An apparatus and method for ensuring that the flow of water to a toilet tank is shut off. The first preferred embodiment of the invention combines a conventional float mechanism to shut off the flow of water to a toilet tank when full, with a timer mechanism to shut off the flow of water if the float mechanism fails. There is also a manual override to shut off the flow of water if both the float mechanism and the timer mechanism fail. In the second preferred embodiment, the float mechanism is in...

There is disclosed a hand-held labeler for printing and applying labels and for printing tags. The labeler has a keyboard, a display, a scanner, and a battery-containing handle. The labeler is user-friendly and compact. The labeler can be easily loaded with label and tag webs of different widths. The labeler has a discharge chute for the carrier web which can be slid to a position outside the labeler for easy cleaning.

A rotary machine includes a rotatable rotor, buckets radially mounted on and spaced apart about the rotor, a stationary stator/casing disposed about and radially outward from the rotor defining an annular gap between the casing and tips of the buckets, and an abradable seal member provided to the bucket tip portions and disposed within the annular gap such that during differential growth of the rotor and buckets relative to the casing the seal member abrades in response to contact with a base se...

The invention concerns a method for detecting voice activity in a digital speech signal, in at least a frequency band, for example by means of a detecting automaton whereof the status is controlled on the basis of an energy analysis of the signal. The control of said automaton, or more generally the determination of voice activity, comprises a comparison, in the frequency band, of two different versions of the speech signal one of which at least is a noise-corrected version.

A method and an apparatus for opening continuous filaments provide stable quality of fibrous layer after opening crimped TOW. The TOW is transported by means of a plurality of rolls. While transported, the TOW is applied a resistance on one side of the TOW by slidingly contacting a sliding body onto the TOW at between rolls. As a result, continuous filaments stacked in a thickness direction of the TOW are caused to sift in a transporting direction of the TOW. Thus, the TOW is opened and the cont...

A coffee roaster is an oven with a roasting drum. The roasting drum turns on a horizontal axis within the oven to tumble coffee beans while roasting and to even out differences in heating. The roasting drum is fitted with a bearing journal at each end and just fits within the length of the oven. Opposite ends of the oven have four rollers each that receive the turning weight of the roasting drum by riding along the bearing journals. Each roller wheel is carried at the distal end of a rocker arm ...

A display panel includes a casing, a number of parallel display elements rotatably mounted within the casing, a mass that can move within the casing, and a mechanism with which the mass interacts to affect rotation of the display elements. A base attaches the display panel to a motor vehicle dashboard for observation by passengers, such that upon acceleration and deceleration of the motor vehicle, the mass moves to affect periodic display changes.

Disclosed is a driving apparatus for a robot cleaner enabling drive wheels to be in contact with a floor all the time. The driving apparatus for a robot cleaner includes a robot cleaner main body, driving motors mounted in the robot cleaner main body, and for transferring power to drive wheels, driving motor housings hinged with the robot cleaner main body, and for accommodating the driving motors therein, and pressure members disposed between the robot cleaner main body and the driving motor ho...

A power generating and propelling system of a vessel has an electric power generating device (10) installed between an internal combustion engine (2) and a transmission (3). A stator (11) of the generating device (10) is built in a flywheel housing (21a) of the internal combustion engine (2) or a casing (10a) connected to the flywheel housing (21a). A rotary shaft of the generating device (10) is disposed coaxially or eccentrically parallel to a crankshaft (2a) of the internal combustion engine ...

A heating element assembly for a clothes drier, comprising: a heating wire coil adapted to be wired to a power source for heating air passing through a heating element housing of a drier for subsequent drying of clothes in a drum of the drier. The heating wire coil has straight portions intermittently positioned between coil portions. Support members are adapted to be secured to the heating element housing in a predetermined pattern for supporting the straight portions of the heating wire coil w...