Abstract: A spiral freezer for continuous duty in continuous food process lines has a freezer compartment enclosing a double-helix arrangement, of which there is a helical run of a food-carrying conveyor in combination with a helical ramp or slideway for the food-carrying conveyor's helical run to ascend or descend on. The helical ramp is an assembly of numerous heat exchanger tubes, each wound helically and positioned in set lanes in the overall assembly of the ramp. An external refrigerant-circulating system is connected to circulate refrigerant through the heat exchanger tubes in order that hot components like compressors and condensers be kept outside of the freezer compartment for better energy efficiency. The foregoing conveyor and heat exchanger arrangement provides close proximity between the source(s) of heat in the food product on the conveyor and the sink of that heat to the refrigerant flowing inside the heat exchanger tubes.

Abstract: A buzzbait has an underlying free arm wire which is formed with a leading, line-pulled central portion flanked by first and second trailing arms. The first arm rotatably carries a reaction impeller. The second arm carries a slug in a leading position ahead of a trailing hook. The reaction impeller is produced with multiple arms to facilitate slow retrieves in which the buzzbait nevertheless rides on the surface rather than sink. The blade tips of the reaction impeller, in combination with the arrangement of the arms and location of the slug, are positioned to strike the slug with each pass. This produces a fish-attracting effect, namely a sound something like a “cow bell.” The slow retrieves facilitate low-repetition rates with the “cow bell” sound.

Abstract: A system for administrating over changes to a record shared by a plurality of users authorized to do so is provided with a resource to officiate over an official version of the record and to communicate with the plurality of users over a medium for non-persistent communications. Typically, this medium is the Internet. In response to a request of a given user, the resource replies with a communication sending a copy of the official version. In consequence of a return by the given user of a request to effect given changes, the resource compares a saved original edition of the sent copy to the official version so if in case of a match the resource effects the given changes to the official version, or else not.

Abstract: A volume control pedal has an opposed emitter and receiver which are set up to establish an emission path therebetween. A shade is provided to intersect the emission path. Pedal operation induces relative displacement between the shade and emission that as a result varies the emission reception such that the receiver's output provides a control variable for volume control. The shade has a varying regions of light and dark as rendered by an image of a varying dot density pattern. This allows among other things producing the image by a computer-implemented process, as well as printing it on transparent stock such as optionally on a negative film by a film developing process.

Abstract: A method and apparatus achieves making a surface-analysis determination precedent to allowing an electrofusion welding operation on pipe stock which is prescribed to be scraped, skinned or cleaned of surface contaminants prior to being graded ‘passable’ for such electrofusion welding. The method and apparatus utilizes non-contacting probes affixed to the welding power-supply leads such that inspection is automatic on the applicable pipe section(s) contemporaneously prior to enabling power-supply to the hot-wire welding coils. If the applicable pipe section fails the inspection, the welding equipment is disabled until the probes are disassembled, and then re-assembled for a succeeding inspection, such that during the interim an operator presumptively rectifies the situation as by re-scraping or skinning the applicable pipe section.

Abstract: A method and system for communications of fuel data, including fuel depletion data, in regards of fuel storage tanks includes an electronic communicator linked to a sensor associated with the storage tank for communicating over a communications network the fuel data to innumerable other parties connected on the communications network.

Abstract: An avian medicament or pest control product is a combination of a medicament or pest control release agent, as well as at least two impregnable devices that have been specially impregnated the medicament or pest control release agent, and then also at least one fastener for piercing through some chosen anatomy of the avian specimen and retaining one impregnable device aside an entry wound and another impregnable device aside the exit wound. The fastener and impregnable devices are scaled sufficiently small to minimize stress or other ill effects on the health or productivity of the specimen, whose natural movements over time are consequently anticipated upon to disperse the release agent across his or her body through the oil and wax of his or her feathers.

Abstract: A bird feeder apparatus comprising a structure having a substantially vertical axis of rotation about which the structure is mounted for free rotation in a horizontal plane. The bird feeder tray is carried by the structure to pivot relative thereto at several locations about the axis, whereby the bird feed in the tray remains presented upwardly as the structure rises, falls, pitches, rolls, pivots, swings and sways in response to bird weight application to the tray or bird leverage arms.

Abstract: A compact self-propelled vehicle for composting windrows of compost material found in cramped confines has a low frame forming a central tunnel for mounting a flow-through conveyor. A front pick-up end has a central-flow auger system for attacking into the windrow end-on along the long axis thereof. The conveyor that has a lower intake end immediately trailing the central-flow auger system and a high discharge end for back-depositing the discharged material back into windrow formation. Hence central-flow auger system breaks apart, disintegrates and/or stirs the dug-into material while ultimately accomplishing transfer of it onto the conveyor. In essence, the vehicle worms its way through the windrow by virtue of the wheels rolling through a temporary and traveling void created between the leading pick-up end and the back-deposited material discharged by the discharge end of the conveyor.

Abstract: A valve-regulated lead acid (VRLA) battery cell (2,40) has positive and negative plates (10,11,41,42) separated by separator media (12,43) and held together under pressure. The separator is adapted to support therein an electrolyte. Each plate has a first single or plurality of tabs (12,13,46) on a first side and a second single or plurality of tabs (15,16,47) on a second side of the plate, each tab being connected to a busbar (17,18,49,50) to form positive and negative busbars on each of the first and second sides of the plate. The cell may be alternatively configured in a spirally-wound arrangement or in a prismatic arrangement of flat plates. The cell may be constructed of a plurality of such positive and negative plates. A VLRA battery (1, 40) may be constructed of one or a plurality of such VLRA cells, in which case the busbars of neighboring cells are connected by welded joints. The busbars are serviced by at least plural pairs of positive and negative terminals (24,25,33,34,52,53,54,55).

Abstract: A method for making a quality determination in avian eggs, such as relating to fertility or hatching or hatchling viability, comprises the following activities. A process line is equipped to process an endless succession of eggs at an early opportunity. The process line has an ultrasound inspection station for the eggs. The ultrasound inspection results are analyzed to make a finding correlatable to the egg's shell quality, which in turn is correlatable to such quality factors as fertility or hatching or hatchling viability. A sorting determination is made based on this analysis as to which output category the egg should be sorted. The output categories might number three or so including qualified premium as for graduation to hatchery operation, not qualified for hatchery but not waste, and flunked because unusable and hence waste. The intermediate category might include graded for pet consumption.

Abstract: A plush article is given a coating of wax which is imbued with a scent substance that diffuses slowly over time. That way, this coated scented plush article doubles not only as an ornamental accessory but also as a disguised air freshener.

Abstract: A chair is provided with an outrigged limb rest for supporting a user's substantially outstretched arm. The chair has a seat for supporting the user, an adjustable outrigger connected to the seat, and a limb rest carried on the adjustable outrigger for supporting the user's outstretched arm. The adjustable outrigger includes a mechanism for adjusting or varying the elevation of the limb rest between upper and lower extremes as well as varying the inboard to outboard position of the limb rest between inboard and outboard extremes such that the limb rest is positionable to afford a rest or landing place for the elbow, forearm, or both of the user's arm when substantially outstretched.

Abstract: A combination abrasive disc and backing plate provide workpiece viewing and blowing collectively through aligned viewing apertures. The backing plate has a bottom surface adapted to support the abrasive disc and an opposed top surface. Coordinated alignment of the viewing apertures of the disc and plate allows observation of a workpiece collectively through the disc and plate during rotary drive thereof. The plate's viewing aperture is partially adjoined by a scoop formation on the plate's top surface. The scoop is arranged for deflecting air from above the plate's top surface and consequently forcing such in a current collectively through the aligned viewing apertures of the disc and plate. This blowing current acts to both blow away debris from the field of view and thereby reduce viewing impairment, as well as to provide some cooling to the workpiece.

Abstract: A method of vacuum drying sludge or slurry input material comprises providing a closed-ended vacuum tunnel with at least two interior augers. The tunnel has an interior bed recessed with adjacent troughs separated by a low partition for accommodating the two augers in closely-spaced generally-horizontal side-by-side relation. The augers are driven counter-rotating such the input material re-circulates in an endless loop down one auger, over to the other and back again. The augers have screws formed with stubby flights to form a cut-and-fold arrangement and disintegrate the material. The chamber is heated up to or over 70° C. and a current of air is suctioned into the tunnel through inlets and out through ports in part pull a slight vacuum in the tunnel as well as to suction up and draw out disintegrating fractions of the material including gasified fractions, waftable finely divided particulate fractions and other waftable fractions.

Abstract: A method of Web-site host consistency administration provides for consistent presentation of data despite presentation on client machines with inconsistent software-object libraries. The host sends screen images which contact the client's onboard DLLs as little as possible. That way, inconsistency problems called binary incompatibilities are avoided. The client is excused from most of the processing load. The client's role is practically limited to displaying the received screens and sending out keystrokes and cursor-moving device inputs. The light role given the client correspondingly shifts more of a load on server-side processing and data storage. Nevertheless, the method provides high assurance the any client sees substantially the same result for the same request despite differences or inconsistencies in software-object libraries onboard the client's machine.

Abstract: A tank agitator connects to a low head feed and causes agitation by discharging through a port that might rotate, oscillate, or otherwise issue a pulsing stream. This agitator has a housing with a turbine plenum and an exhaust plenum. A turbine in the turbine plenum spins by the flowthrough of the feedwater and exhausts to the exhaust plenum. A hollow drive shaft is spun by the turbine and extends through the exhaust plenum and to terminate outside the housing. It has an aperture that allows water in the exhaust plenum to flow into its lumen. A nozzle caps the shaft and is bent such that the discharge issuing therefrom sweeps in circles with the spinning of the drive shaft. A variant form of the agitator includes a drive train that incorporates a drag link to convert the spinning input of the turbine into an oscillating output in the drive shaft. In another variant form, the discharge is pulsed.