Abstract:
A food storage and preparation device (10, 50, 100, 200) is provided for more rapidly cooling or heating a mass of food or other product contained within a storage pan. The device includes a plurality of air contact fins (20) which rapidly convey heat to and from the ambient surrounding air and a plurality of food contact fins (22, 56, 106) which are inserted within the mass of food to increase the surface area of the food exposed to a heat transfer surface to more rapidly transfer heat to or from the mass of food.
Abstract:
A food storage and preparation device (10, 50, 100, 200) is provided for more rapidly cooling or heating a mass of food or other product contained within a storage pan. The device includes a plurality of air contact fins (20) which rapidly convey heat to and from the ambient surrounding air and a plurality of food contact fins (22, 56, 106) which are inserted within the mass of food to increase the surface area of the food exposed to a heat transfer surface to more rapidly transfer heat to or from the mass of food.
Abstract:
A composite material manufacturing process and resulting structure is provided to include high strength material whiskers (20) having a characteristic orientation when placed in an electromagnetic field (22). In one embodiment, whiskers (20) are disposed between lamina (10 and 15) and oriented generally perpendicular to the fiber layers (14 and 18). The whisker (20) orientation is maintained during a curing cycle for the respective matrices (12 and 16) wherein the matrix viscosity allows the whiskers (20) to orient in response to the applied electromagnetic field (22). The whiskers (20) retain their orientation in the resulting laminate to provide improved structural integrity for the laminate.
Abstract:
A food storage and preparation device (10, 50, 100) is provided for more rapidly cooling or heating a mass of food or other product contained within a storage pan. The device includes a plurality of air contact fins (20) which rapidly convey heat to and from the ambient surrounding air and a plurality of food contact fins (22, 56, 106) which are inserted within the mass of food to increase the surface area of the food exposed to a heat transfer surface to more rapidly transfer heat to or from the mass of food.
Abstract:
A shape memory alloy actuator is disclosed. In one arrangement, a louvered window covering, such as a vertical or horizontal venetian blind, is provided with a thermal actuator to automatically rotate slats forming the louvered window covering between open and closed positions. The actuator includes at least one shape memory alloy spring that, when heated above a predetermined temperature, extends to engage and move a rack that drives a pinion gear. The pinion gear rotates, through a coupling mechanism, a rod extending the length of the blind. A second shape memory alloy spring may be installed to rotate the rod in the opposite direction. The rod intercouples the slats in a manner such that the rotation of the rod rotates the slats in unison between closed and open positions. The shape memory alloy spring may be heated with a current supplied by a controller in response to a predetermined environmental condition. The venetian blind mechanism's manual actuation would not be compromised or interfered with by the thermal actuator of the use of the thermal actuator because the thermal actuator is not physically coupled to the blind except intermittently.
Abstract:
A portion of a chalcogenide transformation film in a less reflective phase responds to a low energy laser beam writing pulse by transforming to a crystalline phase. A marmem alloy, secured to the bottom side of the film, responds to a longer erasing pulse of a lower energy laser beam at the same portion by physically stressing the film only at that same portion. The film portion responds to the physical stress by transforming back to a less reflective phase. An optical reader interprets the crystalline phase as a digital logic "1", and the less reflective phase as a digital logic "0".
Abstract:
A food storage and preparation device (10, 50, 100, 200) is provided for more rapidly cooling or heating a mass of food or other product contained within a storage pan. The device includes a plurality of air contact fins (20) which rapidly convey heat to and from the ambient surrounding air and a plurality of food contact fins (22, 56, 106) which are inserted within the mass of food to increase the surface area of the food exposed to a heat transfer surface to more rapidly transfer heat to or from the mass of food.