A screw retainer comprises a substantially flat clip having a central resilient tang engaged by a screw for preventing withdrawal of the screw from an opening. Engagement of the screw with the tang also causes a reversely curved porton of the tang to engage an abutment for preventing withdrawal of the clip from a slot in which it is positioned adjacent a screw receiving hole.

A method and apparatus is provided for attaching a plurality of two-piece connectors of varying configuration to a specified length of multi-conductor cable at precise locations along the length of the cable and in any sequence of connector attachment. A device is provided for storing and downwardly advancing a precise length of cable, cutting one end of the cable at a cutter station, and locating the cable between a connector assembly station where a pair of connector halfs are automatically at...

A channel joiner has a connecting tongue closely receivable in a channel having abutment surfaces on the terminal end portions of the channel sidewalls facing towards the channel bottom wall. A screw has a threaded shank threaded through a threaded hole in the tongue bottom wall and the end of the screw shank bears against the channel bottom wall for biasing the tongue and channel bottom walls away from one another to tightly urge the tongue sidewall edges into firm engagement with the channel a...

A combustion controller (C) controls the relative rates at which a combustion component source (B) supplies fuel, air, and oxygen to nozzles (A). A fuel source (30) supplies fuel to the burners at a rate (50 in FIG. 2) which is appropriate to produce a desired amount of heat. A blower (32) supplies air at a fixed rate (52b) and an oxygen source supplies oxygen gas at a rate (54) in proportion to the fuel supply rate such that stoichiometrically balanced combustion is maintained. To decrease the ...

A furnace (A) defines a combustion chamber (10) in which a pair of burners (B) are mounted for oxidizing the fuel to heat the combustion chamber. An air blower (12) supplies air to the burners at a rate controlled by a rate control valve (18). A frequency modulated burner control system (C) controls the duty cycle of the burners, i.e. cyclically actuates the burner at a fixed burn rate and then deactuates them. The burner control system varies the actuation to deactuation ratio in each cycle to ...

An upper furnace portion (A) includes side walls (12, 14) extending along its lower edge. A dimensionally stable furnace hearth (B) is movably mounted adjacent the furnace lower edge and is displaced a small distance from the side walls, such that the hearth is movable without engaging the side walls, yet sufficiently close that relatively little heat tends to pass between the hearth and the side walls. The hearth includes a metal base plate (20) to which a plurality of vertically extending anch...

A securing assembly for an axially rotatable body or workpiece such as a fluorescent lamp provided with a pair of pins which extend axially outward from at least one end thereof and into a socket in a lampholder. The securing assembly includes a generally C-shaped resilient body having a pair of radially inward extending locking members. These locking members are configured to prevent undesired rotation and subsequent disengagement of the lamp from the socket, even under severe vibration conditi...

A steel strip (10) is conveyed through a galvanizing bath (20) of molten zinc, a zinc coating weight control device (12), and a minispangle box assembly (16). The steel strip emerges from the zinc coating weight control device (12) with a non-uniform temperature distribution across its width in which it is warmer in the center and cooler at its edges. A differential, pre-cooler assembly (18) cools the steel strip selectively and non-uniformly across its width in a manner which is complimentary t...

A metal recuperator is described as having an exterior casing with a replaceable inner housing which forms with the casing a pair of separated fluid passageways through which two fluids, at different temperatures, are circulated into heat exchanging relationship. Special seals are provided to allow relative movement between the casing and the housing while sealing the passageways from each other and the ambient atmosphere.

A steel strip (10) is conveyed through a galvanizing bath (20) of molten zinc, a zinc coating weight control device (12), and a minispangle box assembly (16). The steel strip emerges from the zinc coating weight control device (12) with a non-uniform temperature distribution across its width in which it is warmer in the center and cooler at its edges. A differential, pre-cooler assembly (18) cools the steel strip selectively and non-uniformly across its width in a manner which is complimentary t...