The present invention relates to a fiber grating filter optical waveguide device, comprising an optical fiber with an optical filter, both consisting essentially of silica, whereby said optical filter has an area with a grating region, wherein said area with a grating region is covered with a layer comprising a material having a refractive index which is the same or higher than the refractive index of the material of the optical fiber. The variation of the physic-chemical nature of said material...

This invention provides a system and method for positioning, manipulating, holding, grasping, immobilizing and/or stabilizing a heart including one or more tissue-engaging devices, one or more suction sources, one or more fluid sources, one or more energy sources, one or more sensors and one or more processors. The system and method may include an indifferent electrode, a drug delivery device and an illumination device. The system's tissue-engaging device may comprise a tissue-engaging head, a s...

There is provided a package for holding long-period fiber gratings formed on an optical fiber from which an outer coating is partially removed to form the gratings thereon. A recoating is then applied to the long-period fiber gratings to maintain the optical characteristics of the long-period fiber gratings, and thereafter a silica glass tube is fixed around the recoating to protect the long-period fiber gratings from an ambient environment.

A portable readily transportable combined shuffleboard and shufflebowling game for selectively playing either the game of shuffleboard or the game of shufflebowling which is played in a manner analogous to regular bowling but utilizes a bowl shaped member in place of a bowling ball which is propelled down the alley by a cue such as used when playing shuffleboard, there being provided a collapsible cage adapted to be detachably attached to the end of the game table behind the normal placement of ...

A process for the absorption of chlorine from a chlorine-containing gas, comprising contacting the chlorine-containing gas with an aqueous solution containing about 1 to 400 g/l of iron(II) chloride and at least one of copper (I) and copper(II) ions, the chlorine being adsorbed with conversion of the iron(II) chloride into iron(III) chloride, thereafter electrolyzing the iron(III) chloride to form chlorine and iron(II) chloride and recycling the iron(II) chloride for the absorption of additional...

A method and apparatus for temporarily immobilizing a local area of tissue. In particular, the present invention provides a method and apparatus for temporarily immobilizing a local area of heart tissue to thereby permit surgery on a coronary vessel in that area without significant deterioration of the pumping function of the beating heart. The local area of heart tissue is immobilized to a degree sufficient to permit minimally invasive or micro-surgery on that area of the heart. The present inv...

A method and apparatus for temporarily immobilizing a local area of tissue. In particular, the present invention provides a method and apparatus for temporarily immobilizing a local area of heart tissue to thereby permit surgery on a coronary vessel in that area without significant deterioration of the pumping function of the beating heart. The local area of heart tissue is immobilized to a degree sufficient to permit minimally invasive or micro-surgery on that area of the heart. The present inv...

An improved x-ray mammography diagnostic apparatus with a digital detector forming a preferably rotatable subject table having a first concave curved surface formed by several arcs with different radii on one side of the table and another concave curved surface formed by several arcs with different radii on either adjacent or opposite side of the same table, these two curved surfaces allowing to accommodate curvature of the human breast and curvature of the rib cage below the breast of each pati...

A method and apparatus for forming a Bragg grating using a high intensity light includes a pair of focussed writing beams 26,34 that simultaneously intersect and interfere with each other at a region 30 of a photosensitive optical fiber 28. The beams 26,34 have a high intensity (e.g., at least about 500 mjoules/cm.sup.2) and pass through an interface medium 50 that is substantially transparent to the wavelength of the writing beams 26,34. The medium has a thickness T set such that the intensity ...

Austenitic stainless steels containing chromium, nickel, carbon and phosphorus in controlled amounts offer a combination of corrosion resistance, hardness, strength, fabricability, etc., which render them particularly suitable as exhaust valve steels.