Abstract: The invention provides a method and apparatus for determining the angular displacement of a rotating shaft, and for commutation of a brushless motor. At least two analog sensors, mounted near the shaft, generate phase-displaced analog signals responsive to the angular position of the shaft. A logic circuit produces a digital code indicating the region of the cycle in which the shaft is instantaneously located. An analog multiplexor selects a unique pair of analog signals from the group of the original analog signals and their analog complements, according to the value of the digital code. An analog to digital converter then generates a digital signal proportional to the quotient of the analog signals produced by the multiplexor, and this digital signal, together with the digital code, is used to activate an address in a memory device. The memory device, such as an EPROM, is programmed with a large number of binary digits, which define a train of pulses.

Abstract: An atomizer with a capillary passage to a tip surface which is vibrated by a directly coupled ultrasonic device to disperse droplets of liquid fed to the passage. The tip is associated with a heated vaporization chamber, and a cooling chamber between the tip and the ultrasonic device protects the device from the heat of the chamber.

Abstract: A control assembly primarily intended for use in manually regulating the operating speed of power equipment in which fine adjustments may be obtained by rotating the control knob and rapid changes in speed may be achieved by shifting the knob axially. The assembly includes an outer one-piece sleeve adapted to be mounted upon an instrument panel or engine housing and permanently joined to a flexible casing containing the operating wire or cable. A plunger assembly is rotatably and slidably received within the sleeve, the plunger assembly including a thin-walled plunger tube of flexible material having a control knob ultrasonically welded to one end of the plunger and a swivel connection joining the operating wire at the plunger's opposite end.

Abstract: Solid state memory devices employed in crash survivable flight data recorders must be thermally insulated to prevent loss of stored data if the aircraft burns. To provide adequate thermal isolation at minimal size, the solid state electronic memory devices (26) are encapsulated in a synthetic organic wax or pentaerythritol (28) that exhibits a phase transition at a temperature: (a) above the normal operating temperature of the memory unit (10); and below the maximum acceptable peak temperature for the memory devices (26). The synthetic organic wax of pentaerythritol (28) is surrounded by a thermal liner (18) constructed of solid thermal insulating material. A metal enclosure (12) houses and protects the thermal liner (18), the synthetic organic was or pentaerythritol (28) and the memory devices (26).

Abstract: Wellhead electrical connection apparatus for feeding electricity into a well under fluid pressure, includes a mandrel sleeve having an internal sleeve shoulder formed to face high pressure end of sleeve. A performed rigid high mechanical strength dielectric insulator support having an external insulator shoulder is installed within the sleeve with the insulator shoulder in abutment with the internal shoulder of sleeve. Insulator support means is mounted and sealed in physically bonded relation within the interior of the sleeve by means of dielectric potting material disposed as an insulator film or sleeve in surface areas between insulator support and sleeve. Insulator support has a plurality of holes extending in parallel and laterally spaced apart relation through the insulator with each hole having an internal hole shoulder formed to face high pressure end of sleeve.

Abstract: A pressure-driven fire-suppression valve wherein a single electrical switch is mechanically actuated by coaxially related first and second sealed piston components, which are compliantly loaded in the direction away from switch actuation. The first piston component is of lesser area and has its switch-actuating relation via abutment with the second (larger-area) piston component; this first piston component continuously responds to suppressant-charge pressure, via a pressure-fluid connection to the upstream valve chamber, i.e., to the upstream side of the closed position of the valve member (poppet). As long as this upstream-sensed pressure is above predetermined threshold, the compliant-load force will be overcome, and the switch will be mechanically actuated, but upon leakage below threshold, the mechanical actuation is released, for a change of state at the switch.

Abstract: An end assembly for a control valve adapted for receiving fluid under pressure, comprising: a valve body having a central bore therethrough; a sleeve member at least partially inserted in one end of the valve body and having a first port therethrough, the port being in fluid communication with the obre in the valve body; a collar member rotatably mounted to the sleeve and having a second port therethrough, the second port being in fluid communication with a source of fluid under pressure and the first port through the sleeve member; and a cap sealing insertable within the sleeve.

Abstract: A sound rated flooring is provided comprising a sound attenuation layer having a composite panel structure having a core and at least one acoustically semi-transparent facing of fibrous material bonded to the core and a rigid layer positioned on the sound attenuation layer. A moisture inhibiting barrier may be positioned between the composite panel structure and the rigid layer. A method for constructing a sound rated floor is also provided, comprising the steps of positioning the composite panel structure described herein over a substantially horizontal base surface and then positioning the rigid layer over the composite panel structure. The finished covering is then placed over the rigid layer.

Abstract: A timing circuit adapted for use in a digital system that includes a raster scanned display device (14) adapted to scan a beam through a series of horizontal scan lines at a rate controlled by a horizontal sync signal. Each horizontal scan line comprises dots that can be individually illuminated. The time required for the beam to horizontally scan one dot is controlled by a dot clock signal. The digital system also includes means for producing row format data indicating the relationship between the horizontal sync signal and the time requried to horizontally scan one character area, and dot per character data indicating the horizontal dot width of one character area. The timing circuit comprises a generator (52) for producing a horizontal reference signal having a frequency corresponding to the desired frequency for the horizontal sync signal, and a phase lock loop for producing the horizontal sync and dot clock signals.

Abstract: An aircraft ground proximity warning system having an excessive terrain closure warning mode and a below glide slope warning mode monitors the glide slope signal and modifies the terrain closure warning envelope to accept a lesser terrain clearance when the aircraft is within the glide slope beam.

Abstract: In a single-frequency precision guidance landing system, the use of a DME interrogator in the aircraft and a DME receiver at the ground installation, each tuned to the same DME channel frequency, to uniquely interrogate a selected ground station and hence identify it by virtue of its replies being synchronous in the aircraft with the interrogations, the interrogations and the replies also being used to obtain range to the ground installation. This technique uses airborne already-installed DME interrogators for selective interrogation of a desired landing installation, thereby to eliminate any need to add additional special purpose equipment to the aircraft to accomplish the desired uniqueness of interrogation and ground installation identification achieved by this invention.

Abstract: A communication system and method is provided, in which synchronous (i.e., clocked) serial digital data may be sent and received from any given node to any other given node along a multinode loop of any desired mode quantity, with each node being capable of and maintained ready to assume the role and function of master node to provide the time-base or master clock for the loop. One node will serve as master node and all other nodes as slave nodes until the master becomes inoperable in its master clock function or until it is removed from the loop, at which time another node will assume the role of master node, and this status will continue as above-indicated. Small loop size is accommodated by adding a suitable delay to retransmitted data at the master node.

Abstract: A ground proximity warning system utilizes geographic position data to alter the warning criteria as is required by the terrain features of particular geographic areas. To determine whether the aircraft is within a particular geographic area, the world is subdivided into latitude bands that are in turn subdivided into non-overlapping zones by predetermined lines of longitude, with the position of each zone being defined by the latitude and longitude coordinates of one of its corners. The zones are further defined by regions which may overlap other zones. The regions are limited in size, and their positions are also defined by the locations of one of their corners. The regions are further subdivided into one or more geographic areas that are defined by their shapes and locations within the region.

Abstract: An inertial sensor assembly (ISA) includes a cluster of three ring laser gyros, each gyro producing an output signal having a pulse repetition rate representative of the rate of angular deviation of the ISA about one of three coordinate axes X, Y, and Z. The ring laser gyros are synchronously dithered at a relatively constant rate. The ISA also includes a triad of three accelerometers, with each accelerometer producing an output signal representative of the rate of velocity deviation of the ISA along one of the X, Y, and Z coordinate axes. A first processor, P1, accumulates the pulses produced by each ring laser gyro over its dither period. The resultant counts are stored in registers for subsequent sampling by the P1 processor at a periodic sampling rate which is greater than the dither rate. The P1 processor then synchronizes each sampled pulse count to a common sampling interval, thereby eliminating errors otherwise caused by using positional data values taken at different times.

Abstract: An easily installed and disassembled web transducer device for measuring and monitoring the tension in a continuously moving web as it moves over a tensioning roller. The transducer device comprises a cantilever mounted strain beam with attached strain gauges at the beam flex points and formed at its free end with a cup-shaped coupling receptacle having an open outer end enclosing and supporting one end of a support shaft for the web tensioning roller by a self-aligning bearing retained in place in the bore of the coupling receptacle by a retaining ring snap locked in an annular groove in the receptacle bore. A spring washer in the coupling receptacle bore is biased between the closed inner end thereof and the bearing to continuously yieldingly urge the latter toward axially abutting engagement with the retainer ring.

Abstract: A fluid handling body and a method of attaching extension tubes to the fluid handling body which effectively seals the tubes to the body in a simple manufacturing operation, reducing the number of manufacturing operations required while minimizing the possibilities of damage to the tubes or undesirably restricting the fluid flow path in the body or tubes. The method hereof is particularly advantageous where several tubes are to be attached to the body to produce a precise, leak-free component. The body includes a fluid flow passageway extending into one end and a saucer-like cavity in the other end. A plurality of bores extend through the body between the cavity and passageway. With the tubes received in the bores, a paste is applied in the cavity. The outer periphery of the body is heated, melting the paste in a single heating operation and effecting flow of the paste in the cavity into circumscribing relation about the tubes.

Abstract: A borehole survey instrument has a probe with a polarized light system for transmitting a signal representing the angular orientation of the probe to the surface. Light from a source in the probe is directed through a polarized filter with an axis of polarization orthogonal to the longitudinal axis of the probe. The polarized light beam is transmitted to the surface through an optical fiber light conduit. The angle of polarization is detected with a rotating polarizing filter and provides a measure of the probe orientation. In surveying a borehole, azimuth is determined from inclinometer measurements. The probe orientation in vertical sections of the borehole is measured by the polarized light system. Two measures of borehole azimuth are combined, providing an improved measure of azimuth in boreholes near vertical and near horizontal.

Abstract: A system for determining the closest navigation point to an aircraft utilizes a sphere of influence principle wherein the earth is subdivided into a plurality of geographic areas, for example, one quarter degree squares of latitude and longitude. An identifier such as an index number of the closest navigation point to each square is stored in a look up table. Position information from the navigation system of the aircraft is used to address the look up table to retrieve the appropriate index number which is then used to address a second look up table that contains information defining the closest navigation point.

Abstract: What is proposed is an electronic circuit for controlling the amount of AC power delivered to an inductive or resistive load which continuously measures the actual phase lag between the load current and applied voltage and automatically adjusts the firing angle to provide the desired amount of AC power. The circuit includes an auxiliary on/off input with soft start and independently adjustable time delays for the on and off functions and also incorporates an input for remote power level control and features a half-wave rectified mode which delivers pulsating DC power to the load.

Abstract: A flow regulating cartridge assembly that can be adjusted from substantially zero flow to a predetermined maximum flow determined by the maximum size of a flow controlling orifice located within the valve assembly. The valve includes a spool slidably mounted within a step bore located in the valve body which is operative to control the fluid communication between an inlet port and a bypass port. The spool includes an adjustable orifice for adjusting a regulated fluid flow through a regulated port. The spool member threadedly carries an adjustment stem which includes a tapered end that is adapted to move into and out of the orifice to adjust its effective orifice size. A coupling member including an adjustment segment extending externally of the valve body includes a coupling arrangement which allows relative axial movement between the adjustment stem and the coupling member but prevents relative rotation.