Abstract: A digital positioning system has a carrier in the form of a belt with a work surface and arrays of first and second conductors extending under that surface generally parallel to one another, each second conductor being spaced close to a first conductor to define a narrow gap between them. A voltage source applies a potential difference between the conductors to produce electrostatic fields which can attract and hold a substrate to said carrier work surface. Sensors are provided to enabling the longitudinal and lateral positions of the belt to be monitored to produce control signals to shift work elements operating on selected locations of the substrate at successive work stations to compensate for unwanted movements of the belt.

Abstract: A combination steam trap and flow valve assembly including a compact housing having a steam trap chamber, valve chambers, a cover, and a body. The steam trap and valve chambers are integrally formed within the body to create a compact integral assembly. Valve assemblies are received in the valve chambers to control the flow of steam and/or condensate into and out of the assembly. A steam trap mechanism is positioned within the steam trap chamber and the valve unit of the steam trap mechanism being positioned in the cover. The cover is removably attached to the uppermost surface of the body. Passages are provided in the body and cover thereby allowing the flow of steam and/or condensate to the steam trap chamber.

Abstract: Methods for handling exceptions caused by speculatively scheduled instructions or predicated instructions executed within a computer program are described. The method for speculatively scheduled instructions includes checking at a commit point of a speculatively scheduled instruction, a semaphore associated with the speculatively scheduled instruction and branching to an error handling routine if the semaphore is set. A set semaphore indicates that an exception occurred when the speculatively scheduled instruction was executed. For a predicated instruction the method includes checking a predicate of an eliminated branch and a semaphore associated with the speculative instruction at a commit point of the speculative instruction and branching to an error handling routine if the semaphore indicates that an exception occurred when said speculative instruction was executed, and the predicate is true, which indicates that said speculative instruction was properly executed.

Abstract: A station for mounting a steam/condensate responsive device in a condensate return line comprises a housing block having front and back faces, opposite end faces and top and bottom faces. The back face has a mount for removably mounting a steam/condensate responsive device. The end faces has inlet and outlet ports for connection in a condensate return line. The bottom face has a third port. An inlet valve and outlet valve are operatively interposed between and control flow between the mount and corresponding ones of the inlet and outlet ports. The inlet and outlet valves are located on and extending forward from the front face. The inlet and outlet valves are angled acutely upwardly along the front face. A compact manifold assembly mounts a plurality of such stations.

Abstract: A communication and tracking antenna is formed by embedding a tracking patch array in a shaped dual gridded reflector. The reflector includes first and second reflector grids that have orthogonally arranged grid lines and are respectively fed by feed horns. The patch array is positioned so that the first reflector grid is between the patch array and the first feed horn. The first reflector grid thus serves as a filter to remove unwanted polarization components and enhance the quality of both the tracking radiation and the radiation that is reflected from the second reflector grid. In other embodiments, a tracking array is positioned adjacent a reflector's perimeter.

Abstract: A user fittable and user mountable blind for an arched window comprising a minimum of two rigid slat hangers with angled slots to hold trimmable slats as long as the widest part of the window in the hangers and adjustable hinges with one short side to connect to the hangers and a slotted longer side to allow fastening to a top part of the window frame with a single mounting screw or to allow fastening to a mounting block slidably held in a track mounted in a top part of the window frame. After moving the adjustable hinges using the mounting block or utilizing the slot in the hinge to bring the slats to a horizontal position the user may trim the slats to exactly fit the window frame.

Abstract: An active redundancy system for high power satellite communications payloads that use multiple antenna beams driven by multiple power amplifiers and that require power redistribution among the beams during the lifetime of a payload uses a number of power amplifiers equal to or greater than the number of antenna feeder elements to provide extra output power at the beginning of life, instead of commonly used redundancy switches. As power amplifiers fail, the amplitude and phase of the signals driving the remaining power amplifiers are adjusted to maintain antenna performance. Power amplifiers having sufficient capacity are used to ensure that, given an anticipated number of power amplifier chain failures, performance requirements can be met at the end of life.

Abstract: A communication payload system for a satellite having a beam forming network, an amplifier associated with each output port of the beam forming network, and a plurality of hybrid matrices and a calibration pick-up antenna. Each hybrid matrix has a plurality of inputs connected to selected amplifiers and a corresponding number of outputs. One output of each hybrid matrix is connected to a power absorber adapted to function as an output calibration port producing a calibration sample and the remaining outputs connected to feed radiating elements. A calibration system applies power to selected output ports and calculates calibration corrections in response to the values of the calibration samples and the values of the power radiated by each feed radiating element which are applied to the beam forming network to maintain the calibration of the payload system.

Abstract: A digital positioning system has a carrier in the form of a belt with a work surface and arrays of first and second conductors extending under that surface generally parallel to one another, each second conductor being spaced close to a first conductor to define a narrow gap between them. A voltage source applies a potential difference between the conductors to produce electrostatic fields which can attract and hold a substrate to said carrier work surface. Monitoring means are provided to enabling the longitudinal and lateral positions of the belt to be monitored to produce control signals to shift work elements operating on selected locations of the substrate at successive work stations to compensate for unwanted movements of the belt.

Abstract: A method of automatically optimizing the controllable parameters related to producing printed material on a hardcopy output device is provided, along with a hardcopy output device configured for implementing this method. Users require different types of printed objects to have different characteristics. Specifically, business graphics need to be sharp and vivid, photographic images should look realistic, and text must be black, crisp and clear. By extracting, analyzing and conditioning data generated during a printing stream, the various regions of text, graphics and photographic images on a sheet are distinguished, characterized, and printed with a custom balancing of color pleasing to the human eye for each type of image printed.

Abstract: A multiple-function printing device provides for picking pages from a stack of sheets in an input feeder for roller-driven movement along a first path through a printing station to an output, and for picking pages from a stack of documents in an input feeder for roller-driven movement along a second path through a scanning station to an output, with at least a portion of the first and second paths being commonly shared, and with common mechanisms being used for various steps such as for picking, providing roller-driven movement through the processing stations, and for actuating a pressure plate in the input feeders. A document guide in a document scanning mode of operation is pivoted into a lowered position generally parallel to the print station platen to constrain and contain the top and bottom of any curled document exiting from the scan station into an output roller nip so as to prevent an incipient paper jam. Prior to a printing mode of operation on a paper sheet, the document guide is pivoted about 100.

Abstract: A process is disclosed for controlling ink volume in liquid ink printing systems such as ink jet printers. The process examines the total ink volume per pixel as specified in source image data (typically 24-bit, three color data), i.e. before digital halftoning. For each pixel of data, the specified ink volume is compared to a selected maximum total ink volume per pixel. The maximum total ink volume is selected, depending upon the printing medium and environmental conditions, so as to provide good color coverage while avoiding curl, bleeding and other adverse effects of excessive ink volume. The source image ink volume is reduced so as to form depleted image data in which the ink volumes per pixel do not exceed the selected maximum. Preferably, a threshold ink volume also is selected, below which no ink limiting is applied, thereby avoiding washed-out images at lower ink volumes. Above the threshold, the ink volume is scaled to a value below the maximum, preferably by linear scaling.

Abstract: Methods for handling exceptions caused by speculatively scheduled instructions or predicated instructions executed within a computer program are described. The method for speculatively scheduled instructions includes checking at a commit point of a speculatively scheduled instruction, a semaphore associated with the speculatively scheduled instruction and branching to an error handling routine in the semaphore is set. A set semaphore indicates that an exception occurred when the speculatively scheduled instruction was executed. For a predicated instruction the method includes checking a predicate of a eliminated branch and a semaphore associated with the speculative instruction at a commit point of the speculative instruction and branching to an error handing routine if the semaphore indicates that an exception occurred when the speculative instruction was executed, and the predicate is true, which indicates that the speculative instruction was properly executed.

Abstract: Methods for handling exceptions caused by speculatively scheduled instructions or predicated instructions executed within a computer program are described. The method for speculatively scheduled instructions includes checking at a commit point of a speculatively scheduled instruction, a semaphore associated with the speculatively scheduled instruction and branching to an error handling routine if the semaphore is set. A set semaphore indicates that an exception occurred when the speculatively scheduled instruction was executed. For a predicated instruction the method includes checking a predicate of an eliminated branch and a semaphore associated with the speculative instruction at a commit point of the speculative instruction and branching to an error handling routine if the semaphore indicates that an exception occurred when said speculative instruction was executed, and the predicate is true, which indicates that said speculative instruction was properly executed.

Abstract: An orthodontic coil spring to be used within an extraoral orthodontic appliance where the coil spring is made of a superelastic, shape-memory alloy wire. The coil spring is to impart a substantially constant force over the entire range of deflection. The level of force is to be between 375 to 800 grams.

Abstract: A compiler framework uses a generic "shell" and a generic back end (where the code generator is target-specific). The generic back end provides the functions of optimization, register and memory allocation, and code generation. The code generation function of the back end may be targeted for any of a number of computer architectures. A front end is tailored for each different source language, such as Cobol, Fortran, Pascal, C, C++, etc. The front end scans and parses the source code modules, and generates from them an intermediate language representation of the source code programs expressed in the source code. The intermediate language represents any of the source code languages in a universal manner, so the interface between the front end and back end is of a standard format, and need not be rewritten for each language-specific front end. A feature is a method for doing code generation using code templates in a multipass manner.

Abstract: A steel inner tube and thermoplastic outer tube are placed in an injection mold apparatus and a thermoplastic intermediate tube is molded between the inner and outer tubes. The intermediate tube shrink fit locks to the inner tube and shrinks relative to the outer tube to provide a selected journal-bearing torque relation therebetween. Projections and mating recesses on the inner tube and intermediate tube facilitate locking the intermediate tube to the inner tube without adhesives or other bonding agents. One or more thrust rings and recesses are formed on the mating surfaces of the outer tube and intermediate tube to preclude axial relative displacement therebetween in response to axial thrust loads. An elastomeric tubular member (or other known bushing construction) is secured over the outer tube and an outer steel tube is over the elastomeric member to provide an enhanced control arm bushing with a predetermined torque response for automotive suspension systems.

Abstract: A phased array antenna (10A, 10B, 10C) is constructed of an array of radiators (24), each of which has a radiating aperture, a first port (26) and a second port (26). The first port introduces a first radiation with a first polarization, and the second port introduces a second radiation with a second polarization which is orthogonal to the first polarization. Individual transmitting amplifiers, in the case of a transmitting array, or individual receiving amplifiers (16A), in the case of a receiving array, are connected to the ports of each of the radiators. The amplifiers associated with the first ports of the respective radiators are connected, in turn, to phase shifters (18A) and attenuators (20A) which constitute a first beamformer for forming a set of one or more beams of radiation.