Abstract: A process and system is provided for briquetting particulate matter such as moisture-containing bituminous and sub-bituminous coal. This process includes partially drying the particulate matter and feeding, the partially dried particulate matter to a briquetting apparatus under conditions such that water vapour is released from the particulate matter during feeding. The particulate matter is passed through briquette forming rollers to form briquettes. The released water vapour substantially displaces or prevents the ingress of a large proportion of other gaseous components from the atmosphere surrounding an/or intermixed with the particulate matter.

Abstract: A door latch lever handle fitting includes a retaining member which is pushed onto a shank portion of a lever handle. The retaining member has tongues which engage flats of the shank portion and tongues which engage in grooves formed in the surface of the shank portion to thereby grip the shank portion. In other embodiments where there are no grooves, different retaining members have modified gripping tongue arrangements. The retaining member is stressed to give axial thrust to take up any residual play in the assembly. Ears of the retainer member are engageable with an abutment lug on the rear face of a base plate of the assembly so that the door handle may be turned through a predetermined angle.

Abstract: A handle is attached to a shaft on a saucepan body by a retaining plate. The plate is bowed and introduced into a slot on the underside of handle where it is retained in a pre-stressed condition prior to assembly. In other embodiments the plate may be flat with a bow being induced into the plate on assembly of same into the slot, or, alternatively, the plate may be flat both prior to and after assembly.Additionally, other handles may be assembled to shafts on articles other than saucepans using the retaining plate.

Abstract: Circlip making apparatus comprises three forming tools 2, 3, 4 equiangularly spaced about a mandrel axis 1a. A row of integral circlip blanks 6 are fed to the mandrel 1 through guide means 5 and blanks are cut from the row by blade 7 one by one before being bent into circlips around the mandrel 1 by advancement of the tools 2, 3, 4 radially of axis 1a. The row of blanks 6 is made from long flat wire stock and the stock is passed through work stations in which each blank is cut to tapered form and its cross-section planished between the ends so that it is adapted to a shape to be bent into a circlip without irregular distortion or buckling.

Abstract: In a method of treating a coil spring to improve its performance and reliability when operating at elevated temperatures, the spring is first stressed by applying a load of preselected magnitude and then, while the load is maintained, the spring is heated until it relaxes or collapses to a predetermined extent at which stage the heating is automatically discontinued and the applied load is afterwards removed. Apparatus for carrying out the method in relation to compression springs includes a spring supporting base, an overhead operating head with a vertically movable ram or plunger for applying the predetermined load, means for passing an electric heating current through each spring while beneath the operating head, and limit switch means which responds to the position of the ram or plunger and terminates the supply of heating current when the loaded spring has reached the required predetermined value of relaxation or collapse.

Abstract: In a method of treating a coil spring to improve its performance and reliability when operating at elevated temperatures, the spring is first stressed by applying a load of preselected magnitude and then, while the load is maintained, the spring is heated until it relaxes or collapses to a predetermined extent at which stage the heating is automatically discontinued and the applied load is afterwards removed. Apparatus for carrying out the method in relation to compression springs includes a spring supporting base, an overhead operating head with a vertically movable ram or plunger for applying the predetermined load, means for passing an electric heating current through each spring while beneath the operating head, and limit switch means which responds to the position of the ram or plunger and terminates the supply of heating current when the loaded spring has reached the required predetermined value of relaxation or collapse.