Abstract: A spreader for spreading a fabric having upper and lower sides, transversely spaced edges and longitudinally extending tire reenforcing cords spaced laterally across said fabric between said edges preparatory to rubberizing said fabric in a calender, where the fabric moves in a given path to the calender, the spreader comprising a cantilever mounted mandrel having an outer generally cylindrical surface concentric with a rotational axis, with the cylindrical surface having a helical groove having convolutions with a pitch equal to a desired cord distribution laterally of the fabric; a mandrel support structure adjacent one edge of the fabric and having means for rotatably mounting the mandrel in a position transverse of the fabric with said cylindrical surface aligned with the fabric path to be generally tangential to a side of the fabric as the fabric moves in the given path; a first motor on the support structure for rotating the mandrel about the axis at a given rotational speed; a second motor for moving t

Abstract: A position detector senses an undulating pile tuft edge position of a carpet as it is processed in a carpet making machine by detecting attenuated light passing through the carpet's primary backing material to determine the exact position of the carpet's undulating pile tuft edge at any given time. Sensor signals from the detector are digitally filtered through one pole cascaded filters to produce an average pile edge position signal which, in turn, controls actuators for secondary and primary backing material guide rolls to not only center the carpet for aligned entry into the carpet machine's tenter, but also apply the secondary backing material to the primary backing material at a precise position.

Abstract: An annealing furnace is disclosed including at least one inner cover for retaining a stack of metal coils to be annealed in an inert atmosphere. A furnace shell is provided for receiving said at least one inner cover and providing an internal furnace environment. A furnace floor is provided for retaining the furnace shell and inner cover. A plurality of burners are received in said furnace floor, and configured around the inner cover so as to fire into the internal furnace environment along side the inner cover without impingement of the flame on the inner cover. A control system sequentially fires each of said plurality of burners in order to establish and maintain a desired thermal distribution among the stacks within the inner cover.

Abstract: A flat flame burner is disclosed having flow passages for admitting fuel and air to a burner tile. A structure for producing a rotational flow cooperates with a divergent burner tile in order to produce a radially-divergent flame with a very small axial component and a high degree of entrainment of inert combustion products in a furnace. A portion of the fuel is injected into the entrained furnace products, in order to suppress the rate of combustion, so as to produce an ultra low NOx flat flame burner. The present invention also permits greater versatility and improved operability over previous flat flame burners.

Abstract: A spreader for spreading a fabric having upper and lower sides, transversely spaced edges and longitudinally extending tire reenforcing cords spaced laterally across the fabric between the edges preparatory to rubberizing the fabric in a calender, where the fabric moves in a given path to the calender, the spreader comprising a cantilever mounted mandrel having an outer generally cylindrical surface concentric with a rotational axis, with the cylindrical surface having a helical groove having convolutions with a pitch equal to a desired cord distribution laterally of the fabric; a mandrel support structure adjacent one edge of the fabric and having means for rotatably mounting the mandrel in a position transverse of the fabric with the cylindrical surface aligned with the fabric path to be generally tangential to a side of the fabric as the fabric moves in the given path; a first motor on the support structure for rotating the mandrel about the axis at a given rotational speed; a second motor for moving the s

Abstract: An actuated air valve includes a valve body in line with a flow passage for admitting a flow of fluid. A valve member is pivotally mounted about the centerline of the valve body and is pivoted between high flow and low flow positions. A diaphragm and linkage is in mechanical connection to the valve member. A pressure tap from the flow of fluid provides an impulse to the diaphragm which displaces the linkage, thus varying the position of the valve member. A three-way solenoid valve is used to selectively admit the impulse to the diaphragm, thus governing the displacement of the linkage, and thereby varying the position of the valve member.

Abstract: A treatment system and method is disclosed for heat treating aggregate, for example, an aggregate dryer of the type which uses a burner and rotating drum for veiling aggregate into a thermal flow path. The invention provides a plurality of mixers which safely mix fuel and oxidant into a premix which is delivered to a reaction chamber The premix is combusted and recirculated within the reaction chamber to insure uniform and complete combustion, resulting in lower emissions of pollutants such as carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds, and nitrogen oxides and also lower combustion roar. This uniform and complete combustion results in a more uniform thermal profile within the rotating drum, resulting a greater throughput of processed aggregate and a more efficient consumption of energy.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for guiding a strip traveling along a selected path past a first location on the path and then past a second location on the path, which method and apparatus comprise correcting the camber of the strip at the first location toward a first guide point, sensing the amount of correction at the first location, correcting the camber of the strip at the second location toward a second guide point, sensing the amount of correction at the second location and adjusting the first guide point based upon the relationship between the amount of correction at the first and second locations. In addition, there is provided an improvement in a strip guiding system for adjusting the phase lag between spaced guiding locations based upon a variable length of strip between the locations.

Abstract: An integrated burner system is disclosed having a fuel supply assembly including a fuel control for variably limiting the flow of fuel into the burner along with a discrete air control for generating a variable flow of air into the burner. The respective fuel and air controls are directed by a control system which operates these controls in order to provide and maintain a desired fuel-to-air ratio between high fire and low fire in response to a requirement for heat. A multiple burner embodiment is disclosed in which a plurality of the present integrated burners may be used to create a multiple burner system which provides a greater degree of control and efficiency than that capable with previous systems. The multiple burner embodiment also eliminates the costly installation and maintenance requirements typically associated with previous systems.

Abstract: A burner is disclosed having a burner chamber with heavily insulated heat retaining walls and a series of off-center mixers located at one end thereof. A uniform concentration gas/air mixture to 50% additional fuel above the lean flammability limit coming from the mixer tubes is ignited in the burner chamber due to the recirculation of combusting gas and air back to the end of the burner chamber above auto the ignition temperature for the mixture. The particular mixture disclosed utilizes 0.55-0.7 equivalence ratio. With the present burner, oxidant and fuel are respectively supplied to each mixer by respective common oxidant and fuel plenums. In this way, fuel and oxidant are mixed near the point of combustion, enhancing safety and permitting the construction of larger burners.

Abstract: An integrated fuel-to-air control system is disclosed in which fuel and air pressure differential sensors are provided for measuring the flow pressure differential of fuel and air across orifices in the respective flow paths. The pressure differential sensors generate signals which are characteristic of the pressure differentials across the orifices.A control system is provided which includes an electronic comparator for receiving the pressure differential signals and generating a difference signal corresponding to the difference between these signals. The difference signal in turn is transmitted to a valve actuator which respectively opens or closes a valve in the fuel flow path in order to vary the fuel flow pressure differential so as to achieve a desired fuel-to-air ratio with the oxidant flow pressure differential. The fuel flow pressure is varied up or down as necessary until the difference signal reaches zero at the desired ratio.

Abstract: A method and apparatus is disclosed for controlling staged combustion systems of the type used for combusting two reactants wherein at least one reactant is supplied as two flows, the first of which is combusted with the flow of the other reactant in a primary stage and the other of which is combusted with the exhaust of the primary stage in a secondary stage. In the present invention, the respective flows are monitored and controlled to provide a desired equivalence ratio for both the first stage and for the burner overall which is adaptable in response to variable input conditions. By controlling the flows in this way, a calculated energy output or adiabatic flame temperature can be produced. The present invention can also control the reactant flows to each stage in response to measured parameters such as flame temperature or emission levels. In this way, the flows can be varied in order to drive the measured parameters to a desired level.

Abstract: A system for creating a position correcting error signal indicative of the lateral displacement of the center of a strip from a control position for the center of a nearly flat strip having a width and first and second generally parallel edges, as the generally flat strip moves along a given feed line past a given location, where the error signal creating device including means for detecting the orthogonally projectable, one dimensional lateral position of the first edge of said moving strip at said given location, means for detecting the orthogonally projectable, one dimensional lateral position of the second edge of said moving strip at said given location.

Abstract: A system for creating a control signal having a value indicative of the position of the lateral edge of a moving web wherein the system creates a succession of ultrasonic pulses from a transmitter, each of the pulses being created at a known transmit time in response to a transmit signal with the pulses each having a number of oscillations defining a pulse envelope having a pulse start portion. The system directs the ultrasonic pulses toward an ultrasonic receiver along a selected path whereby the position of the lateral edge of the web in the path determines the energy of the pulse as it is received by the receiver and converts the received pulse into an electronic signal having an amplitude determined by the energy of the received pulse. The receiver is spaced from the transmitter a predetermined distance causing the pulses to be received by the receiver at a given time after the transmit signals for a given ambient temperature.

Abstract: Apparatus for guiding a strip traveling along a selected path, which apparatus comprises a primary strip position correcting mechanism, such as a payout reel or steering roll that engages a strip at a first location for changing the position of the strip as the strip moves along from the first position to a remote control point. The strip correcting mechanism includes a primary control loop with an actuator for changing the strip position and a feedback control loop that compares the actual strip position with an adjustable reference value to control the position of the moving strip. An edge sensor at the remote control point on the strip path creates an output error signal generally proportional to the deviation of the strip edge at the remote control point from a preselected edge position. This error signal is used for periodically changing the reference value of the position correcting mechanism in the primary loop in accordance with the output error.

Abstract: An improved radiant tube heater is disclosed utilizing a burner operating with an excess of either gas or air together with the remote injection of the required air or gas to match the excess and produce a staged combustion.

Abstract: There is provided an improvement in a pulsating radiation detector system comprising means in a series circuit for emitting radiation in pulses of a selected, adjusted frequency, means responsive to pulses of radiation at the frequency for creating a control signal related to the received radiation and a driving circuit for pulsating the radiation emitting means in the series circuit. The improvement comprises a modification of the driving circuit to produce voltage pulses in the series circuit at a time base width less than the reciprocal of the frequency (in seconds), with means for sensing current flow in the series circuit, means for limiting current flow in the series circuit and means for adjusting the pulse width continuously as an inverse function of the sensed circuit whereby short distinct pulses can be created for better discrimination and accuracy in the detector system.

Abstract: A method and system is provided for controlling a selected zone in a fuel fired furnace of the type used for heating work as it moves through the zone from an entrant end to an exit end. The method and system includes providing a fuel fired burner at the exit end for propelling a flame toward the entrant end of the zone, controlling the firing rate or capacity of this flame in accordance with the temperature of the work adjacent the exit end of the zone, continuously establishing a gas temperature for the entrant end of the zone corresponding to the firing rate of the flame and then continuously controlling the length of the flame to obtain the established gas temperature at the entrant end of the zone. The combined adjustment of capacity and flame length in accordance with the measured temperature at the entrant end of the zone controls the heating profile through the zone and increases the efficiency of the heating zone.

Abstract: A method and system of melting a charge of metal in a closed hearth wherein the metal has a first high thermal conductivity when solid, a second low thermal conductivity when liquid and a given melting temperature below about 1600.degree. F., such as aluminum. The method and system involves the use of a plurality of heaters having a total high heat capacity sufficient to melt the metal in a given time and sufficient to drastically increase the temperature of the metal when the metal is in the liquid state.

Abstract: Apparatus is disclosed for verifying the proper operation of a drive circuit (43) which controls the application of power to an electromechanical device, e.g., a manually reset circuit breaker (36). The apparatus includes means (60) for applying a control signal to the drive circuit to cause it to briefly apply power to the electromechanical device, where the interval of time over which power is applied is too brief to cause actuation of the device. Means (64) are also provided for sensing the power applied to the device to verify that the drive circuit has properly responded to the control signal.