Abstract:
Detailed are valves principally useful for automatic swimming pool cleaners. The valves may be made of flexible material and, typically, are generally tubular in shape. Mouths of the valves may be divided into two or more parts, with certain versions having three lobes. These configurations enable larger debris to pass through the valves.
Abstract:
Devices for cleaning vessels, especially swimming pools, are discussed. The devices may include a non-linear flow path in a gap surrounding an in-line valve. This non-linearity permits lengths of concentric pipes forming the gap to be decreased without sacrificing operational performance of the devices. Valves forming parts of the cleaning devices may be diaphragms but shaped, sized, reinforced, or configured differently than existing valves and may have collapsible segments whose interior shape resembles an ellipse in transverse cross-section. Co-molding of diaphragms and pipes may occur, and inner and outer cups may be used to fix relative positions of various components of the devices.
Abstract:
An x-ray source assembly (2700) and method of operation are provided having enhanced output stability. The assembly includes an anode (2125) having a source spot upon which electrons (2120) impinge and a control system (2715/2720) for controlling position of the anode source spot relative to an output structure. The control system can maintain the anode source spot location relative to the output structure (2710) notwithstanding a change in one or more operating conditions of the x-ray source assembly. One aspect of the disclosed invention is most amenable to the analysis of sulfur in petroleum-based fuels.
Abstract:
This invention relates to a method for producing a zinc finger nucleic acid binding protein comprising preparing a zinc finger protein according design rules, varying the protein at one or more positions, and selecting variants which bind to a target nucleic acid sequence by polysome display.
Abstract:
A compound of formula (I), wherein &agr;X is ═O, ═N—OR6, &bgr;NHR or &bgr;OH wherein R6 is H or C1-C6 alkyl, bond a is oriented &ggr; or &dgr; and R is H, C1-C6 alkyl which is unsubstituted or substituted by C6-C10 aryl, or C3-C6 cycloalkyl; &egr; is a bond when &zgr; and &eegr; are not bonds or, when X is ═O, &zgr; and &eegr; are both bonds and &egr; is not a bond; R1 and R2, which are the same or different, are H or a halogen; R3 and R4, which are the same or different, are H, C1-C6 alkyl, C3-C6 cycloalkyl, a heterocyclic group or an aromatic group; bond e is oriented &ggr; or &dgr;; and R5 is C1-C6 alkyl; or formula (Ib), or formula (II), or formula (III), has activity as a cytokine production inhibitor and an inhibitor and an inhibitor of tyrosine kinase. A process for producing some of the compounds from a fungal strain, processes for producing synthetic analogues from these compounds and the use of the compounds in treating immunoinflammatory and cancerous conditions are also described.
Abstract:
An ice guide plate with a trapezoidal main body joined to a right triangular side plate by a joining plate. The joining plate has only two lateral water recovery slots in a lower section thereof. A pair of drip ridges are provided on the back of the joining plate as continuations of two reinforcing ribs of the main body and the side plate. A valley gutter slot is provided along the lower edge of the joining plates and extends up into the main body and the adjacent side plate as well.
Abstract:
A compressible stuff sack is disclosed, designed to be relatively easy to use and inexpensive to manufacture. The stuff sack includes a body made of flexible material with a main opening. A hands-free, one-way valve is provided on the sack which enables excess air to automatically escape from the sack when the sack is compressed. In one embodiment, the body is cylindrically-shaped and made of waterproof material. Attached to one end of the body is a bottom cap including an end plate with surrounding compression rings which are simultaneously welded over an opened end of the body. The opposite end of the body is opened and covered with a removable top cap. Four, spaced-apart compression straps are aligned longitudinally over the outside surface of the body and attached to the bottom and top caps. When the compression straps are shortened, the bottom and top caps are squeezed together to reduce the overall length of the sack and to compress the cargo.
Abstract:
A water spraying apparatus for an ice making machine including an icing water sprayer having three spray tubes, a lateral header portion joining one end of each of the spray tubes together, and a pair of spray tube inlets connected to the lateral header portion. The spray tubes are spaced apart from and extend in parallel to each other. The bottom wall of each of the tubes has a plurality of water spray holes formed therein. The icing water sprayer is an integral one-piece structure. The spray tube inlets are symmetrically provided with respect to the longitudinal axis of the sprayer and have water supply connection openings with central axes in parallel with the lateral axis and facing each other. The spray tube inlets are preferably formed as a tee joint having a stem joined to the first wall of the lateral header portion and two arms with one arm having the water supply connection opening and the other arm being closed.
Abstract:
A method and apparatus for tracking of organized storms using weather radar images. An image filter approximating the envelope of the organized storm radar image is used to improve tracking of the large scale storm features. The image filter is repeatedly rotated to different orientations at each point in the weather radar images to produce filtered images. The filtered images are provided to an image tracker to generate an array of track vectors. Application of the array of track vectors to the unfiltered image generates a predicted weather radar image.
Abstract:
A multi-function machine with interleaved job execution is disclosed. The multi-function machine performs multiple functions such as printing and digital copying. Multiple users of the machine are intermittently serviced as the machine switches from printing to copying jobs and vice versa. The manner of switching is partially determined by whether the requisite set-up time for a particular job is complete. The manner of switching may also be determined by user-set priorities. In either embodiment, jobs are interleaved so as to eliminate unused time associated with the period required to set-up a job. As a result, the machine operates optimally while intermittently making progress on multiple jobs.