Abstract: A cup 1 and a container assembly including the cup 1 are predominantly moulded in plastics. The cup has a bowl 2 with a cylindrical portion 4 having a rim 5 and from which extends a conical portion 6. External flanges 20B and 21B are provided on the conical portion 6 and internal flanges 10 and 11 are provided on the portion 4 so that two cups 1 and 1A can be bayonet fitted together by engagement of the internal flanges 10, 11 of one cup with the external flanges 20B and 21B respectively of the other cup. Co-operation between an abutment face of the internal flange 11 and an external projection 30 provides stop means which reacts between the two cups to predetermine a rotational condition of the two cups. Securing means provided by co-operation of a stud 35 and dimple 36 between the two cups maintains the cups at said predetermined condition of rotation. The cup may have a handle 28 and when the stop means and securing means is effective the handles 8 of the two cups are in alignment.

Abstract: A retrofittable fire-stop device for use with PVC or other plastic piping is disclosed. The device includes drive means for forcing a cutting member through plastic piping in response to heat. The cutting member blocks the hole and also supports blocking means which expands within the remaining pipe to prevent fire and smoke from moving from room to room through the piping.

Abstract: A funiary urn is disclosed. The urn includes a pedestal, a canister and a cap. The pedestal is attached to the canister by a bolt and a nut having an axially extended nut shank of non-circular cross-sectional shape for engaging mating apertures in the pedestal and in the canister. A gasket compressed between the inner canister surface and the nut top provides a seal inhibiting gas flow into or out of the canister at the attachment opening. When the cap is assembled to the canister, an inwardly embossed cap lip extends continuously around the cap at a locus spaced above the cap edge so as to engage the canister top edge and form a seal inhibiting gas flow. The cap is drawn tightly into its sealed position by an arrangement of detents and detent-accepting grooves.

Abstract: A fishing lure especially adapted for trolling type fishing is disclosed. The lure comprises a generally cylindrical body, a skirt, and chum-dispensing means for dispensing chum through the body. The lure body face and body are so designed as to cause the lure to pitch, roll and yaw as it is pulled through the water, thus emulating a sick or injured fish. The lure thus appeals to the fish's sense of sight, smell, hearing, taste and touch.

Abstract: A teat cup assembly with a silicone liner is disclosed. The assembly provides a fluid seal for the liner at its proximal end. The flexible liner is folded around an extension bushing and centered within a milk collection funnel by spacing means to form a fluid seal.

Abstract: An apparatus for the objective and quantitative measure of hand function comprising an inflatable bladder 1 in fluid communication with a pressure transducer 3 the output of which is connected to a programmable integrated circuit 9 which accords the change in pressure of the fluid within the bladder and calculates the rate of change of the logarithm of the pressure with respect to time between predetermined lower and upper pressure levels during which the rate of change is substantially linear, and display means 11, 12 and 13 for diplaying said rate of change of logarithmic pressure with respect to time as well as the maximum pressure achieved, the elapsed time at which the predetermined lower and upper pressures and a third predetermined intermediate pressure are attained and the correlation coefficient of said linear portion.

Abstract: A process is described for preparing in particular alcohol-free wine in which by extraction with supercritical CO.sub.2 firstly a specific aroma fraction with limited ethanol content is separated from the starting wine. The residual wine is then subjected to a vacuum distillation in which apart from the complete separation of the ethanol from the residual wine a fraction of more difficulty extractable aromatic substances not affected by the extraction is recovered which in the end together with the extract is added to the dealcoholized residual wine again to obtain an alcohol-free wine. The method permits an almost complete removal of the alcohol content without detrimentally affecting the basic wine and with retention of all the aromatic and flavoring substances characteristic of the wine.

Abstract: An animal trough waterer and novel trough heater and thermostat arrangement are disclosed. The waterer includes a trough surrounded by an insulated housing. Attached to the bottom wall of the trough is a bracket which holds the heater in place against the trough. The bracket provides a slideway in which the thermostat is carried in any one of a range of positions. By adjusting the location of the thermostat to the heater, the water can be maintained at a relatively low but even temperature, and heater energy consumption can be reduced.

Abstract: An empty and load air brake control apparatus is disclosed, which is especially adapted for use on a unitized railroad train. Such a train includes a plurality of railroad car body segments articulated together in end-to-end array, and each car body segment can be loaded with coal or other material independently of the other car body segments. A plurality of railroad car trucks are provided to support the car body segments, and are arranged so that a single truck supports two adjacent car body ends. The air brake control apparatus includes a control valve, and a plurality of brake modulator valves are each connected to the control valve by compressed air piping. Each brake actuator is associated with a single truck and a single corresponding modulator valve. The modulator valves each have a sensor for sensing whether an associated truck is supporting loaded car body segments or empty car body segments.

Abstract: A touch control circuit is disclosed, which delivers power at any one of a plurality of different levels. To accomplish this, a line cycle delay timer provides a plurality of output signals, each signal being spaced apart in time from the line voltage zero crossing time and from each other. Power level memory and gating means gate the timer output signals to the power delivery means so as to trigger the power delivery means at any one of a number of different levels. A touch detector is connected to the power level memory means. Touch detector circuitry alters the power level memory so as to correspondingly alter the power delivered by the power delivery means when the touch detector is touched.

Abstract: The device in accordance with the invention for the sterilization of a hose coupling device (in its connected condition) of dialysis apparatus, comprises an opening housing into which the coupling device is placed. The coupling device is subjected to infrared radiation from heating elements in the housing whose heating effect is monitored and automatically controlled by a temperature probe arranged under the coupling device in the housing. Since the temperature probe is designed to have such an infrared absorption characteristic that the temperature increase rate of the probe is substantially the same as that of the coupling device, one may be certain that the coupling device will have reached the desired temperature (which is detected at the temperature probe) with only a slight delay if any. At the same time there is the advantage that the interior of the coupling device is heated to substantially above the minimum necessary sterilization temperature.

Abstract: A braking system for railroad freight trains and a novel relay valve for use in the system are disclosed. The relay valve permits the brake system to be configured so that the requirement for expensive control valves is minimized. The novel relay valve is interposed between the control valve and a number of brake cylinders. Upon a signal from the control valve, the relay valve delivers brake air to the cylinders from a pre-charged reservoir or other source. The novel relay valve includes primary and secondary flow valves to cause air to be delivered to the brakes in a controlled manner. An exhaust valve arrangement in the relay valve permits the brakes to be released.

Abstract: An improved animal waterer which prevents ice formation and saves energy through the combination of a top cover, drink tube, and a novel drink float. Minimizing the water surface exposed to the air reduces heat transfer from the water to the air. A drink float allows an animal to drink freely and prevents heat loss. The combination further saves energy, hinders ice formation and inhibits contaminants from entering the water supply. A waterer housing corner guard inhibits the formation of loose animal hair contaminants.

Abstract: A safety fuse assembly having a body of insulating material in which a fusible conductor extends embedded in a quenching medium between two electrical contacts. The assembly is provided with an electro-optical indicator connected in parallel with the fusible conductor via a high resistance circuit. To increase the fuse capacity of the safety fuse assembly, the circuit is formed as an electrically conductive, highly resistive thin layer having one or more tapping points and which acts as a voltage or current divider circuit. This makes it possible to maximize the internal volume of the fuse chamber, thereby enabling increases in the length of the fusible conductor and the amount of quenching material, whereby usage of the internal volume of the safety fuse assembly can be optimized.

Abstract: A combustible shaped body or fuel briquette is prepared by forming an essentially homogeneous mixture of a particulate fuel material such as coal dust and a curable binder such as lignosulphonate plus sodium dichromate; adding to the mixture an agent such as sulphuric acid which causes or accelerates curing, in situ; and shaping the resultant composition before the binder has cured, e.g. in a briquetting press. Briquettes are produced which can be sufficiently cured for stacking and packing, within 1 hour.

Abstract: A method of making conductors for shunt connectors including deforming a continuous strip of conductive material between lateral edges to form a plurality of electrical contacts integral at opposite ends with a pair of carrier strips. The spacing between electrical contacts is initially equal and the carrier strips are then deformed so that electrical contact assemblies having different spacings can be severed from the continuous strip with one of the carrier strips acting as a conductor between a pair of electrical contacts. The electrical contact assemblies are mounted on a non-conductive housings and locked therein by locking tabs with the housings being identical in configuration except for dimensions and having several gripping tabs formed thereon. The resultant shunt connector assemblies have center-to-center spacings between adjacent electrical contacts which are a predetermined dimension and multiples of that predetermined dimension to be capable of interconnecting pins having different spacings.