Abstract: A gravity-feed chute-rack storage system is provided with at least two pairs of longitudinal chute-rack rails in the form of two chute-rack pipes sheathed in a plastic resin material having good sliding properties to form a chute-rack unit. Rail supporting members on at least the front and rear sides among the front, intermediate and rear sides of the chute-rack unit are coupled together with at least one vertical coupling member. Further, a vibrator is fitted to any one of the rail supporting members so as to help stock smoothly slide thereon by transmitting vibrations from the vibrator to each chute-rack rail efficiently via the vertical coupling member and the respective rail supporting members. Accordingly, stock efficiency is made improvable without reducing work efficiency as a result of wasteful moves on the part of workers.

Abstract: A slow vent valve for semiconductor wafer manufacturing equipment is disclosed, which generates a gentle flow of nitrogen gas to the vacuum chamber enough to maintain an undisturbed ambient environment for the wafer being processed in the chamber, protecting the product from disturbed by particulate raised or objectionable ambient stirring caused by the entering gas. The valve includes an adjustable cam mechanism including a valve open timing adjuster and a slow-venting adjuster. The valve open timing adjuster changes the initial diaphragm pressing force on the valve seat, to thereby determine the open speed and the open timing of the valve to take a lift off the valve seat. The slow venting adjuster is provided to adjust the resistance of a spring that exerts downward pressure on a second piston integrated with the valve rod, to thereby slow the slightly upward movement of the rod to operate the diaphragm to permit a slowed flow of nitrogen gas to the vacuum chamber.

Abstract: A liquid transfer device including a holder for a pipette array. A flexible preformed membrane having cups is over the proximal openings of the pipettes and sandwiched therebetween with a housing with the cups extending into the proximal openings of the pipettes. A vacuum drawn in the housing everts the membrane from the proximal openings thereby creating reduced pressure in the pipettes which when their distal ends are immersed in a liquid will draw up some of the liquid into the pipettes in substantially equal amounts. In one embodiment a movable abutment is provided to control the upward travel of the everting membrane and thereby the amount of liquid drawn into the pipettes. A method for fabricating the preformed membrane is also shown.

Abstract: An improved metal diaphragm valve is disclosed, in which the bed of the valve casing is made wider in its surface where the valve seat is mounted, than in conventional valves. The sufficiently spacious bed surface enables polishing easier, particularly in assembling micronized sizes of a valve. The simple design also makes it possible to use multiple-stage electropolishing, a technology used to obtain a mirror-like surface of casing bed. Since the bed of the valve casing has a wide enough space between the inner casing wall and the annular valve seat, the likelihood of fluid stagnation is lessened, causing fluid to flow smoothly from the inlet to outlet passage. The widened casing bed surface design is obtained because the annular valve seat caulked in position by expanding the rim of the inlet port in the fluid entrance passage that is bored concentrically of the central annular seat.

Abstract: A metal diaphragm valve is disclosed, which has an improved locking mechanism capable of locking the valve in closed position. The mechanism comprises a roller that is snugly disposed in a cutout formed in the bonnet made integral with the knob which drives the diaphragm through a reciprocating plunger. The roller is made rotatable on a horizontal plane with the bonnet which is in turn turned by the knob. When the knob is turned, for an angle of 90 degrees, from the fully-opened position of the valve to the fully-closed position, the roller slips into a groove formed in a stationary member provided in the bonnet. When the roller fits into the groove, the operator can tactically feel the drop and hear a clicking sound, confirming that the valve is closed.

Abstract: An exercise training system for prompting a user for stereo typed exercise and recording the intensity of the exercise, the training system consisting of an electromyographic sensor member which produces a rectified and time averaged signal forming a muscle force signal, the sensor member being provided with at least one electrode that is positioned adjacent to the user's muscle group for indicating muscle force of that muscle group, and a control member having a clock for measuring time intervals, and an alerting member for alerting the user that an exercise period has started as determined by the clock for a predetermined time interval loaded into the control means, whereby the user in response to the alerting member contracts and relaxes a predetermined muscle group and the muscle force used in the exercise is sensed by the electromyographic sensor.

Abstract: A joint-and-beam platform structure is disclosed, which is dismountably built by coupling resin-coated metal beams or members with synthetic-resin joints having hollow sleeves into which ends of the beams are inserted to form a square or rectangular framework. Each joint comprise a pair of first and second sleeves, formed to extend at predetermined angles with each other, each of a cross-section largely shaped like the alphabet "B" to fittingly but removably receive therein a tubular beam of a similarly B-shaped cross-section. The tubular beams are each provided with screw holes in the middle of their curved circumferences to receive screws through aligned screw holes formed in the associated hollow sleeves of the joint.

Abstract: A clipboard for holding worksheets is disclosed, which is a plastic rectangular board bent into a largely inverted U-shaped cross-section having a vertical front board, an also vertical backside board that is larger in length than the front board, and a horizontal top roof member between the front and backside boards. A book of worksheets is clamped between the front and backside boards below the roof member. A hook for hanging the clipboard is centrally fixed in the roof member and having means t orient the clamped worksheets in two alternative different vertical planes perpendicular to each other. A pair of bosses centrally mounted in the backside board and each having at a front end thereof a downwardly inclined end face for engagement with a pair of apertures formed in the front board through a pair of holes in an upper margin of each worksheet clamped.

Abstract: Halogen-substitutable hydrogen atoms are linked to nitrogen atoms of a polymer, with ethylenically-unsaturated monomers. By using inorganic or organic hypohalogenites and/or organic N-halogen derivatives as halogenation means, hydrogen atoms on the nitrogen atoms of the polymer membranes or polymer formed materials are replaced by halogen atoms and part of these are removed by reducing agents in the presence of ethylenically unsaturated monomers, with radical grafting of these on to the nitrogen atoms, after which the remaining halogen atoms are removed by reducing agents in the absence of monomers.

Abstract: The unit to dispense wiping materials stored in roll or Z-folded form and delivered in the form of concertina-folded strips is outstanding in that it is fitted with a dampening device (N) the active part of which is arranged so as to periodically have an effect on the tension of the strip between the storage point of the roll and the return and forming means (H) and automatically form, after every dispensing operation of a folded strip by pulling the projecting strip and rotating the roll of material, a loop (b) of unrolled material which is taken up when the next strip is pulled thus preventing any undue tearing of the material.

Abstract: The device is made from a textile article (1), made up of at least one layer of non-woven material capable of filtering, the said article is designed to make up a pocket or sleeve, open at one end and closed at the other, this article being mounted inside an open support (2) communicating with the liquid and connected to a liquid suction and delivery system in order for the article (1) to filter the liquid.

Abstract: A storage system having a plurality of gravity-feed flow-rack cells 4 classified for a group of different stock and an indicator lamp 8 at a front end of each of the cells 4; the lamps 8 light to provide guidance and indication for stock unloading to a specific group of the cells 4 for the stock shelved therein; an electronic control unit 10 is provided to enable easy selection or reselection of the cells 4 to be picked, which includes operation buttons 13 which input in a memory of the control unit 10 data to cause the indicator lamps 8 to light up; and sensors 9 are provided in each of the cells 4 to monitor access to the cells.

Abstract: An electronic balance with a measured value receiver, a digital signal processing unit, a display unit and a calibrating device controlled by the digital signal processing unit (18) for placing on and lifting off a calibrating weight by use of a motor that the digital signal processing unit allows the calibrating weight to be continuously placed on and lifted off again and calculates the average value and the standard deviation from the individual measured values.