Abstract: An improved automatic door closure is provided for a door which has a door post mounted by two or more members attached to a door jamb. The door closure comprises a roller which is mounted on the door jam, a cam which is mounted on the door post so that it will rotate with the door post but is capable of limited movement relative to the post in an axial direction, and a spring for urging the cam against the roller as the door is swung between open and closed positions. The cam is contoured so as to cause it and the roller to coact with spring arranged to cause the door to return from open to closed position without any operator applied force. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the door closure apparatus comprises a compression spring for urging the door to close, and an adjustable mechanism for varying the force exerted by that spring.

Abstract: A micro-titre test plate including a thermoplastic incubation tray having an array of a plurality of wells extending therethrough, filter means, and a thermoplastic harvester tray for supporting the filter sheet. The harvester tray has a plurality of apertures therethrough arranged to be registerable with the bottoms of the wells in the incubation tray. To prevent cross-talk between the wells along the filter, the facing surfaces of the harvester tray and incubation tray are provided with mating ridges and grooves circumscribing the juncture of each well and aperture. In one embodiment, the ridges and grooves are thermally bonded to one another to provide a fluid-impervious barrier trapping respective filter disks in the juncture of each well and aperture. In another embodiment, the harvester tray is formed of a pair of apertured, thermoplastic sheets nested with respective thermally bonded grooves and ridges to trap the filter, the harvester tray being not necessarily bonded to the incubation tray.

Abstract: A new and improved splicing block assembly and a novel splicing tape dispenser applicator for a cassette-loading machine are disclosed.

Abstract: Improved cam hardware for use with a self-positioning door. The cam is attached to the door mounting post by a threaded connection and has a lower surface which is symmetrically inclined about a high point. The lower surface is contacted by a cam follower roller which is rotatably attached to the door jamb. When the door is opened and released, the cam coacts with the cam follower roller to cause the door to return to its original position where the high point is mated with the roller.

Abstract: A new and improved suture anchor of the sort adapted to anchor an intermediate portion of a piece of conventional suture in bone, and a new and improved installation tool for deploying the same, said installation tool being adapted to releasably hold at least one curved needle which is attached to said piece of conventional suture.

Abstract: A method of bulk passivating a crystalline or polycrystalline substrate made from silicon, germanium, gallium arsenide or other III-V compounds, and II-VI compounds by exposing the substrate to a fluorine ion beam created by a Kaufman ion source. The Kaufman ion source is controlled so that the intensity of and duration of exposure to the fluorine ion beam is sufficient to bulk passivate the substrate. Preferably, the substrate is preheated to a selected temperature prior to the ion beam exposure.

Abstract: An apparatus for assembling or disassembling a mast comprising a plurality elongate mast sections adapted to be attached together in end-to-end configuration. The apparatus includes a lifting assembly for raising or lowering the mast from its bottom end, and a plurality of winches for reeling in or feeding out guy lines attached to the mast. The apparatus also includes a computer for controlling the operation of the winches so as to ensure the length of guy line fed out of the winches is such that the mast is supported in a substantially vertical position.

Abstract: An arrangement or organization of seats inside a passenger area of a vehicle for transporting passengers, the vehicle being the type comprising a floor, a ceiling and lateral walls which run between the front and rear ends of the passenger area. The plane of symmetry of those seats which are adjacent to the aisle each form, with the longitudinal plane of symmetry of the aisle, an acute angle opening towards the front of the seats, whereas the plane of symmetry of those seats which are adjacent to a lateral wall in the passenger area and the longitudinal plane of symmetry of the aisle are parallel.

Abstract: A control system for controlling the operation of an apparatus for growing tubular crystalline bodies. The control system comprises a weight sensor for measuring the weight of the crystal, a length sensor for measuring the length of the crystal, a pressure sensor for measuring the pressure inside the crystal, and a controller coupled to the weight, length and pressure sensors for controlling the operation of the crystal growing apparatus. The controller is coupled to the die heater of the apparatus for controlling the temperature of melt contained in the crucible of the apparatus based on the outputs of the weight, length and pressure sensors. To ensure the wall of the tubular crystalline body is maintained at a substantially uniform thickness, precise measurement of the weight of the body must be made. Compensation is provided by this invention for weight measurement errors that are created by pressure fluctations within the tubular crystalline body.

Abstract: An apparatus and process are disclosed for growing tubular crystalline bodies according to the Edge defined, Film-Fed Growth (EPG) process, wherein the apparatus has at least one exterior passage (240) and at least oen interior passage (245) formed in its crucible die assembly (200) and associated parts, whereby gases introduced into at least one exterior passage (725) will be delivered to the zone located outside the growing crystalline body (900) (i.e. the "exterior" zone ) adjacent to the growth face on the die member (215), and gases introduced into at least one interior passage (720) will be delivered to the zone located inside of the hollow crystalline body (i.e. the "interior" zone) adjacent to the growth face on the die member, whereby the atmosphere in each of the zones may be separately controlled.

Abstract: A lid for sealing a container has a removable tear skirt. The lid includes a cap portion with a circular crown and depending sidewall. An undulating annular groove which defines a frangible thin walled strip divides the sidewall into an upper section and a lower tear skirt. The cap portion has a reinforced inner wall assembly that is spaced apart from an outer depending wall, the tear skirt being attached to a lower portion of the outer wall. A weakened area adjacent to and intersecting a small lateral slot formed in the undulating groove facilitates breaking of the tear skirt. When the tear skirt is removed, a plurality of bendable flaps are formed at the lower portion of the outer wall. A fastening rib formed on an inner surface of the outer wall is configured to lockingly engage a locking flange on the container for securing the lid to the container. Opening slots provided in the flaps are configured to receive a tool for disengaging the fastening ribs and the locking flange.

Abstract: A surgical suturing system having a probe assembly for positioning tissue to be sutured and a stapling system for suturing tissue. The stapling system includes a stapler having a housing with a staple ejection slot, a magazine of preformed staples received within the housing and a driver for driving the leading staple in the magazine through the ejection slot. The probe assembly includes a holding probe in close proximity to the staple ejection slot, the probe assembly being adapted to connect with a vacuum source. A working end of the holding probe is configured to selectively hold onto and position the edges of the tissue to be sutured in juxtapositional coplanar alignment while the tissue is being sutured by a staple ejected from the stapler.

Abstract: Current injection electrostatic discharge equipment that includes a discharge capacitor connected to the input terminal of a sulfur-hexafluoride filled relay for selectively applying a current discharge to a test tip, the wave shape of the current discharge being highly repeatable.

Abstract: A rotary regenerative heat exchange assembly comprises (1) heat exchange wheel means including a heat exchange wheel having a rotation axis and rotably mounted for rotation about said axis and means for rotating said wheel about said axis; and (2) cabinet means comprising openings for securing said assembly to a source of relatively cool air and to a source of relatively warm air so that when said assembly is properly located in an operative position in said cabinet means a portion of said wheel intercepts the flow of said relatively cool air and another portion of said wheel intercepts the flow of said relatively warm air, said cabinet means including means for slidably supporting said heat exchange wheel means and an opening so that said heat exchange wheel means can be slid into said cabinet means to said operative position, and at least partially moved out of said cabinet means so that said wheel can be maintained and/or replaced.

Abstract: A system is described for correcting errors in a waveform comprising a plurality of binary pulses, each having a different rise time and fall time with respect to the positive going and negative going transitions of each pulse. The system generates a plurality of correction pulses, each synchronously with a corresponding positive going or negative going transition of the binary pulses; and adds each of the correction pulses to the waveform so that the signal area lost by the rise characteristic of the resulting binary pulses will equal the signal area gained by the fall characteristics of the resulting binary pulses.

Abstract: A mixing valve for two fluids under pressure at different temperatures. The mixing valve has a body with means defining a valve chamber, separate inlet ports for each of the fluids to be mixed, and an outlet port. A main mixing valve unit projects into the valve chamber. The mixing valve also has a means for causing axial movement of the main mixing valve unit within the main valve chamber while preventing rotation of the main valve unit relative to the valve chamber.

Abstract: A device for actively maintaining the temperature of a beverage in a container has a housing with a compartment that is configured to receive the beverage container. A solid state heat pump that is mounted to the housing is selectively energized to provide either a heating or cooling environment in the compartment for controlling the beverage temperature.

Abstract: Apparatus for and method of unscrambling a parallax panoramagram that is a lineticular dissection of a bar code formed by scrambling the bar code in accordance with a graticule formed of a plurality of parallel contiguous focussing elements disposed at a spatial frequency greater than the modular spatial frequency of the bar code. The method includes positioning said panoramagram contiguous to the opposite surface of a light transparent screen having a plurality of elongated parallel line elements including focussing surfaces disposed in common along a first surface of the screen, the spatial frequency of those line elements being matched to the spatial frequency of the focussing elements. Positioning is achieved so that the line elements are disposed substantially parallel to the lines in the lineticular dissection.

Abstract: A test fixture for use in systems designed to test circuit boards. The test fixture is adapted to receive pre-wired interchangeable modules which contain a plurality of fixed test probes disposed in an array mirroring the location of test points on the specific circuit board to be tested. The interchangeable modules have standardized arrays of intermediate connectors for mating with mirrored arrays of connectors on the frame of the test fixture.

Abstract: An improved electromagnetic actuator assembly is described. The assembly comprises a magnetic circuit for defining radially directed flux both in an inward and outward direction, and a coil disposed in the flux paths and connect to receive a control signal so that a current can be applied in one direction through those portions of the coil disposed in the inward radially directed flux, and applied in the opposite direction through those portions of the coil disposed in the outwardly directed flux so that the flux/current products of the coil portions and associated flux are additive.