Abstract: An improved price display system for a multi-level merchandising machine in which the prices of articles at the respective levels are electronically displayed individually at locations immediately adjacent to the levels. Both the prices and the displays can be changed in a rapid and expeditious manner from a station within the machine cabinet. In addition, both the mode of operation and the compartment size of a level can be displayed and changed. The system may be provided with a timer for automatically changing all prices at a predetermined time. The system employs a small number of conductors to control a large number of displays.

Abstract: The invention relates to an ultrasonic distance measuring device for linear distance measurement comprising a tube of magnetostrictive material, a magnet displaceable relative to the tube for generating torsional ultrasonic pulses as a function of electrical pulses produced by a pulse generator and travelling along the tube, these torsional ultrasonic pulses serving as position signals, and also comprising an ultrasonic receiver coupled to the tube for converting ultrasonic pulses generated in the tube into electrical signals and a measuring circuit for ascertaining the position of the movable magent as a function of the time interval between the signals obtained from the position signals and at least one respective reference signal generated by the presence of an electrical pulse.

Abstract: A tool carrier for lathes, in particular a tool turret, having a plurality of stations for holding tools, at least one of which is provided with a driven tool spindle designed as a hollow shaft and rotatably mounted in a housing. This tool spindle accommodates a tool chuck which is coaxial to and non-rotatably connected with the tool spindle and is displaceable in axial direction relative to the tool spindle for opening and closing. The tool carrier also has a threaded spindle connected in axial direction with the chuck and a nut arranged thereon for opening and closing the chuck. To simplify the construction only one drive shaft is provided and this shaft is constantly coupled with the nut and connected with the tool spindle via a releasable coupling.

Abstract: A charge and bias control system for a liquid-developer electrophotographic copier in which a sensing electrode is disposed in the developing station just upstream of the developing electrodes. Developer liquid fills the space between the sensing electrode and the photoconductor to provide a direct coupling between the two elements. The charge level is adjusted at the beginning of each copy cycle by supplying the control input for the charge-corona power supply with a ramp derived by periodically indexing a counter concurrently with the movement of the photoconductor. When the photoconductor surface potential, as measured by the sensing electrode, reaches a predetermined level, further indexing of the counter is inhibited. The same sensing electrode is used during the scanning phase of the copy cycle to regulate the biasing potential applied to the developing electrodes.

Abstract: An airflow system for use with a helmet includes a face piece adapted to enclose the eyes of the wearer to form a first cavity and to enclose the nose and mouth of the wearer to form a second cavity isolated from the first cavity. Filtered air normally flows through an inlet to the first cavity, from which it flows to the second cavity through a conduit and eventually to the ambient region through an exhalation duct leading from the second cavity. The air is supplied under pressure to the first cavity and the exhalation duct provided with check valves at its inlet and outlet to maintain a positive pressure in the first cavity, thereby to prevent the infiltration of noxious gases, over most of the breathing range. A spring-loaded check valve normally admits additional air directly to the second cavity through a second inlet to prevent excessive airflow through the first cavity across the eyes of the wearer.

Abstract: A scale under microprocessor control weighs each batch of currency. The weight measurement is compared against predetermined stored weight values to determine if the currency being weighed is strap currency or unstrapped currency and to determine the range of the currency count. Dependent upon the result of these comparisons, the proper routine is selected during which the last currency measurement is compared against the measurement criteria of the selected routine to either confirm the accuracy of the count or indicate an error. An average strap value is created from a table of stored values for at least one of the strap quantities and is updated each time a strap of that quantity is weighed. The averaging technique employed creates an average from the weights of the last ten straps of that quantity measured, and which are stored in the table. The averaging is performed after the table is updated.

Abstract: Sensors in the infeed and output stackers, under control of the microprocessor, monitor the sheets. The apparatus is started automatically by placing sheets in the infeed. A count of the sheets is developed and displayed as the sheets are fed. When the infeed is empty and the output contains sheets, the count is retained. If sheets are removed from the outfeed, the count is retained and is reset only after more sheets are placed in the input. The same rules obtain for batching. The sensors cooperate with singles, holes and doubles detectors and have their gain adjusted depending upon sheet density. Automatic threshold adjustment circuits compensate for dust build-up and component aging. Upon sheet detection, the sensing circuit threshold level is instantaneously shifted to prevent an abrupt change in intensity from the sheet covering the sensor to provide an erroneous indication of the presence of a subsequent sheet or sheets.

Abstract: An assembly for use at the nip between a dryer fabric and a dryer bottom roll at a location at which the fabric moves onto the roll and at which the web to be dried is outside the fabric. A shroud having first and second walls which diverge from a nose is assembled with a plenum chamber body having downwardly converging walls with an opening between the lower ends. The upper edge of one wall of the shroud is secured to one wall of the body to form a first plurality of orifices with the nose of the shroud below the opening and with the other wall of the shroud extending upwardly along and in spaced relation to the other wall of the body. One edge of a baffle extending across the body opening is secured to the one wall of the shroud with the other edge of the baffle connected to the other body wall at a location below the upper end of the other shroud wall to form a second line of orifices.

Abstract: This invention relates to a facing for the bank of earthen formations, particularly soil masses reinforced by geotextile sheets, said facing being composed of plates individually hooked to the bank by supple hooking elements, and the plates are disposed in substantially horizontal rows, the plates of one row partially overlapping the plates of the row immediately therebeneath.

Abstract: A sheet dispenser for selectively dispensing predetermined numbers of paper currency of different denominations and having plural stations each receiving a stack of bills. The dispenser includes a feed roller with a pair of flanges. The high friction surface portion of the feed roller flanges engage a bottom sheet and feed it between the feed roller and a stripper shoe to assure single sheet feeding. Elongated acceleration pinch wheels each form a nip with the belt for accelerating a sheet entering the nip. A curved resilient guide cooperates with each feed roller to guide sheets toward its associated nip. The sheets pass along the acceleration belt to an outfeed stacker including a stacker wheel. Sensors detect the entry of a sheet into each acceleration nip and control positioning of the feed roller. Notches in the flanges of each feed roller assure movement of the leading edge of the sheet into the feed nip. Each feed roller rotates one revolution for each sheet to be dispensed.

Abstract: Improvement in pneumatic sensors for the control of pneumatic cycles, in which a liquid jet vacuum pump is supplied at the input by a compressed air circuit and connected at the output to a nozzle of which the obturation provokes a rise in pressure in the vacuum pump used as signal for controlling a pneumatic component. The space 4 comprised between the jets 2, 3 of the vacuum pump is connected on the one hand to an output orifice 14 emitting the control signal and on the other hand to an airing valve 13b which, open during the ejection leakage, admits the atmospheric pressure in the space 4, the output 14 and the duct 15 preventing the creation of a depression and which is closed during obturation of the leakage. The invention is used for the control of pneumatic cycles.

Abstract: Device for changing the attachment jaws of a chuck provided with main jaws, each of which has two axially aligned bolts for exact positioning of the attachment jaws. These bolts engage and fit into bores in the attachment jaw and guide a locking slide means which is displaceable in a radial direction by means of a headless screw inserted into the attachment jaw. A gripping device for the atachment jaws has a screw driving means and a threaded bore for the screw and so the latter is screwed partially out of the attachment jaw and into the gripping device in order to connect gripping device and attachment jaw with one another.

Abstract: An optical scanning system for a variable-magnification electrophotographic copier includes a first scanning carriage reciprocated along a path by endless bands attached to the carriage at transversely spaced locations and driven purely by friction. Pulleys mounted on a second scanning carriage at transversely spaced locations roll between the drive bands and stationary guides to move the second carriage at half the speed of the first carriage. The second carriage may be shifted relative to the first carriage by moving it to a location at which arms lift the pulleys from the guides. A flywheel rotating at the desired scanning speed is coupled to the scanner drive train after the drive train has been smoothly accelerated to the desired scanning speed, and is uncoupled from the scanner drive train before the drive train is decelerated at the end of the scanning stroke.

Abstract: Apparatus for repositioning the lens of a variable-magnification electrophotographic copier to change the image-side path length for a different magnification ratio and for concomitantly adjusting the shutter to compensate for the changed image-side path length. Actuation of a stepper motor rotates a pulley to tension a cable coupled to the lens, pulling the lens to the desired position of a linear track. A portion of the cable extends around a pulley having an axially projecting circumferentially extending ramp on one face. A follower engaging the ramp is coupled to slit-forming members adjacent to the photoconductor so that movement of the cable to reposition the lens produces a concomitant adjustment of the width of the slit to equalize exposure of the photoconductor over a substantially continous range of selected magnifications.

Abstract: An electrophotographic copier for selectively printing in one of a number of different colors in which development takes place at a common station around the periphery of a photoconductive drum to which station a distributor system selectively feeds liquid from one of a number of supply containers and from which the liquid is returned to the container from when it came. Our machine flushes the common portion of the liquid circulating system each time a change in color is made. The processing liquid tanks of our machine are provided with an arrangement for inhibiting settling of toner particles in the tanks.

Abstract: There is disclosed a method for preparing an alcohol-free wine product. A completely fermented wine is evaporated to produce a dealcholized wine concentrate and a vapor condensate containing alcohol and aromatic substances. The condensate is separated into a fraction comprising alcohol and aromatic substances. The aromatic substances are mixed with dealcoholized wine concentrate, fruit juice concentrate, fruit juice or water to produce an alcohol-free wine product.

Abstract: Electrophotographic apparatus capable of being operated in the copying mode and scanning mode and in the printing mode and scanning mode, in which a latent electrostatic image, formed on the photoconductor, is developed. The photoconductor has a light-reflective surface. After the latent electrostatic image is developed, a focused laser beam or focused light beam scans the developed image and specularly reflected light from the photoconductor surface is directed onto a photodetector. The output of the photodetector is encoded and may be transmitted or stored. The developed image is not destroyed, and it can then be transferred to a carrier sheet if desired.

Abstract: Documents are advanced to a registered position along the trailing edge of the exposure platen of an electrophotographic copier by a flat belt supported adjacent to the registration edge by a pulley formed with axially spaced indentations to produce corresponding corrugations in the belt. A registration gate having a blocking position in which transversely spaced fingers extend into the belt corrugations arrest the documents at the registration edge while the normal-diameter portions of the belt pulley press the document downwardly to prevent it from riding over the registration gate. Position pulses from an encoding wheel are counted to determine the position of the document, and drive motor is slowed to one-fifth its normal speed when the document advances within a predetermined distance of the registration edge.

Abstract: Apparatus for registering a copy sheet prior to feeding the sheet to the image-transfer station of an electrophotographic copier. Opposing pairs of relatively rigid feed rollers are arranged on shafts in alternating relationship with opposing pairs of relatively compliant feed rollers, which are of somewhat larger diameter than the rigid rollers so as to form nips of appreciably greater extent in the direction of feed. Registration gates mounted for rotation on one of the roller shafts through slipping couplings are selectively restrained against rotation with the roller shaft either in a non-blocking position out of the feed path or in a blocking position within the nip area of the compliant rollers but upstream of the nip area of the rigid rollers.

Abstract: A damping building structure, in the form of a floor joist, spanning two separated supports. Oscillations in the joist are damped by a pair of overlapping plates which are clamped together by one or more nuts and bolts. One of the plates is secured to the floor joist being damped, and the other of the plates is secured, directly or indirectly, to ground. The friction between the overlapping plates acts to damp any oscillations in the floor joist. A spring may be interposed between one of the plates and the nut or bolthead, and, if desired, a friction material may be sandwiched between the plates. The damping arrangement may be secured to the floor joist at one end, at both ends, or at mid-point of the span between the two supports.