Abstract: A hybrid electric hydraulic drive system, having a first cylinder (75) having a left chamber (32) and a right chamber (34) separated by a piston (22). A second cylinder (76) has a single or sole chamber (74) for receiving hydraulic fluid with the second cylinder enclosing a second piston (78). The second cylinder is substantially equal in length to the first cylinder and is rigidly attached to the first cylinder. A pump (14) is fluidly connected to the left chamber (32) by a first fluid passage (16) and is fluidly connected to the right chamber (34) by a second fluid passage (18). A third fluid passage (80) is directly connected to the right chamber (34) and to the sole fluid chamber (74) of the second cylinder (76). A first rod (30) is connected to the piston (22) and a second rod (84) is connected to the second piston (78). The first and second rods are connected by a connecting element so the rods move in unison.

Abstract: A locomotion simulator has two independently controlled movable footpads. Each footpad is positioned dynamically in three-dimensions. The top of each footpad has a controlled rotational motion, and the assembly having the two footpads is rotated under control. In operation, a user, whose feet are tracked in position and angle, walks or runs on the simulator and the footpads are controlled to simulate ground contact. Controlled rotation and translation movements permit simulation of turning, climbing, and decending.

Abstract: A disposable cartridge, included in a blood sample analysis system, is described wherein the cartridge itself contains means for both sensing and measuring preselected blood related parameters. The blood sample being analyzed is directly placed in contact with sensing means in the cartridge without intervening buffer solutions, exposure to air, etc. The unadulterated sample is analyzed within the cartridge and the measurement output therefrom is communicated to means outside the cartridge where it can be displayed, be analyzed further, be transmitted to a remote location, etc. The cartridge and its contents do not require on site calibration or a warm up period. This feature allows the system to be used by personnel not necessarily trained in calibrating sophisticated electronic equipment and facilitates rapid data output, particularly vital in critical care and emergency treatment situations.

Abstract: A disposable cartridge, included in a blood sample analysis system, is described wherein the cartridge itself contains means for both sensing and measuring preselected blood related parameters. The blood sample being analyzed is directly placed in contact with sensing means in the cartridge without intervening buffer solutions, exposure to air, etc. The unadulterated sample is analyzed within the cartridge and the measurement output therefrom is communicated to means outside the cartridge where it can be displayed, be analyzed further, be transmitted to a remote location, etc. The cartridge and its contents do not require on site calibration or a warm up period. This feature allows the system to be used by personnel not necessarily trained in calibrating sophisticated electronic equipment and facilitates rapid data output, particularly vital in critical care and emergency treatment situations.

Abstract: A method for purifying water or other aqueous media in which a stream of the aqueous media is introduced into a fixed bed of a purification media and turbulent flow through the fixed bed is induced to permit intimate contact between the aqueous media and the purification media. Also disclosed is an apparatus for purifying the aqueous media which includes an outer housing having an inlet aperture and an outlet aperture; a multi-chamber purification unit disposed within the housing, and means for measuring the purity of aqueous media treated within the multi-chamber unit.

Abstract: An improved support track assembly for both protecting and improving the flotation and mobility of the resilient wheels of a vehicle is disclosed herein that comprises both a manually operable retention assembly for fastening the track into an endless belt around the vehicle wheel, and a track storage reel that conveniently positions the track under the wheel and in alignment therewith prior to installation. The improved support track is formed from a plurality of track members that are pivotally interconnected by means of connector pins, and the retention assembly is formed from a retaining pin having a first end that is transversely insertable into a track member in a connector-pin capturing position, and a second pin formed from a resilient loop of spring steel. When the retaining pin is inserted into a pin-capturing position, the terminus of the loop is resiliently biased in a latching position.

Abstract: A water purifying system includes an elongate chambered purifying assembly sized to be detachably mounted in a conventional canteen. The assembly is provided with an internal chamber filled with a particulate water purifying material and concentric tubes within the chamber require water flowing into the chamber through a filtered inlet at the bottom of the assembly to follow an extended chambered flow path through the purifying material to an outlet at the top of the assembly. The assembly includes a manually operable pump for pressurizing said container, thereby pumping water from the canteen through the purifying assembly.

Abstract: The present disclosure describes circuit variants for reducing electromagnetic interference from saturable core keyboards to acceptable levels. The invention finds particular application in conjunction with capacitive-discharge scan techniques used in such keyboards. In order to attenuate the external field resulting from such techniques, a circuit is taught which effectively disconnects the scan line array from the capacitor charging circuit during the time between scans. A second variant, when added to the first, further reduces interference by disconnecting the entire scan circuit from the supply potential during the scan time thereby eliminating steady-state currents and turnoff oscillatory transients.

Abstract: A circuit for monitoring the status of electrical signals, such as those present on the control and data lines of an RS-232 interface, includes a single operational amplifier and a dual-color LED indicator. The electrical characteristics of the LED's form a significant part of the circuit parameters. The monitor design provides a predetermined circuit input impedance and positive/negative switching thresholds to effect the selective illumination of the LED's.

Abstract: A printer system is configured as a kit for retrofitting the input consoles of existing letter sorting machines of the type used by the U.S. Postal Service. Such machines require that an operator, stationed at a console, enter sorting information for each mail piece, by way of a manually actuated keyboard. The present invention expands the processing capabilities of the machines by imprinting machine-readable, coded information on the respective faces of the mail pieces simultaneously with the sorting thereof. At the same time, the printing function does not impair or modify the usual operator-controlled console when mail is processed which does not require such coding.

Abstract: Standard ASCII coded text is divided into alpha, numeric, and punctuation tokens. Each token is converted to a string of four-bit nibbles. One nibble is coded to identify the type of token. Additional nibbles are coded to identify the location, if any, of a corresponding alpha or punctuation token in a global dictionary. If no corresponding alpha token is in the dictionary, an alpha token is divided into prefixed, suffixes, and a stem. The location of any prefixes in a table of prefixes, suffixes in a table of suffixes, and the number, and location of corresponding individual characters in a table, of the remaining stem are then coded and stored as part of the string of four-bit nibbles for the alpha tokens. Numeric tokens are stored as a string of four-bit nibbles in which the first nibble identifies the type of token, the next nibble the length, followed by a nibble for each of the digits.

Abstract: The invention provides a modular fire fighting apparatus which may be quickly and easily mounted onto an ordinary pickup truck, and conveniently operated by the vehicle driver from the cab of the vehicle. The module generally includes a pump coupled to an engine for pumping a fire-retardant liquid, a control means for regulating the amount of liquid pumped, and a reservoir tank fluidly connected to the pump. The frame of the apparatus both unitizes the pump, engine and tank, and positions the engine and pump controls within the reach of the operator when the operator is in the cab of the vehicle. The invention further includes a tank level indicator including a transparent conduit and an elongated float engaged onto a guide rod in the tank for providing a visual display of the tank level which is positioned so that it may be observed through the rear-view mirror of the truck.

Abstract: The present disclosure describes an antenna which may be collapsed and stored in a compact configuration and readily released from storage to assume a deployed operative state. More specifically, the antenna is a wire member comprised of a straight section and an integral transverse helical spring section. The antenna lends itself to storage about the axis of a right circular cylinder while permitting full deployment parallel to the longitudinal axis of the latter. This arrangement permits the storage of potential energies of torsion and bending respectively in the helical spring and straight portions of the antenna, and permits continuous motion in these planes to effect antenna erection and deployment.

Abstract: The present disclosure describes an alignment fixture having particular application in surface-mount connector technology. The fixture utilizes a plurality of through-hole connector sections having pins which are retained in holes formed in a plate and which exhibit a predetermined positional tolerance. A plurality of surface-mount connector sections to be mounted adjacently on the edge of a printed circuit board are plugged into mating through-hole connector sections, and positioned with respect to conductive pads on the board surface. In effect, the above-mentioned positional tolerance has been transferred by the fixture to the surface-mount connector sections.

Abstract: The method uses digital data processing means and stored representations of a table of textual block identifiers for locating in a stored textual data base those textual blocks having the best match with a query. Textual block identifiers each provide an indication of a textual block in a stored data base which contains the corresponding word. The method comprises the following steps: A query word is received having representations of a plurality of words to be located in textual blocks in the stored data base. For each of a plurality of the query words, determine a corresponding set of equivalent words which are contained in the stored data base. Each set of equivalent words is equivalent to the corresponding query word. Each equivalent word has a corresponding group of textual block identifiers represented in the stored table.

Abstract: Apparatus and a related method for generating an estimate of the current state of an information source based upon the observed current and previous states of a related signal and on estimates of the effects of noise. The apparatus includes a state change probability matrix defining the probabilities of all possible state changes that the source is capable of assuming, states, a noise model for generating a set of probabilities indicative of the likelihood that an observed value of the signal would have occurred if the source were in each of its possible states, and circuitry for combining the set of probabilities from the noise model with the set of probabilities from the state change matrix, to provide a probability distribution indicative of the current underlying value of the source.

Abstract: A method using a digital data processing system and a query composed of entries locates entries in a stored multiple layer data base. The entries have one or more event types, and the entries of the data base include entries which have either an exact or an inexact match with entries of the query. The query and a first one of the data base layers are processed to form packages having an assigned order. The packages contain representations of event types in a second layer of the data base (entries in the first layer) and representations of the degree of match between the entry in the first layer and an entry of the query. Representations of the packages and representations of entries in a second one of the data base layers are processed to form a degree of match therebetween and to form representations of entries on the second one of the data base layers. For each of individual ones of the entries in the packages, a representation of a further degree of match for such entry is determined and formed.

Abstract: Method and means are disclosed for determining a particular criterion value and an associated positional value for a degree of match between the juxtaposition of a plurality of events of a query and a plurality of events of a stored data base entry. The method and means use a processing means having a plurality of data stores and a temporary store for each data store. Each data store stores a group of data values. The data values are priorly formed and represent the number of event positions between the occurrence of events in the query and the occurrence of the corresponding events in the stored data base. The processing means using the plurality data stores, the temporary stores and the data values stored therein form determined data values and sum-of-distance values which are then used by a utilizing means for in turn deriving a criterion value and a positional value corresponding to the degree of match between the query and the data base.

Abstract: A door burglar alarm system having, preferably, a door movement intercepting component which may be moved easily in the direction of door movement by an opening motion of a door and which may be connected to a trigger mechanism to initiate an alarm signal in response to a predetermined distance having been traversed by the intercepting component, this intercepting component whereupon may provide a positive resistance prohibiting the further movement thereof in the direction of opening the door whereby the door is also prohibited from opening further.

Abstract: Method and means using order of occurrence of entries and of events within entries for creating a data base and/or for finding a predetermined degree of match between the order of occurrence of events and entries in a request and a stored data base and/or for recreating an input in the original order of occurrence from a data base representing the order of occurrence of entries and events.