Abstract: A method for controlling the deposition of vaporized organic material onto a substrate surface, includes providing a manifold having at least one aperture through which vaporized organic material passes for deposition onto the substrate surface; and providing a volume of organic material and maintaining the temperature of such organic material in a first condition so that its vapor pressure is below that needed to effectively form a layer on the substrate, and in a second condition heating a volume percentage of the initial volume of such organic material so that the vapor pressure of the heated organic material is sufficient to effectively form a layer.

Abstract: A method of depositing a layer onto a substrate, comprising heating an evaporator to a temperature capable of completely evaporating the evaporant to be deposited, dispensing into the evaporator one or more quantized units of the evaporant where the evaporant is completely vaporized, providing an area vapor dispenser having a plurality of apertures, and directing the vaporized evaporant from the evaporator to the area vapor dispenser so that the evaporant is dispensed through the apertures to deposit the layer on the substrate.

Abstract: It is an object of the present invention to provide an effective way of replenishing particulate material for vaporization. This object is achieved by a method for delivering material into a deposition chamber having a vaporization zone to vaporize such material to form a layer. The improvement includes providing a cartridge defining a cavity for receiving material under a controlled environment for preventing material contamination, receiving material from the cavity and translating such received material along a feed path to the vaporization zone and removably securing the cartridge to the deposition chamber.

Abstract: A heating structure includes an opening that surrounds a heating element and a heat transfer element. Each heat transfer element is disposed between an exterior surface of the heating element and an interior surface of the opening. A clamping mechanism is used to clamp each heating element against a heat transfer element. Each heat transfer element partially surrounds a heating element and is configured to create at least two elongated and spatially separate contact regions along a length of the heating element. The at least two contact regions form a line of contact between the heating element and the interior surface of the opening when the heating element is clamped against the heat transfer element. The at least two contact regions allow the heating element to transfer heat to the opening and to the tooling device. The clamping mechanism may also be used to transfer heat to the tooling device.

Abstract: A method of vaporizing material at a uniform rate for forming a layer on a substrate includes feeding a column of vaporizable material from a temperature controlled region maintained below the vaporizable material's effective vaporization temperature to a source of vaporization energy, wherein the volume of the column can vary during vaporization; and providing a source of vaporization energy delivering a constant heat flux to the surface of the column so that a uniform volume per unit time of the vaporizable material is vaporized to form the layer on the substrate, irrespective of the feeding rate.

Abstract: Apparatus for metering and vaporizing a particulate material, includes: a metering device having: a reservoir for receiving particulate material; a housing having an internal volume and having first and second openings; a rotatable shaft disposed in the internal volume, the shaft having a smooth surface and a circumferential groove; a rotating agitator with a plurality of tines disposed in the reservoir and cooperating with the rotating shaft for fluidizing particulate material and transporting it from the reservoir into the groove; cooperating such that particulate material is transported by the groove; a scraper cooperates with the groove to dislodge particulate material retained therein, and deliver metered amounts of particulate material through the second opening; the rotatable shaft and the scraper cooperates to fluidize the particulate material at the second opening; and a flash evaporator that flash vaporizes the received particulate material.

Abstract: An onboard system for determining the instantaneous weight and balance of an aircraft simply, reliably, accurately, and requiring a minimum amount of calibration includes a memory for storing previously determined breakout friction data of the aircraft's landing gear shock struts, sensors for sensing the pressures in the struts, the vertical loads exerted by the landing gear on the aircraft, and the attitude of the aircraft relative to the horizontal during loading or unloading thereof, and a computer for computing the vertical load in each of the landing gears from the stored calibration breakout friction data and the shock strut pressures, landing gear vertical loads and aircraft attitude sensed during the loading or unloading. The computer then computes the gross weight of the aircraft and the location of its center of gravity (CG) using the computed vertical loads in the landing gears.

Abstract: A method of depositing a layer onto a substrate, comprising heating an evaporator to a temperature capable of completely evaporating the evaporant to be deposited, dispensing into the evaporator one or more quantized units of the evaporant where the evaporant is completely vaporized, providing an area vapor dispenser having a plurality of apertures, and directing the vaporized evaporant from the evaporator to the area vapor dispenser so that the evaporant is dispensed through the apertures to deposit the layer on the substrate.

Abstract: A fuel injector includes a fuel injector body defining a fuel inlet and at least one fuel outlet, a valve having a first valve state and a second valve state and an actuator for the valve. The fuel injector includes a biasing spring including a cylindrical rolled sheet having a first spring end, a second spring end and defining a longitudinal center axis. The cylindrical rolled sheet is configured to change in length to bias the actuator toward the first actuator position and includes a helical seam located between the first spring end and a second spring end which has a shape adapted to reduce non-uniformity in a spring constant via distributing stiffness about the longitudinal center axis.

Abstract: A toolholder support member for retaining the shank of a toolholder has a bore to accept the toolholder shank. A retention member extends through the bore wall to engage a perforation extending through the shank or indentation within the shank, thereby retaining the shank within the receiving bore. The retention member is biased to provide resistance for insertion or extraction of the shank within the receiving bore. Furthermore, the retention bore is angled relative to the longitudinal axis of the receiving bore so that the force required to insert the toolholder within the receiving bore is minimized, while the force required to extract the toolholder from the receiving bore is maximized.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus are provided for performing a jump operation in a pipelined digital processor. The method includes writing target addresses of jump instructions to be executed to a memory table, detecting a first jump instruction being executed by the processor, the first jump instruction referencing a pointer to a first target address in the memory table, the processor executing the first jump instruction by jumping to the first target address and modifying the pointer to point to a second target address in the memory table, the second target address corresponding to a second jump instruction. The execution of the first jump instruction may include prefetching at least one future target address from the memory table and writing the future target address in a local memory. The second target address may be accessed in the local memory in response to detection of the second jump instruction.

Abstract: A coolant coupling system for coupling a toolholder to a toolholder support member, wherein the shank of the toolholder is secured within the bore of the toolholder support member with an interference fit and a coolant channel extends through the toolholder support member to the toolholder passing through the region of the interference fit to provide a high pressure seal for the coolant passageway between the toolholder and the toolholder support member.

Abstract: An onboard system and method for determining the instantaneous weight and balance of an aircraft simply, reliably, accurately, and requiring a minimum amount of calibration includes a memory for storing previously determined breakout friction data of the aircraft's landing gear shock struts, sensors for sensing the pressures in the struts, the vertical loads exerted by the landing gear on the aircraft, and the attitude of the aircraft relative to the horizontal during loading or unloading thereof, and a computer for computing the vertical load in each of the landing gears from the stored calibration breakout friction data and the shock strut pressures, landing gear vertical loads and aircraft attitude sensed during the loading or unloading. The computer then computes the gross weight of the aircraft and the location of its center of gravity (CG) using the computed vertical loads in the landing gears.

Abstract: Apparatus for vaporizing a particulate material, comprising a metering apparatus including: a reservoir; a housing having an internal volume and first and second openings for respectively receiving and discharging the particulate material; a rotatable shaft disposed in the internal volume, the shaft having a smooth surface and a circumferential groove for receiving particulate material from the reservoir and for discharging the particulate material; the rotatable shaft and the internal volume cooperating such that the particulate material is transported by the circumferential groove and not along the remainder of the rotatable shaft; a scraper disposed in relation to the second opening, having at its end substantially the same cross section as the groove in the rotating shaft, the scraper cooperating with the groove to dislodge particulate material retained therein, and in response to the shaft rotating, delivers metered amounts of particulate material through the second opening; to the flash evaporator.

Abstract: A system for the deposition of vaporized materials on a substrate is described, comprising at least first and second orientation-independent apparatuses for directing vaporized organic materials onto a substrate surface to form first and second films, each of the first and second orientation-independent apparatuses being arranged in a different relative orientation and comprising: a chamber containing a quantity of material; a permeable member at one end of the chamber with a heating element for vaporizing the material; and means for continuously feeding the material toward the permeable member as it is vaporized, whereby organic material vaporizes at a desired rate-dependent vaporization temperature at the one end of the chamber. A plurality of thin films may be deposited on a substrate using deposition apparatus in a variety of orientations. Such a design provides reduced costs and improved deposition rate control.

Abstract: Apparatus for vaporizing a particulate material, comprising a metering apparatus including: a reservoir; a housing having an internal volume and first and second openings for respectively receiving and discharging the particulate material; a rotatable shaft disposed in the internal volume, the shaft having a smooth surface and a circumferential groove for receiving particulate material from the reservoir and for discharging the particulate material; the rotatable shaft and the internal volume cooperating such that the particulate material is transported by the circumferential groove and not along the remainder of the rotatable shaft; a scraper disposed in relation to the second opening, having at its end substantially the same cross section as the groove in the rotating shaft, the scraper cooperating with the groove to dislodge particulate material retained therein, and in response to the shaft rotating, delivers metered amounts of particulate material through the second opening; to the flash evaporator.

Abstract: A method for evaporating a plurality of purified organic materials in a thermal physical vapor deposition system, comprising the steps of: mixing predetermined amounts of first and second organic materials to form a mixture of materials at a predetermined ratio; processing at least one of the organic materials at less than the sublimation temperature of the at least one of the organic materials before or after mixing to remove a first contaminant, wherein if processing is after mixing, the processing temperature is lower than the sublimation temperature of each of the organic materials; providing a thermal physical vapor deposition source; transferring the purified mixture of organic materials into the thermal physical vapor deposition source while maintaining the purified mixture of organic materials in a controlled, contaminant-free environment; and using the source to evaporate the purified mixture of organic materials.

Abstract: A method for controlling the deposition of vaporized organic material onto a substrate surface, includes providing a manifold having at least one aperture through which vaporized organic material passes for deposition onto the substrate surface; and providing a volume of organic material and maintaining the temperature of such organic material in a first condition so that its vapor pressure is below that needed to effectively form a layer on the substrate, and in a second condition heating a volume percentage of the initial volume of such organic material so that the vapor pressure of the heated organic material is sufficient to effectively form a layer.

Abstract: A device vaporizes organic materials onto a substrate surface to form a film.

Abstract: An apparatus for vaporizing a particulate material, including: a metering apparatus including: a reservoir for receiving particulate material; the reservoir having an opening for discharging the particulate material into a vaporizing chamber; a rotatable wire wheel brush disposed in the reservoir; wherein the dimensions of the reservoir and the wire wheel brush are selected so that the wire wheel brush cooperates with the interior walls of the reservoir to fluidize the particulate material and wherein a metered portion of the particulate material is entrained in the tines of the wire wheel brush and subsequently forcefully released into the reservoir opening; and a flash evaporator that receives and vaporizes the metered material.