Abstract: A mounting assembly for mounting two monocular devices to form a binocular device. A method of collimating the monocular devices, so that the binocular device is collimated.

Abstract: A mobile unit includes a network receiver, such as a GSM telephone, for communication with a wireless network, and a navigation receiver, such as a global positioning system (GPS) receiver for receiving navigation signals. The navigation receiver includes a vector delay lock loop (VDLL) that receives information concerning the navigation sources, such as satellite data messages, transmitted over a common broadcast channel of the wireless network, and receives navigation signals from the navigation receiver. The VDLL uses the navigation signals received from navigation sources that are not obscured and uses satellite data messages broadcast over the wireless network to track a navigation signal that is received only intermittently due, for example, to the navigation source being obscured from view of the mobile unit.

Abstract: A method for developing and utilizing a Space Cruiser vehicle efficiently combines resources from relevant end users in industry and the military. The preferred vehicle has an elongated conical shell with an elliptical transverse cross. section. The cabin of the vehicle preferably has a circular transverse cross section, leaving space between the cabin and the shell to store vehicle fuel. The cabin is insulated and capable of supporting occupants in a shirt-sleeve, air-breathing environment whether in the Earth's atmosphere or in outerspace. The vehicle is capable of being launched from conventional aircraft, and also being stored in and launched from a space shuttle or orbiting space station.

Abstract: A jewelry ring assembly includes a base ring having an annular channel on its outer surface and a retained ring disposed in that channel to be freely rotatable about the base ring and capable of wobbling in the channel. The base ring is a single piece of metal and its retaining channel is smoothly concave in width between raised annular edges. The base ring is formed from a cylindrical blank initially having a constant outside diameter across its width, which diameter is smaller than the retained ring inside diameter. The method of fabricating the ring assembly begins with flaring one edge radially outward to a final diameter larger than the retained ring inside diameter. The retained ring is moved over the unflared edge, after which that edge is also flared to the final diameter. Enlarging the annular edges in separate steps permits the base ring to be formed from a single piece of metal while presenting a retaining channel having a smooth concave width.

Abstract: A liquid marker system utilizes three primary components to permit marking of lines of various widths from a single nib. The three components are a porous nib, a transfer wick and a squeezable container. Operation relies on different squeeze pressures applied to the housing to produce different line widths from the single nib as the nib is moved across a marked surface. The porous wick provides a resistance to flow until the bottle is squeezed and then supplies a minimum of capillary flow to the nib. The user squeezes the container to overcome the resistance of the wick. No venting of the container interior is required because the wick and nib system allows the passage of air into the container when the container is returned to its unstressed (i.e., un-squeezed) condition.

Abstract: Range measurements useful for determining a device's position are screened to eliminate unacceptable measurements. A two-stage range measurement screening technique involves a coarse screening stage that includes comparing the range measurement to an estimated expected range and a fine screening stage that includes comparing the range measurement to the computed fading-average range. Range measurements that fall within both coarse and fine screening windows are deemed acceptable and are supplied to a position tracking filter together with their estimated measurement accuracies. Range measurements that do not fall within either the coarse or fine screening window are discarded and do not corrupt the position solution. The accuracies of acceptable range measurements are determined from multiple factors including the measurement offset from a fading-average of previous range measurements and the standard deviation of the previous range measurements.

Abstract: In an optical system having a detector means and processor means in which imaging data is obtained comprising noisy blurred scene data containing an object to be reconstructed, and noisy blurred background data of the same scene, a method for increasing the spatial resolution of the imaging data produced by the optical system, comprising the steps of converting the imaging data into a first matrix, regularizing the first matrix by performing nth order Tikhonov regularization to the first matrix to provide a regularized pseudo-inverse (RPI) matrix and applying the RPI matrix to the first matrix to provide a reconstructed image of the object.

Abstract: Nonwoven fabric is formed from a spunbond process by extruding generally ribbon-shaped fibers 126 through slot-shaped orifices 124 of a spinneret 122. The ribbon-shaped fibers are rapidly quenched after extrusion to achieve a substantially uniform molecular orientation throughout a transverse cross section of the fibers, yielding stronger fibers. The rapid quenching results largely from the relatively high aspect ratio (thinness) of the fibers and the relatively large surface area of the fibers, which permits the fibers to quickly cool throughout the transverse cross section. The ribbon-shaped fibers are drawn longitudinally by an aspirator 128 that exerts a generally downward force produced by an air stream that longitudinally stretches and transversely attenuates the ribbon-shaped fibers in such a manner that the transverse cross-sectional shape of the ribbon-shaped fibers enhances the interaction between the air stream and the ribbon-shaped fibers to maximize the downward force.

Abstract: A phase meter precisely measures the phase of two signals with very different frequencies by using a sampler, permuter and a matched filter. The phase meter includes a sampler that samples the fast clock with the slow clock; a permuter that permutes the samples based on the frequencies of the fast and slow clocks; and a matched filter that sums sequences of the samples and generates maximum and minimum phase positions. The maximum and minimum phase positions indicate transition times in the fast clock. The filter can take the average of the minimum and maximum values to determine the phase of the fast clock at the middle point of a cycle. The phase meter can also be used with an interval counter to precisely adjust the transition count used by the interval counter to detect a number of cycles in the interval, and to account for partial cycles that fall within the interval.

Abstract: A method of compression moulding an article from rubber moulding material incorporating hollow inserts avoids damage to the inserts. Where compression moulding takes place in an enclosed mould at an elevated pressure, the pressure can distort and damage the hollow inserts especially if they are of plastics. In order to avoid such distortion and damage, the method compresses during moulding creating a pressure in a cavity of the insert which substantially balances the pressure exerted on the exterior of the insert by the rubber moulding material in the mould. The pressure in the cavity is preferably produced by introducing some rubber moulding material into the cavity of the insert. This material becomes pressurised during moulding and supports the interior of the insert.

Abstract: A phase meter measures the phase of a first signal with respect to a second signal, where the first and second signals have different frequencies and the frequency of the first signal is higher than the frequency of the second signal. The phase meter samples the first signal using the second signal to produce a plurality of samples, where each sample has a sample phase and value. The phase meter permutes the plurality of sample phases to place their phase positions in phase order, and determines, for each permuted sample phase if the sample phase is within a phase range corresponding to a predetermined phase bin. If the sample is within a phase range for a phase bin, a bin counter for that bin in incremented. The phase of the faster signal is determined based on the counts in each of the phase bins.