Abstract: A bulk product feeding system includes a product hopper, having a sloped bottom, a front side, and an outlet located at a lowermost confluence of the sloped bottom and the front side, the hopper being configured to receive and hold a bulk quantity of sticky or fragile product. A first sloped ram is reciprocally disposed in the bottom of the hopper, and configured to reciprocate toward and away from the outlet. A second, substantially vertical ram is reciprocally disposed on the front side of the hopper, and configured to reciprocate toward and away from the outlet and the first ram. Motion of the first and second rams is coordinated to controllably discharge the product through the outlet.

Abstract: A conveyor belt connector, adapted to connect first and second ends of an elongate flexible belt having a top and a bottom and operated substantially constantly under tension, includes a plurality of hooks, disposed at the first end of the belt, and a plurality of slots, disposed at the second end of the belt, configured to longitudinally pivotally attach to the plurality of hooks and connect the belt in a continuous loop.

Abstract: A bulk product feeding system includes a product hopper, and a reciprocating ram, positioned in the bottom of the hopper. The hopper has substantially vertical sidewalls, and the ram has a width substantially equal to the width of the hopper. The hopper is configured to hold a bulk quantity of sticky or fragile product, and the sidewalls are spaced apart a distance sufficient to resist bridging of the product. The ram is configured to selectively extend to push product out of an outlet of the hopper, and to retract to allow product to drop down to the bottom of the hopper.

Abstract: A bulk product feeding system includes a product hopper, and a reciprocating ram, positioned in the bottom of the hopper. The hopper has substantially vertical sidewalls, and the ram has a width substantially equal to the width of the hopper. The hopper is configured to hold a bulk quantity of sticky or fragile product, and the sidewalls are spaced apart a distance sufficient to resist bridging of the product. The ram is configured to selectively reciprocate to controllably discharge product through the outlet. The bulk feeding system can include additional features such as a stepped ram, a flexible finger gate, and an oscillating finger gate.

Abstract: A composite fan casing for a gas turbine engine is provided includes, in an exemplary embodiment, a core having a plurality of core layers of reinforcing fiber bonded together with a thermosetting polymeric resin. Each core layer includes a plurality of braided reinforcing fibers with the braids of reinforcing fibers aligned in a circumferential direction.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for dividing a single stream of long, sticky product into a plurality of product streams, comprising a product input conduit for providing a single stream of product, and having a rough portioner disposed therein for dividing the stream of product into discrete portions. The discrete portions are then dropped into a first diverter mechanism comprised of a reciprocating slide block mechanism, which selectively directs the discrete portions into two outlet streams. Additional diverter mechanisms may be disposed in the outlet streams to further divide and redirect the product into any number of final outlet streams, such as four, eight, etc. The final outlet streams are directed toward container filling machines which precisely measure the product and place it into containers as desired.

Abstract: A container following system for use with a particulate product measuring and dispensing machine having a discharge opening for allowing measured quantities of particulate product to drop therefrom into a moving container. The container following system comprises a following pocket disposed below the discharge opening of the particulate product measuring and dispensing machine and above a conveyor for moving containers to be filled. The following pocket comprises a reciprocating body having a generally vertical aperture through which particulate product drops from the discharge opening before landing in the container to be filled.

Abstract: Structure for shielding the upper surface of rim flanges of containers positioned for filling with material from a filling head of a container filling device includes a mounting base for attaching to the container filling device, and a shield formed with a pair of arms projecting from the mounting base in a generally parallel, spaced apart relationship to overlie or cover respective opposing side rim flanges of the container, while allowing material to be dispensed from the filling head between the arms to the container. A plate extends between the arms at one end thereof to cover the rim flange of the container that extends between the opposing side rim flanges, so that the combination of the two arms and plate serves to cover and shield the upper surface of the rim flanges from material being deposited into the container.

Abstract: A composite article includes a plurality of laminates each having structural fibers bonded in a matrix, and an adhesive film disposed between and bonding together adjacent ones of the laminates. In an exemplary embodiment, the laminates and the interleaved adhesive films form a facesheet which is joined to a core for forming an impact resistant fan case impact liner for a gas turbine engine. The impact liner may be integrated with a sound suppression liner.

Abstract: Disclosed are a reagent and test slide used for serological detection of gonorrheal antibodies in human blood serum or synovial fluid. The reagent comprises latex particles having absorbed on their surfaces an inert protein, such as bovine serum albumin and a heat labile antigen derived from Neisseria gonorrhoeae bacteria exhibiting T.sub.1 colonial morphology. The reagent may be employed by several forms, for example, as a liquid suspension of the latex particles, or in the form of a dried deposit of the latex particles. Regardless of the form employed, the reagent is particularly useful as a routine screening test in hospitals and prenatal clinics to detect gonococcal infection in women and also in cases of complicated gonorrhea, e.g., gonorrheal arthritis where infection is not conveniently detectable by present means. The test slide may have dried thereon an absorbing antigen for heterophile antibodies.

Abstract: Disclosed herein is a stable preparation of human erythrocytes for use in reverse blood typing comprising erythrocytes hemolyzed by gradual hypotonic hemolysis using a sequence of aqueous hypotonic buffers to form stroma wherein the stroma cells are in the form of discoid bodies having the reticular membrane of the cell substantially intact. The stroma reagent has been found to be highly stable and antigenic in the sense that it contains blood group antigens (carried on the stroma cells), and can be admixed with human blood serum or plasma to determine the presence of hemologous blood group antibodies.