Abstract: A laminated sheet allows circuit boards to be fabricated without any special equipment. The laminated sheet can be printed using an ordinary laser printer on a personal computer. The sheet has a conductive layer, such as copper, attached to a nonconductive flexible substrate, such as Kapton. The outer surface of the copper is coated with an ink which provides a receiving surface for toner when the laminated sheet is fed through a printer. The other side of the flexible substrate is attached to a removable layer of paper which provides support for the laminated sheet during the printing process. The paper is removed after printing and the adhesive which held the paper is used to attach the flexible substrate to a rigid substrate. Alcohol is used to remove the ink and expose the copper for etching. The alcohol does not remove the toner which acts as a mask during the etching process. The toner is removed after board fabrication.

Abstract: A condom holding and concealment device for providing damage resistant storage for the condom as well as a discrete method of storage is provided by enclosing the condom in an outer shell made from commonly used items such as coins. In the preferred embodiment, the coins are hollowed out to allow a condom to be safely stored in a change purse or pocket. The attaching device may also be constructed such that it is waterproof to allow the coin to be carried in a bathing suit, etc.. Optional lifting springs or pull tabs may be used to more easily remove the condom from the package. Any item similar in shape to a coin, such as poker chips, casino chips, medallions, etc., may be used in place of a coin.

Abstract: A secondary low voltage regulator for systems having low voltage control logic and high voltage devices susceptible to thermal damage due to loss of control logic power. When a power failure interrupts the primary power supply for the control logic, the secondary regulator uses the falling high voltage normally supplied to the high voltage devices as an input to a secondary regulator which supplies power to the control logic. The control logic remains active until the falling high voltage reaches a low level where the high voltage devices will not be heat damaged if not controlled by the control logic circuitry.

Abstract: A method of producing an embossing cylinder having a predetermined embossed pattern thereon by applying a screen having a pattern inscribed therein to the surface of the cylinder, applying a hardenable material over the screen and pressing the hardenable material through the screen onto the surface of the cylinder, and removing the screen and allowing the hardenable material to harden to form an embossed pattern of hardened material on the surface of the cylinder.

Abstract: In a process for separating overlapping sheet metal panels, which are welded together by a series of spot-welds, the portion of each spot-weld in one of the panels is removed by drilling or milling after which pressure is applied by means of a tool, driven by a pneumatic hammer device, to the remaining portion of the spot-weld in the other panel forcing the other panel away from the one panel and separating of the panels without substantial damage to the panels. Alternatively, a hole saw may be used to separate the spot-weld from the one panel before pressure is applied to the spot-weld to separate the panels.

Abstract: An adjustable, energy saving, high speed, air bubble and water heating system extracts waste heat from the exhaust of a water heater on a swimming pool, hot tub, or spa to heat air and/or water. The use of the waste heat results in accelerated heating of the water and creation of heated air bubbles without any additional heat energy requirements. The temperature of the water and air bubbles is independently controllable via manual controls or automatic thermostat.

Abstract: A termination circuit having a large margin which prevents the occurrence of a reflected wave due to a noise at the far end of a transmission line, thereby reducing the power consumption in the termination impedance. The termination circuit is constructed such that a first transistor is connected to a first potential and a second transistor is connected to a second potential which constitute the output stage of the termination circuit. The transistors are driven by first and second inverters having different input/output characteristics, respectively, thereby increasing the operation margin of the termination circuit. Particularly, if the second potential is assumed to be lower than the first potential, the second inverter driving the second transistor has such input/output characteristics that it outputs an output voltage which turns off the second transistor before the first inverter turns on the first transistor as the input voltage increases.

Abstract: Groups of DCVS (Differential Cascode Voltage Switch) circuits are interconnected by single-track data transfer connections. Each group contains one or more DCVS tree circuits, through which data signals propagate only on dual-track connections. In each group, at least one DCVS tree circuit is configured as an input boundary tree, and at least one tree circuit is configured as an output boundary tree. All data inputs externally applied to a group, are transferred only through input boundary trees of the group, and all data outputs transferred out of a group leave the group only through output boundary trees of the group. If a group has only a single tree, that tree serves as input and output boundary tree of the group. Each input boundary tree of each group has one or more associated primary shift register latch (SRL) circuits through which all external data inputs to that tree are transferred. Such external data inputs are received through the single-track connections mentioned above.

Abstract: A basic tree construction, from which differential cascode voltage switch (DCVS) circuits having variable logic personality can be formed, contains n (>2) rows of differentially associated semiconductor device pairs spanned by n pairs of complementary input conductor leads, and a load circuit coupled to drain terminals of devices in the nth row. The nth row contains 2 device pairs and each other row contains 2.sup.i-1 device pairs (i=1, 2, . . . , n-1). Connections between source and drain terminals of devices in successive rows are predefined from the 1st to the n-1st row and variably definable between the n-1st and nth rows. Connections between input conductors and device gate terminals are predefined in each row other than the nth row, and variably definable in the nth row. Upon selectively defining a set of variable connections relative to the n-1st and nth rows the logic personality of the tree is selected to conform to any one of all possible functions of n variables.

Abstract: A blowout system for ejection and discharge tubes of submarines is provided which permits an ejection of weapons from a torpedo tube, said weapons not having an own propulsion, and which prevents the intrusion of water after the blowout operation is terminated. The system is subsequently installable as a compact unit and has an outlet opening which is closed by a check valve. The outlet opening is continued by a buffer tube, a blowout valve arranged between a compressed-gas container and said buffer tube being provided for supplying said compressed gas.

Abstract: In an adapter card having an attached daughter card, the adapter card is offset from its edge connector, such that the edge connector occupies one plane and the basecard occupies a parallel plane, thereby allowing the daughter card to attach to the basecard and occupy the same plane as the edge connector which allows the daughter card to use an I/O connector without violating the space envelope of the next basecard, and also allows a daughter card to be interchanged between systems with different packaging architectures.

Abstract: The process for varying the speed of a speech signal that involves splitting at least a portion of the speech frequency bandwidth into N narrow sub-bands, processing each sub-hand signal contents to derive therefrom magnitude data M(i, n) and phase data P(i, n), i=1, . . . , N being the subband index and n the time index. The M (i, n) sequence is converted into a sequence M'(n) by either duplicating one sample every K samples (K being an integer value derived from the desired slowing-down/speeding up ratio). The phase sequence P (i, n) is processed to derive therefrom an increment sequence D(i, n)=P(i, n)-P(i, n-1), which increment sequence is first converted into a D'(i, n) sequence by either dropping or duplicating one sample every K, samples, before being converted into P'(i, n)=P'(i, n)+D'(i, n). The P'(i, n), D'(i, n) sequences are converted back into sub-band signals contents, then combined together into the slowed-down/speeded-up speech signal.

Abstract: Successive rows of cigarettes delivered axially from a packing machine hopper outlet (12) are engaged by a cyclically-movable transfer member (24, 32, 425) which accelerates each row sideways and closes up spaces between cigarettes (C) before transferring the row to a conveyor (22) moving continuously at machine speed. The conveyor may be a drum (22) which transfers the cigarettes to a pocket conveyor (62) in which the cigarette bundles are formed, or it may be the pocket conveyor itself. The hopper may have several spaced outlets (12) so that rows may be supplied to the pocket conveyor (62) at spaced locations along its length to provide multi-layer bundles.