Abstract: A closed-loop mixture control system for an internal combustion engine includes an exhaust composition detector to provide information on the air-fuel ratio of the mixture to be controlled and a circuit arrangement which clamps the system to a rich mixture ratio when the operating characteristic of the composition detector becomes abnormal due to either an open or short circuit condition.

Abstract: 1. In combination with a vessel forming a rocket motor combustion chamber, a rubber-base liner firmly adhering to the interior chamber wall, said rubber-base liner containing between about 2.5 and 30 percent by weight of an inorganic metal salt selected from the group consisting of zinc chromate, barium chromate, zinc phosphate, lead phosphate, potassium phosphate, and mixtures thereof, and a propellant charge substantially filling the lined portion of the chamber, said propellant charge firmly adhering to said liner.

Abstract: In a feedback control system for maintaining the air-fuel ratio of a combustible mixture fed to an internal combustion engine at a preset ratio, a fluctuation in the output characteristic of an exhaust sensor due to deterioration or low temperature is compensated for by varying a reference voltage, which serves as a standard of comparison, in response to a change in a maximal value of the sensor output voltage.

Abstract: A combustible rocket is constructed with a laminate which comprises high tensile strength metal foils, easily combustible metal foils, and easily combustible adhesive layers. The rocket has sufficient mechanical strength and its shell can be gasified or disintegrated into finely divided pieces after the propellant of the rocket has burnt out at high altitudes. This rocket can be launched safely even in the vicinity of population centers without risk of injury to living things.

Abstract: A solid propellant grain is held within a rocket motor case in a substantially stress-free manner. The grain is not bonded to the case itself but is bonded to a sleeve which has lateral protrusions or convolutions on its exterior which fit loosely and unattached into similar convolutions in a sleeve bonded to the interior of the case. The sleeve bonded to the propellant is made of a polymer having substantiallythe same elastomeric qualities as the propellant itself so that stresses are not created in the propellant at the bond. Physical shock or distortion of the propellant and thermal expansion or contraction of it create changes in dimension which are absorbed principally by the clearance gap between the convoluted surfaces of the sleeves and therefore substantially no cracking stresses are produced in the propellant itself.

Abstract: A filter-cooler is provided for use with a rocket motor to cool and filter ighly aluminized hot gases from around 5800.degree. F. to around 2000.degree. F. The cooled and filtered gases are then usable, for example, in thrust vector control or other mechanisms associated with the rocket. In the present system the cooler section is placed ahead of the filter section so that alumina present in the gases begins to solidify ahead of the filter and thus may be more efficiently removed. The filter section comprises a plurality of graphite vortex producing geometries. The vortex direction of the baffles is reversed in succeeding baffles so that the net effect of the high rotational velocities of each vortex is used to separate the particulate contaminates from the gas stream by momentum.

Abstract: The primary of the ignition coil is tapped to provide two partial primary portions which are serially connected; during an initial current flow, only one partial portion has current flowing therethrough, the other partial portion being short-circuited. When the current through the coil has risen to a predetermined level, as sensed by current flow through a sensing resistor, the short circuit across the second partial portion is removed so that current can continue to flow through the entire primary, causing a substantial drop in current level but maintaining the stored inductive energy. Current can thus rise rapidly initially, so that the coil will store sufficient energy to initiate sparking at high speeds of the connected internal combustion engine while, at low speeds thereof, the overall current flow through the coil is decreased.

Abstract: A variable flow control for a control rod assembly of a nuclear reactor that depends on turbulent friction though an annulus. The annulus is formed by a piston attached to the control rod drive shaft and a housing or sleeve fitted to the enclosure housing the control rod. As the nuclear fuel is burned up and the need exists for increased reactivity, the control rods are withdrawn, which increases the length of the annulus and decreases the rate of coolant flow through the control rod assembly.

Abstract: The ignition coil has a tapped primary winding which forms a first partial primary portion and a second primary portion, the second primary portion having an inductance which is high with respect to the partial primary portion. A supply circuit, including a controlled switch, is connected in circuit with the first partial portion to energize the partial portion when the controlled switch is closed, so that the partial portion is energized in successive pulses separated by time intervals. A shunt circuit is connected to the second primary portion and carries the induced current during gaps in energization pulses applied to the primary partial portion and arising at the end of the pulses, both the shunt and the main energization circuits being interrupted at the ignition instant to thereby produce a high-voltage pulse in the secondary. The pulsed current supplied to the primary saves current and loading of the ignition coil.

Abstract: A sonobuoy having a directional hydrophone centrally enclosed in a flexib acoustically transparent, spherical bag which upon deployment is filled with water to form a hydrosphere. A first embodiment comprises a plurality of upper and lower spreaders which form the bag into a spherical shape having a valve at the bottom most portion thereof for entry of water into the bag during oscillatory motion of the hydrophone. A second embodiment comprises a flexible, acoustically transparent, spherical bag which is time-filled with water by a pump to inflate the bag to a predetermined pressure. The hydrosphere forms a large virtual mass of static water around the hydrophone which reduces near field affects due to flow and motion noise and which also operates as a sea anchor.

Abstract: A detecting means for detecting an alternating signal produced by a pickup coil in timed relationship with engine rotation is provided by a circuit including in combination a P-N-P transistor and an N-P-N transistor. The temperature effects of these transistors, each of which has a characteristic which shifts with respect to the operating level thereof, compensate each other and the current through the ignition coil is thereby controlled in response to the output of the detecting means independent of the effects of temperature.

Abstract: A closed loop air-to-fuel ratio control system having an oxygen responsive sensor and a feedback circuit is disclosed. The sensor is disposed in an engine exhaust passage to produce a voltage indicative of the oxygen concentration in the exhaust gas. This voltage is integrated in the feedback circuit to cause the mixture air-to-fuel ratio to be corrected in response thereto. The integration is controlled by the integration controller to shift the mixture air-to-fuel ratio to the one other than the stoichiometric ratio. This integration controller can be made responsive to specific engine operating conditions such as throttle valve movement.

Abstract: A system for regulating the injection of auxiliary air into the intake of internal combustion engines includes a pressure-regulating stage feeding an intermediate compartment with an intermediate pressure proportional to that in the engine's intake manifold, and an opening-regulating stage through which air flows from the intermediate compartment toward the intake chamber communicating with the manifold. The opening-regulating stage includes a metering valve activated by a membrane which is controlled by a control pressure obtained by joining a compartment on one side of the membrane to intake pressure through a conduit having a metering orifice or choke thereon and also joining the compartment to an intermediate compartment through an electrically-activated valve the opening of which is controlled by a current at the frequency of the engine.

Abstract: It is common practice to discharge waste vapors from certain chemical processes into the atmosphere. Many of these vapors, usually referred to as "vent gases", contain compounds which are considered to be pollutants in the atmosphere. In this invention the vent gases are oxidized in the combustion chamber of a Diesel engine before release to the atmosphere. The oxidation step reduces the concentration of noxious compounds in the vapor to a level acceptable for atmospheric discharge.

Abstract: Current flow to the ignition coil during low-speed operation of the engine, is controlled by an auxiliary control switch which is connected in shunt with the primary of the ignition coil. Serially connected with the primary is a main control switch which is controlled to close until current through the primary has reached a certain value, at which time the main switch opens and the shunt auxiliary switch is closed to permit continued inductive current flow through the coil and thus store ignition energy, the cycle repeating to maintain current flow through the primary at a level to store sufficient energy for the ignition spark which, at the ignition instant, effects opening of the shunt circuit by opening the auxiliary switch while also opening the circuit to the primary, thus providing a high-voltage pulse which provides for sparking of the spark plug.

Abstract: A closed loop air-to-fuel ratio control system having an oxygen responsive sensor and a feedback circuit is disclosed. The sensor is disposed in an exhaust passage to produce a voltage indicative of the oxygen concentration in the exhaust gas. This voltage is integrated in the feedback circuit to cause the mixture air-to-fuel ratio to be corrected in response thereto. During specific engine conditions such as engine idling and low temperature of the exhaust gas, the integration is stopped to thereby switch off the closed loop to an open loop. The engine, on this occasion, can be supplied with the air-fuel mixture of an arbitrary ratio irrespective of the oxygen concentration in the exhaust gas, resulting in the optimum air-to-fuel control well-matched to the engine conditions.

Abstract: A device for the regulation of the air-fuel mixture of internal combustion engines comprises a fuel gas or air inlet opening into the inlet manifold downstream of the throttle valve, the gas inlet being controlled by a valve which is controlled by a capsule containing a movable member such as a membrane or piston subject to the partial vacuum prevailing in the manifold, the partial vacuum being modulated as a function firstly of the inlet air flowrate and secondly of the composition of the exhaust gases.

Abstract: A mechanical actuation system for secondary centerbody nozzle actuation commonly associated with a dual area solid rocket nozzle configuration that utilizes a rotating ring in combination with at least one piston connected to pins that are affixed to the movable centerbody. The ends of the pins adjacent the rotating ring are misaligned with holes in the rotating ring such that the ring lock prevents the centerbody from moving to a closed or blocking position until such time as the ring lock is rotated by ring actuation means to align the holes with the pins. The pins then simultaneously slide through the holes moving the centerbody to the closed position.

Abstract: 1. A booster comprising an open ended housing, a propellant charge carried within said housing, a trap assembly interposed between said propellant and opening for restraining said propellant, said trap including an annular ring member, and a plurality of radially extending arms held in disengageable interlocking relation with said ring member, said interlocking arms and ring member being arranged to maintain a rigid assembly upon the application of force from one direction, but which are readily collapsible upon the removal of said force after the booster has been expended.

Abstract: A closed-loop mixture control system for an internal combustion engine of a roadway vehicle includes a vehicle start sensor and a voltage sensor to determine whether the fuel quantity at the instant the vehicle is started from at rest is below a predetermined value. When the signals from both sensors occur simultaneously the control voltages instantly varied to increase the fuel quantity.