Abstract: A filter medium, a tackified binder composition and a method for providing a uniformly distributed tackifier on the glass fibers of an unwoven fiberglass web for improving filtration capacity and efficiency. An emulsified tackifier, such as polybutene, is mixed with a conventional binder composition and applied to the fibers before they are expanded into the web. The binder is cured in the conventional manner and the tackifier migrates to the surface on each fiber to enhance particle adsorption.

Abstract: A door sill has a plastic, or other water impervious, plank fastened on its underside. The bottom of the plank seats against the subfloor of a building. The ends of the plank protrude beyond the rest of the sill, forming short flanges under the lower ends of the attached door jambs. The jambs are fastened to the sill, and the flanges are fastened to the jambs, by nails, screws or staples. The plank is water impervious, thereby preventing rot of the jambs by water wicking up to, and into, the jambs. The plank also raises the sill, and therefore the entire door frame, up by the thickness of the plank, which keeps the bottom of the door from scraping against the upper surface of a finish floor material, such as carpet.

Abstract: An arrangement of an area covering, cellular radio communication network having cell regions which can be contiguously replicated without interference. A central transceiver station is coupled to a base station controller and has a plurality of decentral transceiver stations surrounding and coupled to the central transceiver station. Groups of adjacent decentral transceiver stations are grouped in respective cell areas. All of the decentral transceiver stations in each cell area are allocated the same transmission frequencies, but the frequencies of each cell area are different from the other cell areas in the cell region.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method of Identifying an animal within a group, the method of identification being characterised by the steps of: a) attaching an identification (21) to the animal, and b) locating an activation device (23) at a location, and c) activating an indicator (25) when the identification device Is near the activation device.

Abstract: An automated coupon monitor for detecting the electrical parameters associated with a pipe, a coupon and a reference electrode utilized with a cathodic protection system. A voltage detector circuit has its output applied to a pair of sample and hold circuits, one for recording E.sub.OFF and the other for recording E.sub.ON. Series connected between the coupon and the pipe is a zero resistance current detector circuit and an interrupter switch for measuring the pipe-coupon current and periodically interrupting that current to permit measurement, sampling and storing of E.sub.OFF. The sample and hold circuits and the interrupter switch are controlled by a microprocessor controller. The circuit provides DC level outputs which can be easily read by a digital multimeter or stored in a data logger for subsequent reading or transmission to another location.

Abstract: A dual band slot antenna for cellular telephone and GPS frequency bands. The antenna is a slot antenna formed in a conductive layer laminated to a layer of a windshield or other transparency. The slot is formed along two adjoining arcs of a circle extending oppositely from a feedpoint, with a portion of the conductive layer interposed between the ends of the slots. The two slot legs have different lengths so the slot is tuned to exhibit at least two resonant peaks, such as one at the cellular telephone frequency band and the other at the GPS frequency band. The slot is fed by strip line transmission lines or capacitive coupling, using additional conductive film patches spaced by one or more layers of the window, with the window layer forming a dielectric.

Abstract: A cable cutting tool with high hardness insert blades inserted between pivotably mounted levers. The levers are pivotably mounted to hand-grippable handles. The levers have jaws with a gap formed between inner facing surfaces thereof. The gap provides space for insertion of the insert blades.

Abstract: A wick trimmer includes a gauge for assisting a user in trimming a candle wick to an appropriate length. The wick trimmer is adapted to be of a shape and size to allow a user to trim the wick within a votive holder, hurricane lamp, or the like without removing the candle. The gauge may be fixedly, rotatably, or slidably attached to the cutter and extends transversely of the blade of the cutter.

Abstract: A process and composition for transforming perfluoroalkanes in the presence of an oxidizing agent and water at temperatures between about 400 to 1,000.degree. C. Aluminum oxide is the primary agent for effecting this transformation. Additions of between 0.1 to 50% by weight of other components such as barium calcium, phosphorus, cerium, chromium, cobalt, iron, lanthanum, magnesium, nickel, silicon, titanium, yttrium or zirconium aid in extending the useful life of the catalyst. A preferred catalyst composition includes aluminum oxide with additions of cobalt and one or more of the elements of cerium, titanium or zirconium.

Abstract: An anti-flash wick support for a candlewick in a candle is disclosed. The support includes a body and a wick holder. The body has a height and thermal resistance which is selected in order to minimize the risk of flashover.

Abstract: A refrigeration system having a modulatable compressor and a Rankine cycle refrigeration circuit having at least two evaporators. The flow rate of the compressor is modulated in response to the sensed temperature of the masses being cooled, and the control circuit switches valves to control the refrigerant flow path and modulates the flow rate of the compressor to optimize the efficiency of the refrigeration system.

Abstract: Pieces of meat are tumbled with a marinade in a tumbler that has a smoothly continuous surrounding side wall with no protrusions or baffles or other protrusions contacting the pieces of meat. The tumbler is rotated about the axis of the side wall and gas is pumped from the tumbler during the tumbling to maintain a reduced pressure. The gas may be pumped to maintain a lower reduced pressure for a first time interval and to permit a higher pressure, still below atmospheric pressure, for a second period of time during a rest period. These two pressure levels are alternated during the alternate tumbling and rest periods.

Abstract: A stabilized lime slurry for treatment of biological solids in sewage. The composition preferably includes 30-36% calcium hydroxide, 10-16% potassium hydroxide, 2-4% potassium chloride, 2-4% magnesium hydroxide, all on a dry basis, and the balance in water. This composition raises the pH rapidly for destroying pathogens, is sufficiently concentrated for economically feasible transportation, and reduces the cost, difficulties and dangers of treating sewage with a lime based composition while providing a resulting product from the sewage treatment process which can be spread upon agricultural soil in a manner which improves soil fertility without introducing undesirable or contaminating materials into the soil.

Abstract: An aid for reading indicia, such as that printed on golf scorecards and protecting the scorecard from inclement weather. The apparatus includes a base panel, and a back panel connected together near a first back panel edge. A magnifying lens is mounted to the back panel near a second, opposite back panel edge. A golf scorecard is retained against the base panel by two retaining clips. The apparatus is opened by hinging the base panel to a perpendicular orientation relative to the back panel, and hinging the magnifying lens to a perpendicular orientation relative to the back panel to form a U-shaped structure resting on one side leg. In this configuration, the magnifying lens and the base panel, to which the scorecard is mounted, are parallel and spaced apart. The space is enough to permit a user's hand to write on the scorecard. When closed, the device preferably fits in a rear pants pocket.

Abstract: A shade canopy structure has several substantially parallel, but laterally spaced rafter members, each rafter member having longitudinally extending tracks on its laterally opposite sides. The rafters define a plurality of laterally spaced openings. A plurality of cross beams extend laterally between adjacent rafter members and have their ends engaged in the track for sliding along the track. This forms a plurality of laterally spaced tiers of cross beams for each of the laterally spaced openings. A plurality of flexible, laterally spaced opaque sheets, each are extendible along one of the laterally spaced openings and each is attached to a tier of cross beams at spaced locations along the sheet so that each sheet may be independently drawn to an extended position and releasably latched in an extended position, or manually withdrawn to a retracted position.

Abstract: A radar highway motor vehicle guidance apparatus for guiding a land vehicle along a roadway using a backward looking and a forward looking, lateral position sensing, monopulse tracking radar guidance apparatus which transmits radar pulses backward and forward of the vehicle. The pulses are reflected back to the vehicle by a stripe distributed along the roadway. The stripe is a frequency selective surface which generates retro-reflective grating lobes at an operating frequency of the tracking radar. Operating the radar at two frequencies allows the radar to look at regions spaced at two different distances from the front of the vehicle. Highway related information may be encoded in the frequency selective surface by variations in the shape or dimensions of the frequency selective stripe morphology in order to modulate the reflected signal with highway information which is then also detected at the radar receiver.

Abstract: Local telephone exchanges in a threatened geographical area connect to their subscribers and transmit a recorded warning message. This is done in response to transmission of threat data communicated from one of several remote computer terminals to a central computer. The central computer has a data storage device upon which is stored a local exchange database and preferably recorded warning messages. Upon receipt of the threat data from the remote computer terminal, the central computer is connected in communication with the local exchanges in the threatened geographical area and instructs the local exchanges to connect to its subscribers and provides instructions or a warning message to be played to the subscribers who go off-hook.

Abstract: A pump or compressor wherein the volumetric displacement of a piston cylinder assembly is variable. The piston is connected to a crank slider or eccentric mechanical drive, the crankshaft of which oscillates alternately clockwise through a controllably variable angle .theta. and counterclockwise through substantially the same angle .theta., the angle .theta. being measured from the angular position of the crankshaft or eccentric at which separation between piston and the closed end of the bore is a minimum (Top Dead Center). The angle of crank oscillation controls the degree of volumetric displacement of the piston. The crank shaft is connected to a torsional spring so as to substantially resonate the rotational inertia of the moving parts. An oscillating electric motor supplies the oscillating torque to drive the mechanism at constant frequency but controllably variable angular amplitude.

Abstract: A three terminal battery equalizer which includes a DC--DC converter has a first filter inductor in the switched, current conducting path connected to the battery ground and a second filter inductor in the switched, current path connected to the non-grounded, non-interconnected terminal of a second battery, and has a capacitor connected between the filter inductors for maintaining the same magnitude of current in the battery equalizer during the time interval when the switching transistors of the DC--DC converter are turned off, as when the transistor switches are turned on. The circuit further includes an error signal feedback circuit for controlling the transistor switches and protective feedback circuits, all providing signals which are integrated to eliminate the effect of alternating voltages, resulting from isolation of the control circuit from the battery circuit. The protective circuits include output current detection for overload protection, reverse polarity protection and temperature compensation.

Abstract: A low frequency vibrator has a stator member with a cylindrical, central chamber, a cylindrical, tubular liner of low friction, non-ferromagnetic material positioned in the chamber to form a bearing and a cylindrical, ferromagnetic, reciprocating piston slidably mounted in the liner. The stator has a pair of coils and a permanent magnet is positioned centrally in the reciprocating piston. A ferromagnetic flux conductor surrounds the coils and extends between opposite ends of the chamber. This structure creates a magnetic spring, having a spring constant K. The ratio of K to the mass M of the reciprocating member is made substantially equal to the square of a radian frequency in the operating frequency range of the vibrator.