Abstract: A cup holder (10) for nonrotatable holding a beverage container during mixing of the pre-frozen beverage ingredients therein is described. The cup holder is removably supported in a cup holder support structure while the ingredients inside the beverage cup are processed, such as by mixing by a rotating blade. The cup holder (10) has anti-rotational features (18) on its sidewall and/or bottom wall structures, so that the cup holder is restrained against rotation which would otherwise be caused by the action of the rotating blade or other processing tool within the beverage cup. In a preferred embodiment, a spirally radiating anti-rotation pattern is formed on the cup holder bottom for mating with a corresponding pattern on the cup holder support structure.

Abstract: The present invention provides methods and apparatus for stabilizing data storage media during laser servowriting of optical servo tracks on the media. The apparatus includes a spindle for rotating the media during servowriting, a fixed media platform, and a media support for stabilizing the vertical position of the media during servowriting. The media support may include channels to reduce or control the formation of an air bearing in the area of servowriting to stabilize the vertical positioning of the media. The media support may also include a vacuum slot for drawing a vacuum through the channels.

Abstract: Jaws of microbend sensor have corrugations and hold an optical fiber therebetween. One jaw is movable with respect to the other for squeezing and bending the optical fiber between the corrugations. The amount of bending modulates light passing through the fiber which can be a measurement of the relative movement between the jaws. The relative movement can be a mechanical input of a microbend sensor for sensing a process variable, for example a flow rate in a vortex shedding flowmeter. According to the invention, the corrugations of each jaw comprise flat areas lying in a common plane for each jaw extending perpendicularly to the displacement direction of the jaws, and projections extending parallel to the displacement direction of the jaws and positioned between the flat areas. The projections of each jaw are positioned to face the flat area of the other jaw with the optical fiber being held between the projections.

Abstract: For use with a stretched surface recording disk, a recording head having a spherical surface and a series of parallel grooves adjacent the disk and a support arm assembly which maintains the recording head in proper attitudinal relationship to the disk.

Abstract: A sensor arrangement for a vortex shedding flowmeter having a flowmeter housing which is exposed to a flowing fluid in a fluid space on one side of the housing, comprises a sensor housing which is connected to the flowmeter housing and which defines an internal sensor space. A sensor beam is connected to the housing and has a first portion extending into the sensor space with a second portion extending through the flowmeter housing into the fluid space. A diaphragm resiliently carries the beam for movement in response to the passage of vortices in the fluid space. A mounting bracket is detachably connected to the sensor housing and carries a sensor element. The sensor element is operatively connected to the first portion of the sensor beam and can be easily engaged and disengaged thereto when the mounting bracket is to be removed. In this way if the sensor element fails, it can be replaced without stopping the flow of fluid or disturbing the sensor beam.

Abstract: A pressure transducer (10) in which a sensor beam (14) is connected to a diaphragm (18) by a shaft assembly (120) which is made up of a sensor post (122) attached to the sensor beam (14), an overpressure stop member (124) attached to the diaphragm (18), and a rigidifying material (126) connecting the sensor beam (14) to the overpressure stop member (24) is disclosed. The overpressure stop member (124) is formed with an extended hollow cylindrical portion (125) that surrounds the sensor post (122), and the rigidifying material (126) fills the space between them.

Abstract: A fiber optic device senses the generation of vortices by measuring the torsional displacement of a bluff body mounted for rotation about its center of inertia within a fluid conduit. An internally toothed member is fixed to the outside of the fluid conduit, and an externally toothed member is fixed to the bluff body for rotation therewith and is in partial meshing relation to the externally toothed member. An optical fiber is entrained between the toothed members and has one end exposed to a light source and the opposite end connected to a detector which is operable to detect changes in the intensity of the light transmitted through the fiber. As the bluff body vibrates, the toothed members are displaced relative to one another causing changes in the radius of curvature of the segments of the optical fiber received between the teeth, thus changing the intensity of light transmitted through the fiber in proportion to the changes in the radius of curvature.

Abstract: A label tape suitable for application to vulcanizable articles such as vehicle tires is disclosed. This tape includes a carrier web and a plurality of removable labels, each label comprising a backing, a pressure sensitive adhesive layer on one surface of the backing and a magnetic recording layer on the other surface of the backing. In a desired application, each label is magnetically encoded prior to being affixed via the adhesive layer to an unvulcanized tire carcass. During vulcanization the label becomes permanently affixed to the tire without altering the magnetically encoded information. The tire may subsequently be moved past a magnetic play-back head to produce a signal corresponding to the magnetically encoded information to thereby provide information indicative of the specific tire.