Abstract: A clothes washing machine includes a water tub, a spin basket, and a clothes agitator. A vertical dehydrating shaft is fixed to the spin basket, and a laundering shaft extends coaxially within the dehydrating shaft. Upper and lower ends of the laundering shaft are connected to the agitator and a motor respectively, whereby rotation of the motor is always transmitted to the agitator. In order to selectively connect the dehydrating shaft to the laundering shaft (e.g., during a spin-drying operation), a connecting gear is mounted on the dehydrating shaft for rotation therewith and for vertical movement relative thereto. A power-driven actuator is provided for selectively moving the connecting gear up or down. When the connecting gear moves down, lower teeth thereon become operably connected to the motor so that the dehydrating shaft and laundering shaft rotate together.

Abstract: A reel table transferring mechanism including an adjusting device which enables tape cassettes of different sizes to be selectively loaded into the mechanism. The adjusting device includes guide rods for supporting two reel tables and a slide member for slidably moving the two reel tables to change the distance between the two reel tables.

Abstract: A hemispherical fluid bearing has a pair of inner rings, each having a spherical outer lubricating surface, which are fixed to a shaft, and an outer ring having a lubricating surface corresponding to the lubricating surfaces of the inner rings for supporting the rotation of the inner rings. One of the inner rings and the outer ring has a first film coating of titanium or ceramic formed on the lubricating surface thereof. Therefore, abrasion due to solid friction when a motor starts or stops is efficiently decreased.