coolant flow path has a first end in fluid communication with the heat exchanger's primary portion and a second end in fluid communication with the heat exchanger's secondary portion. The coolant flow path may be placed in thermal contact with a superconductive device.

Abstract: A superconductive switch has a first layer of a superconductive coil wire wound around a shaft clockwise from the first end to the middle and counterclockwise from the middle to the second end. A second layer of the wire is wound around the first layer in identical fashion. A third layer of the wire is wound around the second layer counterclockwise from the first end to the middle and clockwise from the middle to the second end. An electrical heater is located between the first and second layers, and a stratum of electrical insulation, discrete from that of the coil wire, is located between the second and third layers.

Abstract: A gas-path leakage seal for generally sealing a gas-path leakage-gap between spaced-apart first and second members of a gas turbine (such as combustor casing segments). The seal includes a generally imperforate foil-layer assemblage which is generally impervious to gas and is located in the leakage-gap. The seal also includes a cloth-layer assemblage generally enclosingly contacting the foil-layer assemblage. In one seal, the first edge of the foil-layer assemblage is left exposed, and the foil-layer assemblage resiliently contacts the first member near the first edge to reduce leakage in the "plane" of the cloth-layer assemblage under conditions which include differential thermal growth of the two members. In another seal, such leakage is reduced by having a first weld-bead which permeates the cloth-layer assemblage, is attached to the metal-foil-layer assemblage near the first edge, and unattachedly contacts the first member.

Abstract: A dishwasher machine tub for containing water sprayed therein during operation of a dishwasher. The tub includes a wall, a door, and a first wall plate. The wall defines a dishwashing chamber having an opening. The door is connected to the wall and may be positioned to cover and uncover the opening. The first wall plate is spaced apart from the wall, resiliently connected to the wall, and positioned within the chamber. Preferably, the first wall plate is positioned so as to be directly impinged by some of the sprayed water during operation of the dishwasher. The air gap and the resilient connection between the first wall plate and the wall provide localized attenuation of the noise from the drumming impact of the sprayed wash water.

Abstract: A cooling system for a superconductive magnet. A cryocooler coldhead and a compressor are remotely located from the magnet. A helium-gas conduit circuit has five helium-gas paths. The first path extends from the compressor's outlet port to being in proximate thermal contact with the coldhead's first stage. The second path extends from there to being in proximate thermal contact with the coldhead's second stage. The third path extends from there to being in proximate thermal contact with the magnet's superconductive coil. The fourth path extends from there to being in proximate thermal contact with the magnet's thermal shield. The fifth helium-gas path extends from there to the compressor's inlet port.

Abstract: The output of a second sensor is matched to the output of a first sensor. The sensors, such as two microphones, are generally identically and simultaneously exposed to a physical quantity which they have been designed to sense. Their outputs are presented as digital outputs. The second sensor's digital output is numerically adaptively filtered using an adaptive filter having adaptive filtering coefficients. The filter's output is equal to the sum of the products of the second sensor's digital outputs and the associated adaptive filtering coefficients, with the sum taken over a predetermined number of sampling intervals. The adaptive filtering continues until the adaptive filtering coefficients are determined such that the filter's output matches the first sensor's digital output to within a predetermined value. Thereafter, the second sensor's digital output is filtered with fixed coefficients which are equal to the adaptively-determined coefficients.

Abstract: The output of a second sensor is matched to the output of a first sensor. The sensors, such as two microphones, are generally identically and simultaneously exposed to a physical quantity which they have been designed to sense. Their outputs are presented as digital outputs. The second sensor's digital output is numerically adaptively filtered using an adaptive filter having adaptive filtering coefficients. The filter's output is equal to the sum of the products of the second sensor's digital outputs and the associated adaptive filtering coefficients, with the sum taken over a predetermined number of sampling intervals. The adaptive filtering continues until the adaptive filtering coefficients are determined such that the filter's output matches the first sensor's digital output to within a predetermined value. Thereafter, the second sensor's digital output is filtered with fixed coefficients which are equal to the adaptively-determined coefficients.

Abstract: An active vibration control subassembly for a structure (such as a jet engine duct or a washing machine panel) undergoing bending vibrations caused by a source (such as the clothes agitator of the washing machine) independent of the subassembly. A piezoceramic actuator plate is vibratable by an applied electric AC signal. The plate is connected to the structure such that vibrations in the plate induced by the AC signal cause canceling bending vibrations in the structure and such that the plate is compressively pre-stressed along the structure when the structure is free of any bending vibrations. The compressive prestressing increases the amplitude of the canceling bending vibrations before the critical tensile stress level of the plate is reached. Preferably, a positive electric DC bias is also applied to the plate in its poling direction.

Abstract: An electric motor assembly. An air-ventilated electric motor includes a motor housing having a cooling-air inlet and a cooling-air outlet. An outlet muffler array is located outside, and spaced apart from, the motor housing and includes two or more outlet mufflers each having a fluid entrance and a fluid exit. An outlet connecting duct has a first end connected to the cooling-air outlet of the motor housing and has a second end connected in parallel to the fluid entrances of each of the outlet mufflers. The assembly may also include an inlet muffler array and an inlet connecting duct.

Abstract: An open magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) magnet having two generally toroidal-shaped superconductive coil assemblies spaced apart by generally spaced-apart and generally parallel inter-coil-assembly posts. Each coil assembly has associated with it a generally annular-shaped superconductive shielding assembly and at least two spaced-apart assembly posts each having one end attached to the coil assembly and another end attached to the shielding assembly The shielding coil within the shielding assembly has an inner diameter greater than the outer diameter of the main coil within the coil assembly. A cryocooler coldhead cools the entire magnet. Magnetic shielding is achieved while maintaining the openness of the open magnet.

Abstract: A magnet including spaced-apart first and second pole pieces with generally opposing first and second pole faces. The first pole face has an axis extending generally towards the second pole face and has a generally circular shim tray generally coaxially aligned with the axis and attached to the first pole face. The circular shim tray has shims each with a shape of generally a trapezoid when viewed facing the first pole face. The trapezoidal shaped shims may be arranged on the circumferences of imaginary concentric circles on the circular shim trays, with trapezoids on the same circumference having generally the same trapezoidal shape and with trapezoids on different circumferences having generally different trapezoidal shapes, to provide a smoother magnetic field to better reduce 3D (three-dimensional) magnetic field inhomogeneity.

Abstract: A superconductive magnet having a superconductive coil located within a thermal shield located within a vacuum enclosure. A cryocooler coldhead's first stage is in solid-conductive thermal contact with the thermal shield, and its second stage is in solid-conductive thermal contact with the superconductive coil. A magnet re-entrant support assembly includes an outer support cylinder located between the vacuum enclosure and the thermal shield and includes an inner support cylinder located between the thermal shield and the superconductive coil. The outer support cylinder's first end is rigidly connected to the vacuum enclosure, and its second end is rigidly connected to the thermal shield. The inner support cylinder's first terminus is rigidly connected to the thermal shield near the outer support cylinder's second end, and its second terminus is located longitudinally between the outer support cylinder's first and second ends and is rigidly connected to the superconductive coil.

Abstract: A cooling system for a superconductive magnet. A dewar, located outside the magnet, includes a vacuum jacket hermetically connected to the magnet's vacuum enclosure and includes liquid helium located within the vacuum jacket. A thermal busbar is located within and spaced apart from the hermetically connected vacuum jacket and vacuum enclosure. The thermal busbar has a first end located within the vacuum jacket and a second end located within the vacuum enclosure and in thermal contact with the magnet's superconductive coil. A cryocooler coldhead, located outside the vacuum enclosure, has a housing located outside the vacuum jacket and has a cold stage extending from the housing to inside the vacuum jacket to re-liquefy any helium boiled-off in cooling the magnet 10.

Abstract: This invention relates to an apparatus and method for providing passive shimming for a superconducting magnet of the type that has a relatively small imaging volume. Such structures of this type, generally, provide the proper amount of passive shimming for a relatively small imaging volume.

Abstract: A locomotive diesel engine test assembly generates a once-per-cycle signal phased to the top dead center of a predetermined piston in its cylinder. A locomotive diesel engine crankcase door is hermetically attached to the crankcase so as to cover a camshaft located therein. An outer tube extends through and is hermetically and fixedly attached to the crankcase door, and an inner tube extends through and is hermetically and pivotably attached to the outer tube. A proximity sensor is attached to the inner tube and positioned near and generally perpendicular to the camshaft. A marker is attached to the circumference of the camshaft and is detectable by the proximity sensor once per revolution of the camshaft.

Abstract: A superconducting magnet includes a cryocooler coldhead, a sleeve assembly, and a superconducting coil assembly. The sleeve assembly includes a flexible bellows and a sleeve tube and is attached to the superconducting coil assembly so that it may be retracted about one-eighth of an inch breaking thermal contact of the sleeve assembly with the coil assembly's magnet cartridge and thermal shield while remaining hermetically connected to the coil assembly's vacuum enclosure. The coldhead's housing is attached to the sleeve assembly so that the coldhead's first and second stage make unconnected thermal contact with the sleeve assembly. By first retracting the sleeve assembly, the coldhead may be removed therefrom without room temperature air forming an ice ball on the surfaces of the sleeve assembly and without a heat load being transferred to quench the superconducting coil assembly. This permits continuous magnet operation using dual coldheads and dual sleeve assemblies.

Abstract: A pancake magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) magnet having a superconductive coil assembly including a toroidal-shaped coil housing containing a superconductive main coil set and a radially spaced-apart superconductive supplemental coil set. The main coil set includes a first main coil located radially towards the circumferential outside surface which faces away from the bore, and the supplemental coil set includes three radially spaced-apart supplemental coils located radially towards the circumferential outside surface which faces towards the bore. The first main coil and the middle supplemental coil each carry an equal electric current in a first direction while the other two supplemental coils each carry the same electric current in the opposite direction. Such coil arrangement produces an imaging volume longitudinally wider than the longitudinal thickness of the magnet.

Abstract: A subassembly for an ice maker includes a double-sided ice cube tray having a housing located within the refrigerator freezer. The housing has a first side with spaced-apart first ice cube cavities facing upward and has a second side with spaced-apart second ice cube cavities facing downward. With frozen ice cubes attached to the second ice cube cavities, household water is delivered to the empty first ice cube cavities. The heat of the water causes the frozen ice cubes to become detached from the second ice cube cavities whereupon gravity causes them to fall into a storage bin below. After the water freezes in the first ice cube cavities, a mechanism rotates the housing one-half turn and the cycle is repeated.

Abstract: An optical fiber has a fiber core which includes a step index core portion and a graded index core portion located substantially around the step index core portion. The optical fiber also has a cladding located substantially around the graded index core portion and an outer jacket located substantially around the cladding. The optical fiber design allows high power laser transmission which minimizes modal-dispersion problems and delivers improved high power fiber-delivered beam quality.

Abstract: A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) magnet having an annularly cylindrical-shaped vacuum enclosure with a longitudinal axis, first and second longitudinal ends, a first larger diameter bore extending from the first towards the second longitudinal end, and a second smaller diameter bore extending from the second longitudinal end to the first bore. First and second superconductive coils are placed in the vacuum enclosure with the first coil generally circumferentially surrounding the first bore and the second coil circumferentially surrounding the second bore, wherein the radial distance of the radially innermost portion of the second coil from the axis is smaller than the radius of the first bore. The first longitudinal end of the vacuum enclosure fits over a patient's shoulders with the patient's head at least partially passing through the first bore and extending into the second bore for MRI brain imaging.