Abstract: An alignable electronic background grid generation system, for use with a raster-type video graphics display unit on which graphic data is displayed, includes a horizontal grid line generator and a vertical grid pattern controller. An appropriate control device supplies to these components background grid parameter data including line spacing, line intensity pattern, and line offsets. Utilizing this data, the generator produces, in synchronism with horizontal video scanning of the display unit, grid intensity control signals indicating the requisite intensity of background grid spots at corresponding picture elements in the resultant display. These intensity control signals are modified in response to the output of the vertical grid pattern controller, which itself is synchronized to the vertical line clock of the video graphics display unit.

Abstract: Toxic heavy metal ions are removed from water by electrochemical replacement as the water flows through a tandem bed of (a) activated zinc and then (b) magnesium alloyed with a minor amount of manganese to inhibit corrosion. The zinc is activated by contact with a noble metal salt. Preferably, fine granules of zinc and Mg/Mn are used. Clogging is prevented by intermittent vacuum degassing of the beds. The activated zinc and the Mg/Mn advantageously are prepackaged and stored in cartridges which become part of the processing column. The Mg/Mn cartridge has a non-reactive atmosphere of e.g., argon, retained by frangible or soluble barriers that hermetically seal the ends of the cartridge. The barriers are torn away or dissolved by the initial water flow when the cartridge is installed. System scale-up is simplified by a "half-length" concept characteristic of the present invention.

Abstract: A semiconductor abrupt junction having a relatively heavily doped region of first conductivity type, a relatively lightly doped region of opposite conductivity type, and immediately adjacent the effective junction, a thin "recombination layer" of first conductivity type and of dopant concentration intermediate that of the two junction regions. Preferably, the recombination layer overlaps the forward biased depletion region of the junction and has a thickness (typically 50 A to 200 A) much less than that of the junction depletion region under reverse bias. The recombination layer dopant ions thereby provide recombination-generation centers only where beneficial to improve the forward and reverse recovery times of the junction without degrading the steady state reverse current characteristics thereof. By further utilizing a very shallow (less than about 800 A) heavily doped region, very low forward turn-on voltage is achieved. The junction may be fabricated by controlled implantation of dopant ions.

Abstract: An apparatus for cardiovascular conditioning, alternative bodily waste elimination and other physiological purposes includes a chamber in which a person is subjected to an environmental temperature elevated sufficiently to cause profuse sweating and increased heart rate. Very low humidity air is blown across the persons's body to achieve rapid evaporation of the perspiration. A dehumidifying system which may be associated with the chamber includes means for recovering the evaporated perspiration and expired moisture.Heart exercise is achieved by a regimen of periodic sessions in the chamber, over the course of which the environmental temperature progressively is raised to place increasing demand on the heart and vascular system. Cardiovascular conditioning results from the increased heart activity and concomitant increased blood flow to the eccrine glands that produce the perspiration.

Abstract: A rocket toy has a unitary cylindrical body with outwardly projecting fins and a partition wall across the interior near the front end. A tapered cylindrical lip projecting from the body front end receives one of two nose cones. The first, a parachute-receiving nose cone, fits loosely on the tapered lip and is held in place during forward flight by the air resistance of a forwardly facing brake surface on the nose cone exterior. A parachute, furled within the nose cone, has cords attached by an elastic band to the rocket body. After launch, as the rocket toy slows down near the apex of its trajectory, the air resistance is insufficient to hold on the nose cone. The nose cone drops away, permitting the parachute to deploy. The second nose cone fits tightly on the tapered lip and remains in place throughout the entire flight. The rocket toy is launched by the compression of air within a pair of telescoped tubes, one of which is connected to the rocket body cylindrical rear end during launch.

Abstract: This electronic combination lock is operated by depressing the proper combination of pushbuttons mounted on the faceplate of a circular handle, then rotating the handle to open the bolt. The pushbuttons are held outwardly by radially extending spring wires within the handle that also provide electrical connection, when a pushbutton is depressed, to inclined contacts mounted to the rear of the faceplate. Electrical leads extend through a hollow shaft connected to the handle.The bolt is restrained in the locked position by a magnetically actuated locking pin which projects into a bore in the bolt. The shaft is connected to the bolt by a spring. When the proper pushbuttons are selected, electrical circuitry disclosed herein actuates the magnet, removing the pin and permitting the bolt to be opened by handle rotation. If the wrong combination is depressed, an alarm signal is produced, the magnet is not actuated, and rotation of the handle expands the spring without moving the bolt.

Abstract: A protective packaging for bottles having different neck lengths includes a support block having circular recesses that receive the bottle bottoms, and a unitary, box-shaped bottle-neck-receiving retainer. The retainer has a flat bottom which serves as a web to support a plurality of inverted cups into which the bottle necks project. Each cup is frangible, and when the closed upper end is broken of, the remaining truncated conical cup wall receives a bottle neck that is too long to be accomodated completely within the unbroken cup, as can a shorter necked bottle. In this way both short and long necked bottles can be securely contained together in a single protective package.

Abstract: The on-to-off switching time of a junction transistor is reduced by forward connecting a recombination layer diode between the base and collector of the transistor. Preferably, the diode comprises a semiconductor abrupt junction of the type having a relatively heavily doped region of first conductivity type, a relatively lightly doped region of opposite conductivity type, and immediately adjacent the effective junction, a thin "recombination layer" of a carrier recombination-generation type material with a dopant concentration intermediate that of the two junction regions. Such a diode exhibits very low forward turn-on voltage and fast forward and reverse recovery times. The diode functions to bypass base-collector toward current of the transistor so as to reduce excess stored charge at the transistor collector-base junction, thereby effectively eliminating the storage delay time typically associated with junction transistor turn-off.

Abstract: This key switch system (1) scans closed (or open) key switches in a matrix to produce corresponding key data, (2) encodes these key data into corresponding key codes, and (3) effectively registers the encoded key codes into time-shared channels of a key code memory.The key switch system may be incorporated in an electronic musical instrument. The system includes a key data generator which produces block data consisting of one pulse per scanning cycle in a time slot representing a block to which a key switch which is ON belongs, and note data consisting of a pulse in a time slot representing the particular key switch which is ON in the block indicated by the block data. A key coder encodes the block data and note data supplied from the data generator into key codes each representing the key name of the depressed key. A channel processor allots the key codes to storage channels of a key code memory having a number of such channels equal to the maximum number of tones to be reproduced simultaneously.

Abstract: Touch responsive control of note amplitude and harmonic content is achieved by providing each key with a touch responsive transducer. A set of attack/decay scale factors are accessed sequentially from a memory and used to establish the amplitude envelope of the generated note. The accessed scale factors are modified by the transducer output to effectuate touch responsive amplitude control. In a preferred embodiment, scale factors stored in consecutive memory locations define a piano-like attack/decay envelope. The transducer output sets the initial memory access location, so that the harder the key is struck, the greater the initial amplitude of the generated note.Other embodiments include touch responsive control of the constituent Fourier components of the generated tone; and utilization of multiplexing for time shared connection of plural analog touch responsive transducers to a single analog to digital converter.

Abstract: A multiplier for multiplying a fixed point multiplicand by a floating point multiplier utilizes decode logic which provides control signals related to two numbers, the sum of which is approximately equal to the mantissa of the multiplier. The multiplicand is separately left shifted in two circuits, responsive to the control signals, by a number of places respectively corresponding to the values of said two numbers. The shift circuit outputs are summed algebraically in an adder. The sum is then shifted by a number of places and in a direction determined respectively by the magnitude and sign of the power of the floating point multiplier. The result is a close approximation of the desired multiplication product. The multiplier advantageously is employed in an electronic musical instrument.

Abstract: In a scuba or other breathing apparatus, the demand regulator includes a diaphragm connected by a linkage to a valve that supplies breathable gas to the user in response to inhalation demand, as sensed by the diaphragm. The linkage includes a diaphragm-connected lever situated between a ball restrained for axial movement and a fixed member having a spherical surface facing the ball. The lever pivots on the spherical surface to cause sensitive displacement of the ball and hence actuation of the valve.

Abstract: A touch-responsive circuit uses an ohmic contact connected via a dc blocking capacitor to the high impedance input of an amplifier. A controllable impedance element shunts the capacitor and amplifier input. When the element is in the high impedance state, a weak voltage induced by touching the ohmic contact causes the amplifier to produce an output signal indicative of such touching. Touch response is disabled when the element is in the low impedance state. Advantageously, the controllable impedance element comprises a series-connected pair of diodes that are selectively forward or reverse biased; the element also may comprise an active electronic device such as a transistor.A data input terminal employs a matrix of ohmic contacts each having an associated touch-responsive circuit. Column scanning is accomplished by conditioning the controllable impedance elements in all but a selected one column to the low impedance state so that touch response is enabled only in that one selected column.

Abstract: In this speaker telephone, the microphone and loudspeaker circuits both are connected directly to the telephone line, and both are normally disabled. Separate incoming and outgoing control circuits provide respective control signals that sequentially (1) disable the other control circuit and (2) enable the respective loudspeaker or microphone circuit. By use of the alternate, sequential disabling and enabling of the audio circuits and associated control circuits, sufficient isolation is obtained so that the loudspeaker and microphone can be mounted in the same housing.

Abstract: An electrochemical sensing cell includes a planar sensing electrode clamped between a manifold cap and a cover for a container housing the counterelectrode and electrolyte. In the manifold cap, the gas being analyzed flows through a shallow recess into contact with one side of the sensing electrode. The cover includes an opening across which is supported a porous disc saturated with electrolyte. When the cap is secured to the cover, the disc presses against the other side of the sensing electrode to ensure good electrolyte contact therewith. A vent hole in the cover also permits replenishing of the electrolyte without major disassembly of the cell.

Abstract: A compact self-blimped motion picture camera is achieved by mounting all drive train components on a mounting frame which together with a truncated conical lens support floats within the camera body. The lens support includes a forward annular lens mount and a generally cylindrical section the rear end of which is affixed to the mounting frame. The lens support is truncated in a 45.degree. plane that intersects the cylinder periphery just rearward of the lens mount and intersects the lens support rear end plane in a line that crosses the cylindrical axis. A rotating shutter and mirror assembly includes a sector-shaped mirror that rotates in a plane immediately behind the lens support truncation plane. Noise is minimized by using only belt and pulley drive components and only sleeve bearings.

Abstract: These magnetic kinetic amusement devices have plural magnetically coupled elements that exhibit intermittent, alternating motion as energy is interchanged between the elements. In one embodiment, plural vertically spaced arms are mounted for pivotal motion about a common vertical axis. Each arm has a pair of magnets at its extremities. As it rotates through a partial revolution, its kinetic energy is magnetically coupled to an adjacent arm. As a result, adjacent arms alternately rotate through fractional revolutions, providing quantized motion that is fascinating to watch.In other embodiments the magnetically coupled elements comprise pendulums each having at the pendulum end a design member containing a magnet. The plural pendulums may be disposed in three dimensional array, or may be suspended from a common support with the magnets aligned for mutual repulsion so that the pendulums assume a conical arrangement.