Abstract: Method and apparatus for leveling or adjusting a power-boat's average angle of bank or list about its roll axis RA regardless of side wind or off-center loading to improve passenger comfort, increase fuel efficiency, and smooth hull passage through waves with reduced pounding. Improved operating characteristics are accomplished by adjusting steering force angle-of-attack of a small fin-rudder mounted under a forward portion of the boat's keel. The boat's heading is maintained by applying an opposite steering force by altering thrust direction of the driving and steering mechanism. Altering thrust direction occurs either by a pilot steering the helm or automatically by adjusting thrust direction independently of pilot steering. In an optional automatic mode, an electronic gravity inclinometer adjusts a fin-rudder servo. An electronic filter processes the inclinometer signal to control the boat's average attitude around its roll axis RA.

Abstract: Steering, tensioning and driving a revolving metallic casting belt in continuous casting machines wherein the belt travels along a generally straight casting plane P. Two two-axis robotic mechanisms are positioned at opposite ends of an exit-pulley drum, each including a "floating" housing carrying a bearing rotatably supporting a journal at the respective drum end. A drive shaft connected to one of the journals rotates the drum for revolving the belt. The robotic mechanisms adjustably position opposite ends of a rotating drum in X--X plane parallel with plane P for tensioning the belt and in Y--Y plane perpendicular to plane P for steering the revolving belt. These robotic mechanisms are controlled to operate in any of several modes: (1) "Walking-tilt" steering keeps the belt much closer to an exiting product than prior art, the belt being flatter and in better contact with the product for improving casting speed and quality.

Abstract: Permanent-magnetic hydrodynamic methods and apparatus stabilize a moving, flexible, thin-gauge, heat-conducting, magnetically soft ferromagnetic casting belt against thermal distortion while moving along a mold cavity being heated at its front surface by heat coming from molten metal being cast while being cooled at its reverse surface by flowing pumped liquid coolant. Hydro-magnetic devices are arranged in an array wherein flows of pumped coolant pass through fixedly throttling passageways feeding pressure pockets facing the belt's reverse surface. These pockets are shown rimmed by magnetic pole faces. Coolant issues from the pressure pockets as fast-moving films radiating therefrom and travelling in gaps between the belt's reverse surface and the pole faces.

Abstract: Edge-dam blocks assembled with their upstream faces in keyed mating interengagement with downstream faces of adjacent blocks form an endless edge dam revolvable in a preselected path for defining a boundary of a moving-mold casting region. The edge dam keeps molten metal in the casting region. Upstream and downstream faces of adjacent blocks have mutually complementary shapes for minimizing intrusion of molten metal between abutting blocks. Keying engagement between abutting blocks prevents relative translational slippage of blocks toward or away from molten metal. An abuttable face on each block has at least one protrusion such as an integral elongated key extending perpendicularly to a casting belt associated with the casting region, or the protrusion includes two round pins having projecting tapered ends. Another abuttable face has a recess such as a keyway for snugly receiving a key on an adjacent block or has two tapered recesses for snugly receiving two tapered projections of an adjacent block.

Abstract: A method for forming an isolation wall in a silicon semiconductor substrate wherein a trench is etched into the silicon using a hard mask, a layer of silicon dioxide is formed on the side walls of the trench, a filling of polysilicon is placed in the region between the side wall layers, the polysilicon is planarized by etching while the hard mask remains in place, and the hard mask then is stripped from the silicon, permitting field oxide to be grown over the trench region.

Abstract: A head protector comprising an outer hard shell and an absorbing liner inside of the outer shell wherein the liner comprises a main liner member and an inner subsidiary liner member whose density is lower than that of the main liner member and with an inner recess in the inner surface of the main liner member and wherein the inner subsidiary liner member is fitted into the inner recess.

Abstract: Emitter widths of 0.3 .mu.m on double polysilicon bipolar transistors are achieved using O.8 .mu.m photolithography and a double spacer process. The emitter width reduction is confirmed with structural and electrical measurements. The double-spacer device exhibits superior low current f.sub.T and f.sub.max.

Abstract: A head protector for a helmet, in which at least one groove is provided in a predetermined inner surface of an impact-on-the head absorbing liner, the predetermined inner surface including at least a top portion to face the vertex of a person with a helmet on, but not substantially including at least a front portion to face the person's sinciput and a plurality of projections at least partially surrounded by the groove are provided in the predetermined inner surface. Owing to this head protector, the rigidity of the whole of the impact-on-the-head absorbing liner is not worthlessly reduced and, nevertheless, both the maximum acceleration and HIC due to an impact are effectively reduced.

Abstract: Character recognition processing wherein each of a batch of documents is scanned to produce corresponding scan data signals forming a rectilinear data array of binary bits at the intersections of a rectangular coordinate grid. These signals are stored and processed by a recognition algorithm to produce identity signals for recognized characters. Groups of non-recognized characters are presented simultaneously to permit rapid identification by inspection. The identification of recognized characters is verified at high speed by simultaneously presenting the character images as respective groups sorted to have the same recognized identities. High accuracy recognition is assured by including with the stored characters to be verified a number of images of purposely-incorrectly-identified characters, i.e., bogus errors. At the end of predetermined processing segments, such as one batch of documents, the results of verification are examined to determine how many bogus errors were caught by the operator.

Abstract: A data transmission system wherein a datastream of digital words is processed in two parallel pipelined datapaths with the logical operations being performed at a clock rate which is a fraction of some other clock rate identified as a main clock rate. The outputs of the datapath logic are directed respectively to T-latch storage registers the outputs of which are directed at the fractional clock rate to corresponding inputs of a multiplexer serving to combine the two datastreams into a single datastream at the main clock rate. The multiplexer is clocked in synchronism with the T-latch clocks in timed sequence to prevent the development of a transparent path between either T-latch input and the multiplexer output.

Abstract: A self scanning light-emitting array is disclosed. A coupled array of light-emitting elements is constituted so that a light-emitting element in a minimal conducting state influences the next light-emitting element so that its threshold level is changed. When each element is driven by a common clock pulse, the change in threshold level is shifted in the longitudinal direction, so that a minimal conducting state is transferred in a clock period of the clock pulse.

Abstract: A golf club gripping device with two separate but interconnected parts, the first being a main palm-engaging and initially flat but flexible component. The other component is a tongue-like flexible element secured by stitching at one end to the main component. The tongue-like element extends through an opening formed in the main component, and provides protection and gripping capability for portions of the hand beyond the main palm-engaging portion.

Abstract: A radial-flow, wide-pouring molten-metal distributor comprising a curved or arcuate overflow weir which is normally horizontal on its top and which is concave on its upstream side as viewed from above. Over this arc-shaped overflow weir flows molten metal to be continuously cast in an open pool. An impetus is thereby imparted to the molten metal along diverging radial lines. The flow so impelled continues radially onto a horizontal apron. The flow spreads fanwise to the desired width which may be as much as six times the width of the weir. Thence, the metal cascades or flows uniformly into the casting apparatus. The overflow weir is preferably supplemented by a skimmer mounted above it in substantially uniform spaced aligned relationship, thereby completing a slot beneath the skimmer through which the molten metal flows. When employed for the casting of wide, thin product, the invention results in a far more uniform and gentle distribution of metal than heretofore available.

Abstract: A data transmission system wherein a datastream of digital words is processed in two parallel pipelined datapaths with the logical operations being performed at a clock rate which is a fraction of some other clock rate identified as a main clock rate. The outputs of the datapath logic are directed respectively to T-latch storage registers the outputs of which are directed at the fractional clock rate to corresponding inputs of a multiplexer serving to combine the two datastreams into a single datastream at the main clock rate. The multiplexer is clocked in synchronism with the T-latch clocks in timed sequence to prevent the development of a transparent path between either T-latch input and the multiplexer output.

Abstract: An integrated circuit chip for determining when the frequency of a clock pulse input signal is below a predetermined threshold level and including a capacitor charged up by a current source to produce a linearly-varying ramp signal. The charging circuit includes two MOS transistors, one arranged as a resistor to control the charging current, the other arranged as a capacitor to be charged. When the oxide layer produced by the IC process for making the chips varies in thickness from one batch of chips to a subsequently produced batch, the effect on the charging of the MOS capacitor resulting from the change in capacitance of the previously produced chip is at least partly compensated for by the corresponding change in resistance of the MOS resistor, thereby tending to maintain the charging rate constant.

Abstract: Process for making an integrated-circuit (IC) chip with junction-isolated complementary bipolar transistors, and novel chip made by such process. P-type dopant is implanted and diffused in an N-type substrate to form a sub-collector for a pnp transistor and also is implanted and diffused in the substrate to form a P-well for the sub-collector of an npn transistor. N-type material is then implanted and diffused into the P-well to form the npn sub-collector, and also is implanted in the substrate to form part of an isolation wall for the pnp transistor. A P-type epitaxial (epi) layer is grown over the N-type substrate. N-type material is implanted and diffused in the epi layer to complete the isolation wall for the pnp transistor, and to form the collector for the npn transistor. P-type and N-type material is implanted and diffused in the P-type epi layer to form the bases and emitters for the npn and pnp transistors.

Abstract: Banding apparatus in various embodiments include accelerator members for accelerating plastic bands downstream along a floating mandrel for propelling them at high speed with significant kinetic energy in being ejected off from an end of the mandrel toward and around articles to be banded. In one apparatus belts accelerate elongated label bands to more than 1,000 feet per minute. The peripheries of tear-off rollers turn continuously at a first speed for tearing successive bands off from perforated plastic tubing which may be pre-perforated label tubing. Alternatively, plastic tubing may be perforated during operation by continuously feeding flattened tubing between perforator and anvil rollers positioned upstream from the mandrel. Accelerator members shown as rollers or as revolving belts have repetitive first and second peripheral speeds alternating with each other in cycles.

Abstract: Elongated finned backup rollers have multiple magnetized fins for rolling contact with a moving endless, flexible, thin-gauge, heat-conducting, magnetically soft ferromagnetic casting belt for guiding and stabilizing the belt against thermal distortion while it moves along the mold cavity being heated at its front surface by heat from molten metal while being cooled at its reverse surface by flowing liquid coolant. Each finned backup roller includes an elongated, non-magnetic shaft rotatable around its axis and having multiple annular fins of magnetically soft ferromagnetic material fitted onto the shaft spaced along the shaft. The fins have circular perimeter rims for rolling contact with the reverse surface of a belt. Intervening collar shaped reach-out permanent magnets are mounted on the shaft between successive fins. The fins and reach-out collar magnets alternate in sequence along the length of the roller. The reach-out collar magnets are magnetized in a direction parallel with the axis of the roller.

Abstract: An integrated-circuit (IC) chip formed with a D-to-A converter (DAC) and an amplifier to receive the DAC output and to produce a corresponding signal for an output terminal. The chip includes control circuitry to prevent harmful instability in the signal at the output terminal during times that one or more power supply voltages are changing. The control circuitry includes a voltage-monitoring device which produces a RESET signal when a monitored supply voltage is beyond its nominal operating range. The RESET signal de-activates the amplifier input and output circuits, and following a short time delay after the start of RESET, disables the amplifier by killing the amplifier bias currents. The chip is arranged to receive a RESET signal from external devices, and to produce a RESET signal for any other devices in the system.

Abstract: A band-gap voltage reference forming part of a CMOS IC chip. A .DELTA.V.sub.BE voltage is developed by stacked pairs of parasitic bipolar transistors, with the transistors of each pair operated at different current densities. MOS buffer transistors are connected at corresponding ends of the stacks where the .DELTA.V.sub.BE voltage is developed. The bipolar transistors are driven by MOS current sources.