Abstract: Stents that are adapted to be balloon expanded and include adjacent supports connected by connecting portions. The configurations, materials, and/or dimensions of at least one of the supports and connection portions allows the stents to be expanded to a greater extent, and optionally with reduced foreshortening.

Abstract: The autoclave includes a sterilization chamber (2) to receive articles to be sterilized, which are used in medical treatment. With a door (1) the sterilization chamber (2) can be locked shut. Placed on top is a control unit (6) including a control panel (9) with control elements (10) and a card reader (11). Disposed above the control panel is an indicator panel (12) for displaying in particular device data and for guiding the user by means of an LCD. Using chip cards, which have an electronic component with a non-volatile memory, and which can be electrically connected to the card reader permitting data exchange with the control unit, special sterilization programs can be run, the authorization to use the autoclave can be checked, and further functions, such as blocking or enabling individual control elements, can be executed.

Abstract: A coffee machine is provided having a housing containing removable first and second modules. The first module includes removably connected first and second submodules. The first submodule includes a brewing device. The second submodule includes a motor, a driving axle, gears for coupling the driving axle to the motor, and a further housing enclosing the motor and gears such that the driving axle extends through the housing and establishes a functional connection with said brewing device. The operational ability of the first module, when removed from the housing, can be checked because the means for supplying driving energy to the motor remains connected to the motor. For cleaning, the first submodule can be removed from the second submodule once electrical and liquid lines have been disconnected.

Abstract: An ejection device includes an ejection part (17) which is swivelingly fastened to a brewing cylinder (9) displaceably disposed along a parallel driving spindle (6), and a nose (22) disposed on a sidewall (2) of a frame (1). Mounted within and closing a cylindrical bore of the brewing cylinder are first and second pistons. The second piston (8) is, upon a downwardly movement of the brewing cylinder (9) away from the first piston, displaceable to a first or upper end of the brewing cylinder. Ground coffee (40) pressed into a cake is conveyed out of the brewing cylinder (9) during this displacement movement and rests upon a cambered end face (42) of the second piston (8). The ejection part (17) includes two rocking levers (18, 19) which extend at the sides of the brewing cylinder (9) longitudinally thereto and are swivelingly mounted in a lower region of the brewing cylinder (9) about a swivel axis (23). Ends of the rocking levers (18, 19) remote from the swivel axis are connected to an ejection plate (20).

Abstract: The brewing device comprises a brewing cylinder (9) with a cylindrical bore (10), in which a lower piston (8) is disposed freely moveable and longitudinally displaceable. An upper piston (7) is rigidly connected to a frame (1). Parallel to the vertically disposed brewing cylinder (9) there is a drive spindle (6) which has guide means (23). A drive element (24) connected to the brewing cylinder has further guide means (25) which engage with those of the drive spindle (6). By rotating the drive spindle (6) in one or the other direction, the brewing cylinder is displaced upwards or downwards. Through a pivotable hopper (12), the coffee powder is filled into the brewing cylinder.

Abstract: A brewing apparatus has a brewing cylinder (1) with a cylindrical bore (2) and two pistons (3, 4). The brewing cylinder (1) and the pistons (3, 4) are disposed displaceably relative to one another. In a brewing position the brewing cylinder (1) and the two pistons (3, 4) within the latter form a brewing chamber (5) in order to scald ground coffee therein through the feed of pressurized water. This water is fed to the brewing chamber (5) via a connection fitting (18) and via a through bore which extends through the wall of the brewing cylinder (1), into an annular gap (14) which is formed between a gasket (11) and the end face (13) of the second piston (4) facing the brewing chamber (5). Via a strainer (32), a conduit (34), and a further connection fitting (35), the coffee is discharged. Through the arrangement of the gap (14), the face (13) of the second piston ( 4) can be made without a strainer. The feeding of pressurized water to the gap (14) causes a self-cleaning effect in the latter.

Abstract: In order to achieve optimized management of a pipeline system for transporting gas, oil or other products, the flow rates and pressures at various system locations are determined and regulated in real time. The configurations of compressors and valves which make it possible to minimize operating costs are determined in real time by computers.

Abstract: A device for weakening the incident light passing through a transparent emissive display system so as not to drown the emitted light is disclosed which utilizes two polarizing filters one at least of which is placed before the screen so as to selectively attenuate the incident light. A photoelectric cell measures this incident light and controls a motor which rotates one of the filters so as to adjust the attenuation to the initial intensity.

Abstract: A method for effectuating the transmission and reception of digital data on frames on duplex links between transmitter and receiver stations. Data and command messages comprised of frames are transmitted from a transmitter station, each frame being comprised of a packet of data. The command and data messages are received by a receiver station which transmits acknowledgment frames back to the sending station. The transmitter station continues to send the command and data messages until their corresponding acknowledgment frames are received.

Abstract: A housing more particularly intended for encapsulating a wafer scale electronic circuit, realized in hybrid technology or integrated on semi-conducting substrate. In this housing:supply voltages are brought to different points disposed over the surface of the circuitlead-in circuits are constituted by conducting planes, placed in superimposed layers in the cover or the base of the housing.

Abstract: A U shaped electrical assembly device is provided which employs a zero insertion force receptacle on the two parallel arms of the U. The bottom side of the U shaped receptacle has a heat exchanger back piece which uses a slot to receive a thermal conductor employed on the insertable electronic cards which are to be placed within the receptacle.

Abstract: A system for simultaneous transmission of data blocks or vectors between a memory and one or a number of data-processing units having a memory which is subdivided into a whole number N of logic arrays of n physical arrays of q memory locations. An interconnection network controlled by a control logic device establishes the connections between the logic arrays of the memory and the data-processing units. Addressing devices controlled respectively by a data-processing unit have the function of addressing the memory locations to which each data-processing unit requests access. The control logic device has logic for establishing a connection between each requesting unit and the logic array containing the address of the start of the vector or data block to be transferred and control means for successively switching the requesting unit to the following logic arrays at the end of each data transfer between a logic array of the memory and the requesting data-processing unit.

Abstract: The method is applicable to protecting security documents of the type comprising a substrate bearing information which is to be protected from tampering, together with transparent protective layers of thermoplastic material heat sealed around said substrate. The method provides a set of pigment-retaining micro-holes in the substrate, said pigment being soluble in protective layer solvents. Any attempt at dissolving away the protective layers to gain access to the support for tampering with the information thereon, will also have the effect of making tell-tale marks on the support, as it absorbs the pigment is spread in the thickness of the support like ink in blotting paper.

Abstract: Acoustic distance measuring apparatus for measuring the distance of a vessel (N) from a vertical line through a fixed point (P) on the bottom of a body of water, the apparatus comprising: an acoustic emitter unit (I) and at least three acoustic receiver units (H1, H2, H3) disposed on the bottom of the vessel, said receiver units being disposed at the vertices of a plane polygon; at least three acoustic emitter/receiver units (A, B, C) placed on the water bottom in the vicinity of said fixed point (P), said emitter/receiver units being disposed at the vertices of a polygon; and the improvement wherein the measuring apparatus further includes a relay acoustic emitter/receiver (R) submerged close to the vessel at a depth where vessel noise is highly attenuated, said relay receiing acoustic waves (a) from the vessel's emitter and responding by emitting acoustic wave (1, 2, 3) to the vessel's receiver units thereby enabling the distances between the relay and each of the vessel's receiver units to be calculated, s

Abstract: A transmission system is provided with a transmitter (10) transmitting data in series, either individually or in groups, by phase shifts applied to a transmitter carrier between characteristic instants which are separated by equal time intervals. The system further comprises a receiver (20) which is sensitive to phase shifts in the transmitter carrier between the characteristic instants. The transmitter comprises a coder (2) which causes the data to be transmitted to correspond to discrete values of a shift, and a symbol synthesizer (3) under the control of the coder to generate the waveform of the phase variation between two successive characteristic instants. This waveform is continuous and has minimum gradient and can be expressed as a function of time by a polynomial law. The receiver uses a synchronous demodulation and a correlation method to recover the characteristic instants and also the frequency drift between the transmitter carrier and the receiver carrier.

Abstract: The subject matter of the invention is a method of substituting an electronic component (A1) for an analogous component (1) connected to the conductive tracks (3) of a support substrate (2) by connection wires (4). The conductive tracks are cut beyond, relative to the component (1) to be taken out of service, the zones where the connection wires (4) are connected to the tracks, then the replacement component (A1) is placed on the upper glued face of the component (1), and is connected to the tracks by connection wires (4A) independent from the preceding wires.This invention is particularly applicable to integrated circuits and to vacuum-deposited resistive thin film circuits.

Abstract: A feed-through (2) is in the form of a generally cylindrical pin extending through the thickness of the wall of the box (1). Its end projecting outside the box is terminated by a generally cylindrical head portion (23) of greater outside diameter than the rest of the pin, said head portion is fixed at a distance from the wall of the box and is provided with an axial bore (24) suitable both for receiving a contact of an external connector and for receiving a conductor lead to be soldered thereto, depending on the requirements of a user.

Abstract: A sonar system comprises a vehicle (1) capable of moving over the bottom of an extent of water, with an emitter of acoustic pulses and a receiver of acoustic energy mounted on said vehicle. Signal processing and display circuitry (e.g. on board a surface vessel 2) are connected to receive signals representative of the acoustic waves emitted by the emitter, of the acoustic waves received by the receiver, and of parameters describing the motion of the vehicle. The signal processing and display circuitry generates an image of objects hidden in the water bottom on the basis of the signals. The emitter of acoustic pulses is provided with at least one parametric transducer having a spot radiation pattern capable of forming a plurality of channels that bathe spots of the water bottom in sound waves, and an electronic pointing system for scanning the channels.