Abstract: A foamed adhesive for the production of books, more preferably hard cover books. The adhesive is used in casing-in operations to attach end sheets of a book block to a hard cover.

Abstract: A self-tensioning handle for use with endoscopic devices is disclosed. The handle may have mounting features for mounting a sheath and a control rod from an endoscopic device, such as a grasper or a retrieval basket. One mounting feature, such as a pin vise to hold a sheath, may be mounted in a distal portion of the handle, nearer a patient. Another mounting feature for a control rod or cannula of the endoscopic device is preferably mounted in a proximal portion of the handle. The handle is assembled with a tension or a pre-load so that a surgeon is not required to continually grip and compress the handle to retain a sample in the retrieval basket or other end-effector used with the handle.

Abstract: This invention in one aspect consists of a method of verifying barcode data, comprising the steps of detecting the presence of barcode data in a digital file, obtaining measurements of the bars and spaces of said barcode data, identifying the type of barcode data present in said file, decoding said barcode data using a predetermined algorithm used for that type of barcode data, verifying said barcode data using the result of the decoding step, and outputting the results of the verification. In another aspect, the invention is a system for verifying barcode data, comprising a detector for detecting the presence of barcode data in a digital file, a measurer for obtaining measurements of the bars and spaces of said barcode data; an identifier for identifying the type of barcode data present in said file, a decoder for decoding said barcode data using a predetermined algorithm, a verifier for verifying said barcode data; and a communicator to output the results of the verification.