Abstract: Heating fluid in a chamber comprising a floor or ceiling and an upwardly or downwardly extending heat receiving wall by positioning a vortex burner substantially at or above the chamber floor in proximity to the heat receiving wall, delivering fuel and air to the vortex nozzle and burning the fuel to make a combustion product, imparting a swirling flow to the combustion product while directing the swirling flow along an elongated path, jetting fuel at a location positioned adjacent the vortex burner, and burning the jet fuel, thereby forming jet flow combustion products that mix with the vortex burner combustion products, and directing the resulting hot mixture generally vertically adjacent to the heat receiving wall for transferring heat thereto.

Abstract: A burner tip having a converging portion with a multiplicity of ports. The ports are sized and positioned so that a substantially constant ratio is maintained between any selected cross-sectional flow area within the converging portion and the sum of the port areas downstream from that cross-sectional flow area, thereby maintaining a substantially constant pressure within the tip. A disk is positioned at a downstream portion of the converging portion to flatten the flame.

Abstract: A vortex burner includes a flame ring for forming a swirling mixture of fuel gas and air and moving it in a downstream direction into a burner cup, and a deflector plate downstream of the flame ring and arranged crosswise of the flow to divert the flow outwardly along the burner cup surface.

Abstract: A fluoroscopic imager for observing a living creature with reduced x-ray dosage uses a video monitor for displaying frames of image samples received during respective ones of frame scan intervals that regularly and successively occur at a display frame rate sufficiently high that brightness flicker is acceptably low to a human observer; an x-ray source that can be gated on for intervals not as long as a display frame; and a fluoroscopic camera, including a raster-scanning video camera and x-ray-to-light conversion apparatus with persistence not appreciably longer than a display frame and frame-filling apparatus. Especially during purely diagnostic procedures, the frame-filling apparatus generates a continuous succession of frames of image samples at the display frame rate by interpolating between successively grabbed frames of image samples.

Abstract: A fluoroscopic imager for observing a living creature with reduced x-ray dosage uses a video monitor for displaying frames of image samples received during respective ones of frame scan intervals that regularly and successively occur at a display frame rate sufficiently high that brightness flicker is acceptably low to a human observer; an x-ray source that can be gated on for intervals not as long as a display frame; and a fluoroscopic camera, including a raster-scanning video camera and x-ray-to-light conversion apparatus with persistence not appreciably longer than a display frame and frame-filling apparatus. Especially during purely diagnostic procedures, the frame-filling apparatus generates a continuous succession of frames of image samples at the display frame rate by interpolating between successively grabbed frames of image samples.

Abstract: An interactive system for producing acceptable quality fluoroscopy images determines X-ray tube photon count and voltage while minimizing X-ray radiation dosage to a subject. Parameters of the subject and the type of image to be produced are provided to the system. X-ray tube voltage U and photon count Q are initialized at a fraction of conventional values for a portion of a subject to be imaged. An image is created and sectioned into rectangles. Rectangles having the greatest and least gradient values are used to determine variances indicating signal and noise power respectively. Images are produced and adjusted until the maximum transmitted power is reached, or the signal-to-noise ratio does not increase beyond a quality increment. The process is repeated to optimize X-ray tube voltage. The X-ray fluoroscopy procedure is then performed with the optimum X-ray tube photon count and the optimum X-ray tube voltage thereby reducing X-ray dosage. The optimization is repeated periodically to readjust the system.

Abstract: An interactive system for producing acceptable quality fluoroscopy images determines X-ray tube photon count and voltage while minimizing X-ray radiation dosage to a subject. Parameters of the subject and the type of image to be produced are provided to the system. X-ray tube voltage and current are initialized at a fraction of conventional values for a portion of a subject to be imaged. An image is then created and transformed. A power ratio of low frequency components to high frequency components is calculated indicating quality of the image. Images are produced and adjusted until the maximum exposure is reached, or the power ratio does not increase beyond a quality increment. The process is repeated to optimize X-ray tube voltage. The X-ray fluoroscopy procedure is performed with the optimum X-ray tube photon count and the optimum voltage thereby reducing X-ray dosage. The optimization is repeated periodically to readjust the system.

Abstract: A method for fluoroscopically observing a living creature with reduced x-ray dosage is usable with a video monitor for displaying frames of image samples received during respective ones of frame scan intervals that regularly and successively occur at a display frame rate sufficiently high that brightness flicker is acceptably low to a human observer; an x-ray source that can be gated on for intervals not as long as a display frame; a fluoroscopic camera, including a raster-scanning video camera and a x-ray-to-light conversion apparatus with persistence not appreciably longer than a display frame; and frame filling apparatus for grabbing frames of image samples and interpolating between successively grabbed frames of image samples, when necessary, to generate frames of image samples at said display frame rate.

Abstract: A method for dynamic focus of received energy, in a vibratory energy imaging system, into a beam in which contribution from transducers in an array of N such transducers, are progressively enabled to contribute to beam focussing dependent upon distance between a particular j-th transducer (where 1.ltoreq.j.ltoreq.N) is responsive to the depth, or range R, of the focal point at any instant of time; the initial steering angle .theta., with respect to the array normal, is used in conjunction with a range clock, to determine the time when each off-normal transducer channel is enabled to add to the beam (dynamic apodization) and to finely adjust the channel time delay to properly focus the beam after the enablement of the channel.

Abstract: Apparatus for testing data conversion/transfer functions in each of a plurality N of channels of a vibratory energy imaging system includes a multiplexer for providing, to an addressable memory having a plurality of L=2.sup.M locations in each of which a data word of B bits can be stored, a selected one of an input data word and a test data word, each of which can address one of the L locations of the memory means. The address multiplexer facilitates retrieval from memory of a B-bit data word having a value selected to implement a selected function for that channel, so that comparision of data from the selected test address with the data which has been sent to that location for storage, will indicate if proper data is stored for carrying out the designated function.

Abstract: Apparatus for providing a desired output signal as a function of a single-valued input signal in an electronic system, includes: an addressable memory, having a plurality L locations, each for storage of a data word of B bits; a circuit for storing in each of the L locations of the memory means a B-bit data word having a value selected to provide a particular output value; and circuitry for converting a present single-valued increment of input signal to a unique address, within the range of allowable locations of the memory, to cause each increment of input signal to select the associated one of the L data word locations, from which to output corresponding data.

Abstract: A method for correcting data conversion/transfer errors in each of a plurality N of channels of a vibratory energy imaging system, by: providing an addressable memory having a plurality L=2.sup.M locations, each for storage of a data word of B bits; then storing in each of the L locations of the memory means a B-bit data word having a value selected to cause the output-to-input transfer function for that channel to assume a desired relationship, with respect to a standard transfer measure; and selecting that one of the L data word locations, responsive to that actual one of an M-bit data word output from a channel ADC or from a data bus, responsive to a test signal, in which to place corresponding data.

Abstract: A method for generating a stream of digital data words, each representing an analog signal amplitude from a beam of vibratory energy received by a plurality N of transducers each associated with one of a like number of separate channels of a phased array, uses the steps of: sampling, after a delay of a multiple number of cycles at a fixed frequency F, an analog input signal in each channel at a fixed frequency F for conversion to a digital data word at each sample; then demodulating the digital data word stream in each channel to baseband and reducing the data word rate by a factor D; and phase-rotating the baseband data stream of each channel by a phase difference .DELTA..phi. determined by the focal range R and steering angle .theta. to obtain, along both the sampling delay, a different channel time delay t.sub.d,j, for each j-th channel, where 1.ltoreq.j.ltoreq.N, necessary to steer and focus the beam to a desired angle/range combination.

Abstract: A link bar is pivotally mounted on the top side of a plate which is secured to the underside of the top of a receptacle. The bar terminates with a handle exterior of the receptacle immediately above a hinged door. A cable extends between the door and an intermediate location of the bar. In response to lateral movement of the lever, the door is caused to swing inwardly open.

Abstract: A method of fluoroscopically observing a living creature with reduced x-ray dosage is usable with a video monitor for displaying frames of image samples received during respective ones of frame scan intervals that regularly and successively occur at a display frame rate sufficiently high that brightness flicker is acceptably low to a human observer; an x-ray source that can be gated on for intervals not as long as a display frame; a fluoroscopic camera, including a raster-scanning video camera and a x-ray-to-light conversion apparatus with persistence not appreciably longer than a display frame; and frame filling apparatus for grabbing frames of image samples and interpolating between successively grabbed frames of image samples, when necessary, to generate frames of image samples at said display frame rate.