Abstract:
A method and apparatus for comparing two objects having similar shapes and dimensions wherein one of the objects is illuminated by a collimated light beam whose intensity is modulated in a direction transverse thereto at a spatial frequency 1/p. The modulated light beam generates a lattice of alternately dark and light parallel bands similar to interference fringes having a pitch p on the illuminated surface of the object having a configuration in the manner of contour lines determined by the relief of the illuminated side of the object. The other object is thereafter substituted for the first one and in the same position, and is similarly illuminated by the same beam but wherein the intensity modulation has been phase-shifted by 180*. The respective images of the two objects are optically superimposed and from which is then obtained only the differential component of the image which is modulated with a spatial frequency 1/p. Apparatus for carrying out the method can be either (1) photographic in which case the superimposed images of the two objects are established by development on a photo-sensitive negative which is light-transmissive in conjunction with a lens which transmits only the differential component in the negative to a photographic plate, or (2) electronically by means of a TV camera and related components by which the respective video images are added and passed to a visual display device such as a cathode ray tube via a filter having a pass band transmitting only the differential signal component which is modulated by the time frequency v/p wherein v constitutes the linear sweep speed of the TV camera.
Abstract:
Device for distillation of a liquid, particularly sea water, comprises a plurality of stages each of which includes at least one cell through which the liquid flows and in which steam produced by evaporation is separated from the unevaporated liquid in order to obtain a condensate. The device employs one or more expansion nozzles in each cell through which the liquid expands and is thus converted partly into its vapor phase as a result of the reduction in pressure. The composite liquid and gaseous fluid passes along a curved flow surface which, as a result of the centrifugal forces created effects separation of the liquid from the steam. The steam is then condensed and the remaining liquid passes through a heat exchanger and is then recycled.