Abstract: A composite cushion pad for railroad cars or off-the-road vehicles is disclosed. The composite cushion pad can be circular or rectangular, depending on its use. The circular composite cushion pad is composed of a rigid circular plate having a centrally disposed opening which is surrounded by two juxtaposed, resilient elastomeric annular cushions that form a composite cushion which is bonded to at least one side of the plate. The two annular cushions each have a generally frusto-conically shaped cross-section and are dissimilarly sized so that the composite cushion has a pair of opposing stepped sidewalls. The rectangular composite cushion pad is composed of a rigid rectangular plate.

Abstract: A rotary railroad car F coupler assembly which employs a rotary connector between the yoke and car coupler, is described as having a yoke with a larger diameter opening in which a bigger rotary connector is mounted. The rotary connector, in turn, is designed to receive an AAR standard F coupler head with a heavier shank that has sidewalls, bordering the pinhole in the shank, which are thicker and have greater cross-sectional areas than similar sidewalls of shanks of AAR standard non-rotary type F car couplers. A pair of twin, parallel wearplates are provided between the top of the yoke and the adjacent housing. The top ridged portion of the yoke extends between these wearplates. In this way, the diameter of the yoke opening and the consequent cross-sectional area of the opening are increased. This enables a larger, sturdier coupler shank to be received in the aperture of the yoke while the overall coupler assembly may still be mounted in an AAR standard carsill.

Abstract: A rotary F-type railroad car coupler is described as having a rotary connector which is mounted for rotation within a cylindrical opening in the front end of the yoke. The rotary connector has an opening which extends longitudinally through the connector for receiving the butt end of the coupler shank. A horizontal key/slot arrangement, rather than a vertical pin/pinhole-type connection, is provided to attach the car coupler to the rotary connector. The key has an oblong cross-section defined by two pairs of opposing surfaces which are convexly curved outwardly from the center axis of the key which also has a pair of opposing ends that are cylindrically shaped and not spherical, as are the ends of conventional cylindrical pins presently used to attach the butt end of the coupler shank to the rotary connector.

Abstract: An electrically heated vacuum furnace is described as having a fault detection system which has the ability to sense among other things, carbon arc buildup, a load touching a heating element, short circuits from broken heating elements, and short circuits in any heating element connection whether it be single phase, three phase delta or three phase wye connections. The system essentially comprises an electrically balanced wheatstone bridge which is in a main circuit in parallel with the electric heating element and the grounded casing of the furnace. A switching mechanism maintains the circuit in a normally open condition. A timer is provided to periodically disrupt the flow of electric current to the electric heating element in the furnace. The switching mechanism will be operated to close the circuit if the circuit is free of electric current.

Abstract: A method and apparatus used in the uniform drying of a continuous web, such as a sheet of paper or paperboard. A newly formed web of paper of wet cellulosic fibers and the necessary additives is initially directed through a press section where excessive water is squeezed from the web to reduce its moisture content to about 50-80 percent, by weight, for subsequent passage through a dryer section wherein the moisture content is further reduced to anywhere between 3 and 15 percent, depending on the quality of the paper being processed. The moisture content profile of the nearly dry web of paper is constantly monitored adjacent the discharge end of the dryer section for dry streaks which occasionally occur in the web. Moisture is added accordingly to the web when the web is relatively wet and has a moisture content of at least 25 percent to eliminate further dry streaks and provides a paper product which has a uniform moisture content.

Abstract: A bolster for a railroad car is described as having larger than normal wedge shoes which necessitate enlarged pockets that reduce the strength of the bolster casting, thereby making it more susceptible to fracturing, unless the high force concentrations in the areas of the pockets are eliminated or substantially reduced. This is accomplished primarily by the removal of portions of the bolster sidewalls between the pockets and outboard lugs for restricting movement of the sideframes longitudinally of the bolsters.

Abstract: An air conditioning system and/or a heating system is described in combination with a solar pond, especially a pond which is of the gradient type, wherein it is important to maintain a concentration of salt which increases with the depth of the pond. The pond is regenerated, that is, the salt concentration gradient is maintained, by components of the air conditioning system, or by special concentrator towers wherein moisture is removed from brine that is circulated to the towers from the pond.

Abstract: A device for monitoring the flow of fluid in a pair of conduits and blocking the flow of fluid in a conduit when leakage of fluid is sensed therein. The device is provided with, a pair of inlet and outlet passageways in which fluid flows to and from the conduits, a pair of solenoid operated shutoff valves for blocking the flow of fluid in the inlet passageways and a pair of check valves for blocking the backflow of fluid through the outlet passageways.

Abstract: A furnace is described as having a heat treatment chamber which is provided with banks of radiant heaters to heat a load that is placed within the chamber for heat treatment. The radiant heating of the load is improved by the addition of convection heating which is carried out by a plurality of nozzles that are designed to direct jets or streams of heated gas against the load positioned in the chamber.

Abstract: A rotary F coupler is described as having an improved pinhole design, wherein the backwall of the pinhole has a generally cylindrical, rectangularly shaped pin bearing surface which projects into the pinhole about three-quarters of an inch, compared to the conventional projection or crown of one-quarter of an inch, and in such a way as to prevent unduly high stress concentrations in the coupler shank caused by contact of the shank and pivot pin during vertical angling of the coupler.

Abstract: An apparatus, used in the treatment of cans, is made up of a number of individual units, each of which essentially comprises a pair of drums that are mounted for rotation about parallel axes which are vertically disposed. One of the drums is used in the treatment of the interior of the cans, while the other is utilized in the treatment of the exterior of the cans. Each of the rotary drums is provided with means for holding a number of cans in circumferential alignment around the outer periphery of the drum such that the longitudinal axes of the cans are radially oriented relative to the rotational axes of the drums. Other means are provided to successively transfer the cans from one drum to another. A number of such units can be used, in tandem, to treat the cans beginning from washing, rinsing and drying of the cans to heating, coating and drying of the coated cans.

Abstract: A continuous gasification furnace and method of operation. The charge is fed into the furnace chamber between two rolls at least one of which is driven. The furnace chamber can be sealed from the ambient atmosphere. The bed of the furnace contains three zones from top to bottom, these zones are; a volatilization zone, a char reaction zone and an ash zone. Additionally, there can be a drying zone above the volatilization zone. Fuel, air, and steam enter the lower portion of the furnace through strategically located inlet ports. Fuel is used to start up the burning bed while carefully controlled steam to air ratio is used during continuous operation of the furnace. Simultaneously controlled steam cooling effects and exothermic reactions occur in the char reaction zone whereby all or controlled amounts of the oxygen is consumed so that pyrolysis can occur in the volatilization zone without the danger of combustion in that zone or combustion of the fumes leaving the bed.

Abstract: A rotary F coupler is disclosed as having a rotary connector and pivot pin arrangement which provides increased bearing contact between these two components. This is accomplished by the provision in the rotary connector of a dual diameter pinhole opening which is designed to receive a matingly configured dual diameter pivot pin which is distinct from prior art pivot pins that have a uniform diameter between its opposing ends.

Abstract: An aircraft instrument lighting fixture is described as having a bezel top or covering for the instrument. The bezel top has a cylindrical opening through which the face or dial of the instrument can be viewed, and an inner cylindrical wall which is adjacent the opening and around which is located an electroluminescent lamp which, in turn, is covered by a micro-louver type material that is designed to prevent an observer of the instrument from seeing the light ring created by the electroluminescent lamp. A film of light polarizing material is placed between the electroluminescent lamp and the louver material to eliminate any objectionable reflection and glare normally created when unpolarized light strikes the instrument.

Abstract: An oven is disclosed as having a plurality of chambers which are sealed from the ambient atmosphere, and to which gas, heated to a high temperature outside the chambers, is circulated to each of the chambers for admixture with gas which is cool compared to the high temperature gas, to produce in the chambers a mixture of hot and cool gas at a predetermined temperature. The hot gas is circulated to the chambers at a certain desired pressure, wherein the cool gas is circulated to the chambers at a certain rate of flow. Gas is exhausted from the oven also at a fixed rate of flow. The gas pressure in the first oven to be encountered by an element passing through the oven, is monitored and triggers a change in the flow of cool gas when the pressure varies from a desired norm. This change in flow of cool gas influences the temperature which is also monitored. A change in the temperature produces a corresponding change in the mixture of hot and cool gas to return the oven temperature to the desired level.

Abstract: A thermal energy exchanging device is described as having a stationary, hollow cylindrical gas distributing member around which a closed, hollow torus-shaped member rotates. The stationary member is longitudinally and transversely divided into four compartments. The hollow enclosure of the rotatable member is longitudinally divided into a plurality of pie-shaped sections which contain thermal energy responsive material. Sealing means are provided between the two members to divide the annular space therebetween into four segments which are radially aligned and communicate with the four compartments of the stationary member. The sealing means, in effect, divides the device into two sides or two separated chambers through which gases of different temperatures are simultaneously circulated into thermal energy exchanging relation with the heat responsive material that happens to be in that particular chamber at the moment.

Abstract: A plate quenching apparatus is described as having a horizontally elongated chamber in which a plurality of rows of metal, tire-like rollers are used to support an element, such as a number number of metal plates, as the element moves along a horizontal pathway between opposing rows of nozzles above and below the pathway. Unfortunately, the metal rollers create wakes when large quantities of quenching liquid are used. These wakes literally surround tear-shaped areas immediately downstream the rollers and prevent adequate amounts of quenching liquid from contacting the element in these areas, especially at the beginning of the quenching process wherein it is critical to uniformly contact the element with quenching material. A plurality of nozzles are specially positioned between adjacent rows of the metal rollers to break up the wakes and insure that the sheet of metal is uniformly contacted with quenching liquid to prevent the element from becoming buckled, warped, or twisted during the quenching operation.

Abstract: Described is a circuit to invert DC to AC for the operation of electroluminescent lamps. A primary winding of a transformer is in series with a power source and the input or output of the switching device. The output of the switching device is connected back to the power source. The secondary winding of the transformer is in series with an electroluminescent lamp and the controller side of the switching device. The secondary winding doubles as both the output to the electroluminescent lamp and the feedback winding to the controller side of the switching device. The electroluminescent lamp doubles both as the load and limiting impedance to the controller side of the switching device. Also described is a unique device for dimming the electroluminescent lamp.

Abstract: A method of controlling strip temperatures of two joined metal strips of dissimilar gauges but requiring essentially the same heat treatment temperatures, is described. The normal processing temperature is higher than the temperature to which it is desired to heat the webs. The higher processing temperature is reduced to a lower temperature in response to a change in the gauge of the webs passing through the chamber in which the webs are heat treated. This lower temperature is such that the heavier gauge web will not be underheated and the lighter gauge web will not be overheated. The line speed at which the juncture of the webs passes through the chamber will simultaneously be lowered in correlated relation to the reduction of the temperature within the heat treatment chamber until such time as the juncture passes from the chamber so that the processing conditions of time and temperature can be readjusted to accommodate heat treatment of the new web.

Abstract: A carbottom furnace is described as having high velocity or high momentum-type stoichiometric burners, rather than excess air-type burners. Hot exhaust gas, removed from the furnace, is recirculated immediately back to the heat treatment chamber of the furnace, without reheating, in a manner which compliments and reinforces the swirling flow of gas created in the chamber by the high momentum burners. This recirculation of exhaust gas is especially useful during normal turndown of the burners to maintain sufficient volume of heated gas within the chamber to properly heat treat the articles or workpieces which are positioned within the chamber.