Abstract: The invention concerns a device to generate mechanical work with a steam engine that works with a closed circuit and that has a feed water tank, a feed pump, an evaporator to generate steam, the steam engine, and a condenser. The invention is based on the problem of keeping a device of the initially cited kind free of damage from freezing water when the device is not operating and the environmental temperatures are low. To this end, an inert gas in the feed water tank (10) is used to expel the feed water from the other part (36) of the circuit to the feed water tank (10). This is done by switching a valve arrangement. The feed water tank (10) is designed so that it will not be damaged, for example by exploding from freezing water inside. The advantages of the closed circuit are retained. To restart the device, the system is reheated, and the valve arrangement only has to be switched back to the position suitable for normal operation.

Abstract: The present invention is for a mulch device for soil stabilization and grass and wildflower seed enhancement comprising pelletized straw mulch having high bulk density, straw fibers, and fertilizing qualities. The pelletized straw mulch is spread onto a surface to reduce soil erosion, to promote seed establishment, to promote water infiltration and retention, to promote soil stabilization and to enhance soil fertilization. Also disclosed is a novel method of using straw for soil stabilization and grass and wildflower seed enhancement.

Abstract: A method and a device for controlling a winder, where the winding torque (Tw), during winding, is controlled as a function of the desired tractive force in the material to be wound. During winding, repeatedly is calculated which value a quantity (Vl), influencing the winding torque (Tw), has to adopt in order to obtain a desired tractive force (Fw), and an adjustment of the said quantity (V1) is carried out, the calculated value being used as an objective value. Preferably, the calculation is done by an algorithm, expressing the said quantity as a function of the desired tractive force (Fw), as a function of one or more fixed parameters which are characteristic for winding up material or for the winder, and as a function of one or more variable parameters, being measured or calculated during winding. The device also relates to a winder comprising a winding body (1), (2) for winding a material, a drive device (3,9),(4,10) for driving this winding body (1), (2) an a control device.

Abstract: The present invention concerns a method for treating solid waste with an organic fraction. A slurry (4) of the waste (1) diluted with water (3) is sieved, at least by means of a sieving device (5) which lets pieces through whose dimension in at least one direction, and preferably in at least two standing directions, is situated between 2 and 20 mm, after which, from the slurry (7) which has passed through, a part of the ferrous metals (8) which are present in the waste (1) is removed from said waste by means of magnets, and the slurry (7) is finally dewatered.

Abstract: A face-to-face weaving machine comprising upper (5) and lower spacers (6) for extending in the warp direction between two fabrics (12), (13) and a weft insertion device (2), (3), (4) for inserting weft yarns (22) between the spacers (5), (6), said spacers being carried out as a rigid element with a first (5c), (6c) and a second part (5B), (6B), the vertical intermediate distance between the first parts (5c), (6c) of the spacers (6) being shorter than said distance between the second parts (5B), (6B) such that the weft yarns (22) can be inserted between said second parts (5B), (6B).

Abstract: For an improved cooling a fuel cell stack (1) with cooling fins extending around the periphery of the stack, the section of the stack has a somewhat longitudinal shape. In detail, the stack comprises: a plurality of fuel cells electrically connected in series and having equivalent active section areas and circumferences, each fuel cell comprising a laminate of layers, these comprising an electrolyte membrane and catalyst, electrode and gas diffusion layers the functions of which may be combined in any combination in multifunction layers; end and separator plates delimiting each cell; and cooling layers (9) the cooling function of which also may be combined with other layers in respective multifunction layers, the cooling layers each projecting beyond the circumferential outer periphery (14) of the laminate of the outer layers thereby comprising an inner active section area (15) and a peripheral cooling fin area (11).

Abstract: The Mixed Mine Alternative (MMA) System is a military system designed for use in mechanized warfare. The MMA System has three components, MMA smart Antitank mines, MMA Antihandling Sensors linked to the MMA smart Antitank mines, and MMA Remote Control Units (RCU). The MMA smart Antitank (AT) mines contain a primary sensor system hardened against countermeasures and a kill mechanism similar to existing scatterable AT mines. The MMA AT mine is capable of transmit and receive communications with a Remote Control Unit and with the MMA Antihandling Sensors (AH). The communications capabilities and processors in the MMA AT and the MMA AH allow the system to establish MMA AT to MMA AH links after the mines have been scattered. MMA AT will be linked to MMA AH that are within their lethal radius. The MMA AT mine processors allow the mine primary antitank sensor to be on or off. The mine may receive and act on detonate instructions from the primary antitank sensor, from the antihandling sensors, or from the MMA RCU.

Abstract: Reactive gas is released through a crystal source material or melt to react with impurities and carry the impurities away as gaseous products or as precipitates or in light or heavy form. The gaseous products are removed by vacuum and the heavy products fall to the bottom of the melt. Light products rise to the top of the melt. After purifying, dopants are added to the melt. The melt moves away from the heater and the crystal is formed. Subsequent heating zones re-melt and refine the crystal, and a dopant is added in a final heating zone. The crystal is divided, and divided portions of the crystal are re-heated for heat treating and annealing.

Abstract: A fuel flowmeter has a flowmeter with rotating impellers with meshed lobes rotatable in partially cylindrical housings joined in a case having an inlet at one side and an outlet at an opposite side. Fuel moves in the inlet filling voids between lobes in both impellers and moves cylindrically around opposite partially cylindrical walls and turning the impellers until reaching the outlet. Flow conditioners in the inlet and outlet allows smooth flow, reducing turbulence and promoting lamellar flow into and out of the case. One of the rotors may have a magnetic marker. A transmitter with a Hall effect sensor is mounted on the case. A signal conditioning software is connected to the Hall effect sensor for adjusted transmitted information according to measured pulse rate and a standard flow.

Abstract: A piston machine has at least one axially movable piston in a cylinder. At the top of the cylinder there is at least one intake valve and at least one exhaust valve. An injection port is provided in a cylinder wall between a lower and upper point of reversal of the piston. The air is suitably supplied from an air chamber between the cylinder wall and a lower narrowed part of the piston. For adjustment to the engine load, this air chamber may be connected with an extra air chamber suitably having an adjustable volume. Likewise, the engine may be provided with a rotary valve for supplying the air to the cylinder. This provides for a faster exhausting of the combustion gases and a better degree of filling of the cylinders.

Abstract: The invention pertains to a vehicle for handling coils (2), particularly sheet metal coils, or the like. According to the invention, the vehicle comprises a bridgelike frame structure (1) which forms a tunnel (3) all along the vehicle, for the passage of coils (2) while they lay on the ground, having height and width dimensions slightly greater than the corresponding dimensions of the coils (2), means (18) for griping the coils (2) and means (10) for lifting the coils (2). In accordance with an advantageous improvement, the tunnel (3) is at least partly upwardly open, to allow the coils (2) to be lifted above the height of the tunnel (3). The invention also addresses a combination of the vehicle with a store for coils (2), wherein coils (2) are arranged axially side-by-side on rows (A, B, C, D), whose distance from each other depends on the wheel gauge of the vehicle.

Abstract: There is provided an improved panel-bed method and apparatus for achieving an intimate contact of a gas and a loose granular solid material (e.g., for filtering dust from the gas). A bed of the material is housed in a tall, narrow panel, across which gas moves in a substantially horizontal direction. Gas-entry portions of the granular bed are supported by louvers that slope inwardly and upwardly from nearby their outer edges. The total area of the gas-entry faces presented by these gas-entry portions is greater than the projected vertical frontal area of the panel. After an interval of the contact, gas-entry faces of the granular material are renewed by causing en masse displacement of the material respecting the supporting louvers, the displacement producing a spill of a surface layer from each gas-entry face. This displacement is preferably accomplished by causing louvers to move sharply upward (e.g., as may be caused by an upward blow of a hammer).

Abstract: A two-dimensional array of lateral-effect detectors (or position-sensing devices) is used to simultaneously measure multi-point centroidal locations at high speed. It is one of the primary components of a high-speed optical wavefront sensor design comprising a Shack-Hartmann-type lenslet array and associated analog circuitry including analog-to-digital (A/D) converters, and digital micro-processors. The detector array measures the centroidal location of each incident beam emerging from the lenslet array and calculates the local wavefront slope based on the beam deviations from their respective subaperture centers. The wavefront sensor is designed for high temporal bandwidth operation and is ideally suited for applications such as laser-beam propagation through boundary-layer turbulence, atmospheric turbulence, or imperfect optics. The wavefront sensor may be coupled with a deformable mirror as primary components of an adaptive optics system.

Abstract: According to known methods, gas chambers of fuel cells are sealed by applying pressure. A small space always remains between the electrode and the membrane. According to the inventive sealing method, the bipolar plate and the membrane-electrode unit are bonded with a curable polymer. A gas-proof assembly is obtained by applying an adhesive bead on the outer periphery of the gas chamber and around the inner gas ducts. These assemblies can be stacked and bonded together according to the present invention to form a stack of polymer electrolyte fuel cells. The inventive assemblies which are composed of a bipolar plate and a membrane-electrode unit can be used in polymer electrolyte fuel cells and in corresponding electrolytic cells. These assemblies have such a small weight that they can be used in mobile devices in a particularly advantageous manner.

Abstract: The invention concerns a generator for a windmill. The generator is of the kind being directly coupled to the main shaft of the wind rotor of the windmill. The generator is a stator consisting of a number of stator modules that are individual and which may be installed, repaired and dismantled individually and independently of each other. This implies that it is very easy and thereby cheaper to mount the mill, especially at sea, as the stator for the generator can be transported in smaller units, which also makes it easier to assemble the stator in the tower top section. By sequent repairs and other maintenance of the generator it is not necessary either to use large cranes, but it is sufficient to use smaller hoisting devices that may be handled by one or two persons.

Abstract: Output-only modal testing of an object. Vibrations are excited in said object and measured by a number of vibration sensitive detectors. From the data of the measurements, a spectral density matrix function is determined. From this density matrix, auto spectral densities for the individual modes are identified performing a decomposition based on the Singular Value Decomposition technique. From the auto spectral densities of the individual modes, natural frequencies and damping ratios for the modes can be estimated, and from the singular vectors of the Singular Value Decomposition, the modes shapes can be estimated.

Abstract: The disclosed safety apparatus for the erection of structure and method for erection thereof comprises a first substantially vertical support, a second substantially vertical support and a supporting cable extending between said first and second supports, wherein said vertical supports are configured to be adjustable in length and each includes a first fixing means and a second fixing means such that the length of a support may be adjusted by releasing said first fixing means and then re-fixing said first fixing means after said adjustment has been made.

Abstract: A goggle resistant to fogging is provided. The goggle consists of a water wicking and thermal transfer face gasket combined with heat transfer inlets and outlets optimized for heat transfer to air flow through the goggle. With low airflow resistance in the vertically oriented inlets and outlets, the goggle ventilates by natural convection removing moisture and keeping the goggle from fogging. Simultaneously, the present goggle results in greater comfort for the user.

Abstract: The invention relates to a device for attaching to a face-to-face weaving machine cylindrical upper and lower temples of the type having inclined toothed rings provided on shanks, the shanks of the upper and lower temples being attached to separate L-shaped upper and lower temple holder plates, in such a manner the temple shanks, pointing to the center of the weaving machines, are attached to the leg of the L-shaped holder plate placed in the warp direction, whereas the other leg of the L-shaped holder is directed towards the outside of the weaving machine and, in a manner adjustable in the warp-direction, is attached to a horizontal connecting piece, itself, in a manner adjustable as to height, being attached to a vertical holder.