A device for the pulsed release of an amount (3) of fluid that is stored in a storage housing (2) includes a piston (5) biased by a first spring (4) and movable within the storage housing (2) to dispense the fluid by the spring bias, when triggered by an actuator (6) to release a lock holding the piston in place (7). The lock (7) has individual catches (8) keeping the piston (5) in its pretensioned position and, when actuated by the actuator (6), releases the piston (5).

Disclosed herein is a drying apparatus for a vehicle using vehicle induced wind. The drying apparatus is capable of drying a wet object using vehicle induced wind generated by the driving of the vehicle. The apparatus includes a storage cover that is rotatably coupled to a rear bumper cover via a hinge module, to form a storage space between the storage cover and the rear bumper cover. In addition the apparatus includes an inlet cover that is coupled to the rear bumper cover to form an inlet passage through which the vehicle induced wind flows into the storage space when the vehicle is being driven. A plurality of outlet holes are formed in the rear bumper cover, and are configured to operate as a passage to allow air to be discharged from the storage space to an exterior of the vehicle.

The assembly is for mounting to a motor vehicle having a bumper skin and it comprises a body part forming at least a portion of a bumper skin. The body part is defined by bottom and top edges. The top edge includes a first portion to be masked by a member of the vehicle that is to be fitted to the body part. The assembly includes at least a first masking element masking at least one portion of the bottom edge and at least a second masking element masking at least one second portion of the top edge of the body part, complementary to the at least one first portion of the top edge of the body part. The first and second masking elements are fixed relative to the body part once the assembly is mounted to the motor vehicle.

A bumper (10) created using a resistive implant welding process. The bumper includes a mounting plate portion (12) and a composite bumper portion (14). The mounting plate portion (12) is connected to the composite bumper portion (14) using a resistive implant welding process. In one embodiment, the present invention includes a bumper for a vehicle having a mounting plate (12) and a bumper portion (14). The bumper portion (14) includes at least one flange (24) formed as part of the bumper portion (14), a first contact area (28) formed as part of the mounting plate (12), and a second contact area (30) formed as part of the flange (24). A connection point is used to bond the first contact area (28) and the second contact area (30) such that the mounting plate (12) is connected to the bumper portion (14).

A method of forming an electrode is disclosed. A carbon nanotube is deposited on a substrate. A section of the carbon nanotube is removed to form at least one exposed end defining a first gap. A metal is deposited at the at least one exposed end to form the electrode that defines a second gap.

A grinder pump basin system is provided which includes a basin; a cover plate; a bracket secured to the cover plate; and a grinder pump with cutter plate with openings and a cutter blade secured to the bracket above a bottom surface of the basin. The bracket includes a front portion, which prevents waste water from interacting adversely with the grinder pump when it enters the basin. A discharge system for the grinder pump is secured to an outlet of the grinder pump and includes a discharge pipe and a flexible discharge coupling. Flow directional jets are also provided in an elbow of the pump discharge system to direct waste water and solids away from the grinder pump.

A method and system is used to process slag material to yield by-products including a finished iron rich product and a finished low iron fines product. The by-products may include a finished high iron product and a finished medium iron product. The method and system include size classifying the material into a plurality of sized groups prior to using magnetic separation to separate at least one of the sized groups into two portions having differing magnetic susceptibilities. The method and system may include more than one phase of size classifying the material into a plurality of sized groups and using magnetic separation to separate at least one of the sized groups into portions, where the average size of the material remaining after one phase is reduced prior to the subsequent phase.

The present invention provides a method of separating nickel bearing sulphides from mined ores or concentrates of mined ores that contain talc particles is disclosed. The method comprises adjusting the Eh of a slurry of mined ores or concentrates of mined ores and making particles of nickel bearing sulphides less hydrophobic than talc particles and floating the nickel bearing sulphide particles from the slurry.

The separation of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs), by electronic type using centrifugation of compositions of SWNTs and surface active block copolymers in density gradient media.

In an embodiment, a fuel decontamination unit comprises a decontamination region containing fuel; and an ultraviolet light located in the decontamination region; wherein the ultraviolet light is configured to irradiate the fuel. In an embodiment, a method of decontaminating fuel comprises flowing a contaminated fuel into a decontamination unit; irradiating the fuel with ultraviolet radiation that is emitted from the ultraviolet light such that the contaminated fuel becomes a purified fuel; flowing the purified fuel out of the decontamination unit; wherein a microorganism level in the purified fuel is less than that of the contaminated fuel.

A dispensing system includes a detection device and a dispenser configured to dispense at least one of ice and a liquid. The detection device is configured to detect a container positioned with respect to the dispenser and generate a first signal representative of the container position. The dispensing system also includes a controller coupled to the detection device and the dispenser. The controller is configured to determine a stability of the container and activate the dispenser to dispense at least one of an amount of the ice and an amount of the liquid into the container based on the first signal and the determined stability of the container.

The main objective of this invention is a Mobile plant for dosing, mixing and packaging of powdery products, characterized because it is comprised of a carrying structure and several areas for: reception and weighing, loading, mixing, sack filling, sewing and labelling, metal detection, palletizing and cleaning. This invention is included within the industrial plants technical sector of manufacturing and mixing of powdery products.

There is provided in one aspect a nozzle boot arrangement for supporting a nozzle of a fuel dispensing unit, the nozzle including a spout and a base portion including a grip. The arrangement includes a nozzle boot including means for supporting the nozzle at the base portion thereof, and a section for receiving at least a portion of the spout. The arrangement also includes a stopper provided at said receiving section and formed separately from said nozzle boot. The stopper is arranged to cooperate with the spout to prevent the nozzle from falling about from the nozzle boot arrangement by rotation of the nozzle about said supporting means. According to further aspects, there is provided a fuel dispensing unit, a nozzle boot module and method of manufacturing a nozzle boot arrangement.

A refrigerator includes a refrigerator cabinet and a refrigerating compartment within the refrigerator cabinet. A beverage dispensing system is operatively connected to the refrigerator cabinet, the beverage dispensing system configured to dispense a stream of a beverage. The beverage dispensing system includes a light source and a light sensor positioned on opposite sides of the stream of the beverage. The beverage dispensing system is configured for detecting if dispensement of the beverage is occurring and characterizing the volume or amount of the beverage being dispensed.

A bottom fill, fluid dispensing system is provided having a dispenser capable of being mounted to a countertop and a container. The container may be placed onto the dispenser and the dispenser may be moved to a first position, to allow the dispenser to fill the container with a fluid. The container may be filled through a one way valve in the container wall. Once the container is filled to a desired level, the dispenser may be moved to a second position and the container may be removed from the dispenser without the fluid leaking from the one way valve in the container wall.

A processing system according to embodiments has an article supplier which supplies an article; a first conveyor which conveys an object to be processed; a workbench which is provided on the downstream side of the first conveyor and places thereon the object to be processed, conveyed by the first conveyor; a robot which takes out the article from the article supplier and subjects the object to be processed, placed on the workbench, to an operation using the article according to a previously instructed operation movement; and a second conveyor which is provided on the downstream side of the workbench and conveys the object to be processed, which has been subjected to the operation by the robot.

The phase margin compensation method according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes: outputting reference voltage (Vout2); outputting a first reference voltage (Vout1) actually supplied to the target circuit; comparing the reference voltage (Vout2) with the first reference voltage (Vout1) by the comparator; counting any section of an output signal (pulse signal) from the comparator by a predetermined frequency by the duty cycle calculator; and controlling a phase margin of a frequency of output voltage supplied to the target circuit by controlling buffer current based on the duty cycle ratios and the output bit information fed back from the duty cycle calculator.

Efficiency of a switch mode power supply (SMPS) is optimized by operating the SMPS in an asynchronous mode when current being supplied therefrom is less than a certain current value and operating the SMPS in a synchronous mode when the current being supplied therefrom is equal to or greater than the certain current value. When the SMPS is operating in the synchronous mode high-side and low-side power transistors alternately turn on and off. When the SMPS is operating in the asynchronous mode only the high-side power transistor turns on and off and the low-side power transistor remains off. When charging a battery with the SMPS discharge of the battery is eliminated when operating in the asynchronous mode at a low current output.

The present disclosure is directed to a voltage-to-current sensing circuit having a bias terminal configured to receive a reference voltage, an offset terminal configured to receive an offset current, and an operational amplifier configured to output a low voltage signal. The device includes a first amplifier having first and second high voltage inputs configured to receive a first voltage difference across a sense component on a high voltage line and to generate a first current, a second amplifier having first and second low voltage inputs configured to receive a second voltage difference between the bias terminal and the offset terminal and to generate a second current, a summing circuit configured to provide an intermediate voltage corresponding to a sum of the first and the second currents, and a low-voltage transistor coupled to an output of the amplifier and controlled by the intermediate voltage to generate the output current.

There is provided a DC-DC converter which converts an input voltage into an output voltage for supply to a load, in which an input terminal receives the input voltage, an output terminal outputs the output voltage, power stages each includes: a high side switch, a low side switch and an inductor, the control unit executes a first mode and a second mode wherein the first mode controls the high side switch and the low side switch in each of the power stages so that a ratio of an output current in each of the power stages to a load current flowing through the load becomes a set value and the second mode controls the high side switch and the low side switch in each of the power stages so that duty ratios of the high side switch and the low side switch are equalized among the power stages.

A casing window assembly for completion of a lateral wellbore. The casing window assembly includes a tubular casing sleeve with a casing window and an inner sleeve releasably secured within the casing sleeve at a pre-released position adjacent the casing window.

Use of two different methods, either each by itself or in combination, to enhance the stiffness, strength, maximum possible use temperature, and environmental resistance of thermoset polymer particles is disclosed. One method is the application of post-polymerization process steps (and especially heat treatment) to advance the curing reaction and to thus obtain a more densely crosslinked polymer network. The other method is the incorporation of nanofillers, resulting in a heterogeneous “nanocomposite” morphology. Nanofiller incorporation and post-polymerization heat treatment can also be combined to obtain the benefits of both methods simultaneously. The present invention relates to the development of thermoset nanocomposite particles. Optional further improvement of the heat resistance and environmental resistance of said particles via post-polymerization heat treatment; processes for the manufacture of said particles; and use of said particles in the construction, drilling, completion and/or fracture stimulation of oil and natural gas wells are described.

A shaped charge casing cutter is constructed with the cutter explosive formed into radial section modules aligned in a toroidal cavity between a pair of housing plates. The center sections of the plates are contiguously aligned with opposite parallel surfaces of a center disc. The plate rims are offset from respective center disc planes in opposite directions from each other to form a toroidal cavity. The toroidal cavity is enclosed by a circumferential belt secured to said plate rims. V-grooved shaped charge explosive in the form of multiple pi sections is distributed about the cavity to intimately contact a pair of frusto-conical liners.

A system for diverting fluids from a wellhead in a subsea environment has a capping stack with a connector suitable for connection or interconnection to the wellhead, a flow base fixedly positioned in the subsea environment, and a conduit connected to the outlet of a diverter line of the capping stack and connected to the inlet of an interior passageway of the flow base. The conduit is suitable for passing fluids from the capping stack toward the flow base. The flow base is a modified horizontal Christmas tree. The interior passageway within the horizontal Christmas tree has a plug therein located a level below the level of the inlet to the flow base. The flow base can be attached to a wellhead or to an anchor pile in the subsea environment.

A method for determining position of a wellbore in the Earth's subsurface includes actuating a plurality of seismic energy sources each disposed at a known geodetic position. Seismic energy from the sources is detected at a selected location along the wellbore. The geodetic position at the selected location is determined from the detected seismic energy. A corresponding method includes actuating a seismic energy source at a selected position within the wellbore. The seismic energy is detected at a plurality of known geodetic positions. The geodetic position of the source is determined from the detected seismic energy.

A technique includes processing seismic data indicative of samples of at least one measured seismic signal in a processor-based machine to, in an iterative process, determine basis functions, which represent a constructed seismic signal. The technique includes in each iteration of the iterative process, selecting another basis function of the plurality of basis functions. The selecting includes based at least in part on the samples and a current version of the constructed seismic signal, determining a cost function; and interpreting the cost function based at least in part on a predicted energy distribution of the constructed seismic signal to select the basis function.

A method of treating sludge using solar energy is provided. The present invention utilizes a Fresnel panel frame that includes at least one Fresnel panel. The Fresnel panel may cover at least a portion of a bed cavity. An amount of waste may be placed within the bed cavity. When placed in sunlight, the heat enhanced by the Fresnel panels may heat the waste sufficiently for safe easy disposal, recycling, or for the creation of fertilizer.

There are provided a dividing wall distillation column for producing high-purity acrylic acid, and a fractional distillation method using the same. The dividing wall distillation column includes a condenser, a reboiler and a main column having a dividing wall. Here, the main column is divided into a column-top zone, an upper feed zone, an upper outflow zone, a lower feed zone, a lower outflow zone and a column-bottom zone. Accordingly, since one distillation column can be used to realize the same effect as that obtained from the use of two distillation columns, the dividing wall distillation column can have an effect of reducing the costs of equipment to produce high-purity acrylic acid, as well as an energy-reducing effect, compared to a conventional process system.

An evaporative desalination device includes a multi stage vapor generator that generates vapor by passing a hot water supply pipe successively through a plurality of vapor generators to evaporate sea water inside thereof, a multi effect vapor generator that uses vapor in the respective vapor generators as heat source and forms a plurality of evaporator groups which can adjust a number of evaporators disposed inside the respective evaporator groups and produce fresh water according to amounts of supplied vapor to evaporate sea water in the evaporator groups on an outer circumference surface of an evaporation tube by heat of vapor flowing in the evaporation tube, and a discharge unit that condenses vapor in the multi effect generator by sea water to discharge fresh water in liquid state, and returns and supplies portions of discharged sea water to the multi stage vapor generator and the multi effect evaporator.

A device (1) comprises a source (20) for emitting ultraviolet light, an inlet (30) for letting in fluid to the device (1), an outlet (40) for letting out fluid from the device (1), and means (51, 52) for performing a straightening action of a flow of fluid through the device (1). The flow straightening means comprise at least one flow straightening element (51, 52) having inlet openings for letting in fluid at one side and outlet openings for letting out fluid at another side, wherein each inlet opening is in communication with a plurality of outlet openings, and wherein the element (51, 52) comprises a maze of randomly arranged, interconnected holes. In such a structure, a water element that is moving from one side of the element (51, 52) to another side may take one of various paths, as a result of which variations in inlet conditions can be dampened.

A hoist spooling assembly for spooling a cable about a drum while preventing relative movement between the cable and the drum. The hoist spooling assembly evenly delivers force from a roller to the cable while reducing the incidence of spooling problems, including mechanical wear of the cable and formation of loops and kinks in the cable.

A load sensing transmission device in which when a rotation is transmitted to a sun gear, and planetary gears are rotated, if the rotation of an internally-toothed ring gear disposed at an outer circumference of the planetary gears is restricted in at least one direction, a decelerated rotation is output from a planetary carrier by revolution of the planetary gears. When the internally-toothed ring gear is rotated without being restricted, and simultaneously rotated together with the revolution of the planetary gears the rotation which is not decelerated is output from the planetary carrier. Existence and non-existence of the restriction of the rotation of the internally-toothed ring gear are switched by sensing a load by the load sensing mechanism and performing the engagement and disengagement by an engagement pawl. The rotation of the planetary carrier is output through a plate with slider, load springs, and a plate with cam.

The present invention describes a hair treatment application system, comprising at least one or more hair treatment compositions (15) having a viscosity of from 3,000 cPs to 150,000 cPs and a hair treatment application device (1) comprising a first plate (10) and a second plate (20) positionable in a juxtaposed relationship when said hair treatment application device (1) is in a closed state. The hair treatment application device (1) is characterized by having a first zone comprising at least one absorbent substrate (40) on the internal surface (101) of said at least said first plates (10) and a second zone (50) on said internal surface (101) which is free of said absorbent substrate (40). Said at least one absorbent substrate (40) has a median pore radius of from 300 microns to 3,000 micron. The present invention describes also methods of treating the hair with said hair treatment application system (10) and kit comprising said hair treatment application system.

A disclosed decorative device includes an elongate, flexible foam body, an elongate, pliable core element, a pair of adapters, and a pair of end pieces. A method for making the decorative device is described, as is a method for retaining hair using the decorative device. The decorative device includes the elongate, flexible foam body surrounding the elongate, pliable core element along its length. The pair of adapters are each configured to fixably receive an end of the elongate, pliable core element, with the pair of end pieces, each being configured to connect to one of the pair of adapters.

Disclosed is a dental flossing device in which dental floss is strung between a dispensing side handle, which dispenses dental floss, and goes into a receiving side handle, which receives used dental floss.

The present invention provides a noble metal fine particle with a protein adsorbed thereon, including a noble metal fine particle, and a protein adsorbed on a surface of the noble metal fine particle. The protein has an isoelectric point in a range of pH 4.0 to 7.5. An amount of the protein adsorbed is in a range of 3 to 55.1 wt % with respect to a total weight of the noble metal fine particle and the protein. The noble metal fine particle with a protein adsorbed thereon according to the present invention has excellent redispersibility. That is, by adjusting the pH of a noble metal fine particle dispersed liquid to the isoelectric point of the proteins and allowing the noble metal fine particles to be aggregated without adding a degrading enzyme that degrades the proteins to the noble metal fine particle dispersed liquid, it is possible to allow the noble metal fine particles with proteins adsorbed thereon withdrawn from the noble metal fine particle dispersed liquid to have an average particle diameter that is not increased significantly even after they are redispersed in another dispersion medium.

A coating liquid comprising: an oxazoline group-containing resin; an alkanediol having 7 or more carbon atoms; a surfactant; and water.

Provided is a friction material composition comprising: a binder; a fibrous base material; an abrasive material; an inorganic filler; and an organic filler, wherein the friction material composition further comprises:at least one selected from the group consisting of zinc, a cellulose fiber as the fibrous base materials and a flame retardant fiber as the fibrous base materials;an iron-based fiber as the fibrous base material in an specified amount; andan inorganic abrasive material having a Mohs hardness of 8 or higher and a particle size of 1 μm or larger as the abrasive material in an amount of 1 wt % or less. The present invention can provide a friction material composition which is less destructive to facing materials compared to conventional products, which has a high friction coefficient upon braking when used in repeated braking during high-speed traveling, and which is capable of suppressing pad wear and uneven pad wear, in the case that the friction material composition is formed into a brake pad for passenger cars. The present invention can also provide a friction material and a friction member using this friction material composition.

An exemplary embodiment provides a cardanol-modified silane coupling agent, which can improve strength and toughness by improving adhesion at an interface between a filler and a cellulose resin when being used as a surface-treatment agent, a resin additive, or the like; a cardanol-modified filler subjected to a surface treatment with the cardanol-modified silane coupling agent; and a cellulose resin composition having excellent toughness. More specifically, the exemplary embodiment provides a cardanol-modified silane coupling agent obtained by reacting cardanol or a derivative thereof with an epoxy silane coupling agent or an isocyanate silane coupling agent; a cardanol-modified filler obtained by subjecting a filler to a surface treatment with the cardanol-modified silane coupling agent; a cellulose resin composition comprising the cardanol-modified filler and a cellulose resin; and a cellulose resin composition comprising the cardanol-modified silane coupling agent, a filler and a cellulose resin.

Provided is an ink composition used in active energy ray-curable inkjet printing, which has excellent curing property, discharge property, storage stability, and compatibility with various substrates. The inkjet ink composition of the present invention includes at least two types of polymerizable compounds selected from a group consisting of (A) 2-(2-vinyloxyethoxy) ethyl acrylate, (B) N-vinyl caprolactam, and (C) at least one type of bifunctional acrylate monomer including at least a diacrylate having a molecular weight of 250 or less.

A polypeptide solution of the present invention is a polypeptide solution in which a polypeptide derived from natural spider silk proteins is dissolved in a solvent. The solvent contains at least one selected from the following (i)-(iii): (i) DMSO; (ii) DMSO with an inorganic salt; and (iii) DMF with an inorganic salt. Further, in the present invention, an artificial polypeptide fiber is obtained by: using the polypeptide solution as a dope solution; and extruding the dope solution from a spinneret into a desolvation bath so as to eliminate the solvent from the dope solution and form a fiber to produce an undrawn yarn. Moreover, in the present invention, a polypeptide is purified by subjecting the polypeptide solution to heat treatment and thereafter removing an undissolved substance therefrom. Thus, the present invention provides the polypeptide solution whose solute has high solubility and solvent itself is low cost, and that allows dissolution at high temperatures and has high safety: a method for producing an artificial polypeptide fiber: and a method for purifying a polypeptide.

The invention concerns a composition comprising as component (A): 10% to 97% by weight, based on the total weight of the composition, of one or more monocarboxylic esters of the general formula R1—CO—OR2, in which R1 is a saturated or unsaturated, branched or straight-chain, aliphatic group having 11 to 23 carbon atoms and R2 is a branched or straight-chain aliphatic group, a cycloaliphatic group or aromatic group having 1 to 13 carbon atoms, and the sum of the carbon atoms of the groups R1 and R2 is not more than 30, the monocarboxylic ester or esters possessing a boiling point of more than 250° C. under a standard pressure of 101.3 kPa, and as component (B): 3% to 90% by weight, based on the total weight of the composition, of one or more dispersants, the composition possessing a viscosity at 25° C. of less than 5000 mPas. The invention further concerns the use of the composition as a dispersion medium, millbases obtained from the composition, and the use of the millbases.

The invention relates to a liquid supply system wherein liquid, such as for example, a supply of warm water, circulates. Said system consists of thick outer tubes, the inner chamber of said thick outer tubes allowing a liquid to flow through, a thin inner tube is respectively placed inside the outer tube in which the liquid can flow in the direction counter to that in the inner chamber. In the path of at least one outer tube, a first tube branch is introduced enabling the first inner tube to be withdrawn, and in said first branch, at least one functional component, such as a shut-off valve, is introduced into the inner tube and guided to a second tube branch in the path of an outer tube and extends further through said tube branch and then into the inner chamber of the latter outer tube.

A shaft sealing device switches a sealing state and an unsealing state of a fluid, with high sealing performance maintained, because no abrasion accompanies movement of a sealing material or a sealing member, enabling feeding a fluid at a predetermined flow rate, and adjusts the expanding rate of the sealing material with the quantity of an external electric signal and accordingly adjusts the contact face pressure to enable controlling the amount of leakage of the fluid highly precisely, so that it can be used for all applications. The shaft sealing device includes a shaft sealing body formed of a macromolecular material and made expansible or contractible, or deformable, through external electrostimuli applied to a shaft sealing portion disposed in a device body, and flow passages disposed in the shaft sealing portion for feeding the fluid leaked due to the expansion or contraction, or the deformation, of the shaft sealing body.

A flow control device is disclosed. The flow control device includes a solenoid, the solenoid including an armature. Also, a piston connected to the armature. The piston includes a primary orifice. The piston having an open position and a closed position. A piston spring connected to the piston is also includes and at least one secondary orifice. The movement of the piston to the open position at least partially opens the at least one secondary orifice and the movement of the piston to the closed position at least partially closes the at least one secondary orifice. The movement of the armature actuates the piston movement and controls fluid flow from the primary orifice through the at least one secondary orifice.

A braider comprises a plurality of horngears. The horngears can be arranged for forming at least two closed paths for braiding. Each horngear has a driving gear and a hornplate. Each horngear can be selectably operated in a first mode, to rotate with the driving gear, and in a second mode, in which the driving gear rotates, but the hornplate does not. Bobbin carriers are positioned on some of the horngears. A track is configurable in: a first flat braiding mode with the carriers arranged on the horngears, so that there is one or more separate closed path for forming a first flat braid configuration; and a second flat braiding mode for forming a second flat braid configuration different from the first flat braid configuration. A switch is provided for changing a configuration of the track between the first and second flat braiding modes.

Methods of forming a structure for treating a vessel include providing a mandrel and braiding a plurality of filaments around the mandrel. The mandrel may include a strand having a longitudinal axis and a plurality of balls coupled to the strand along the longitudinal axis. Pairs of the plurality of balls may be spaced along the longitudinal axis. Braiding the plurality of filaments around the mandrel may include, during braiding, forming a plurality of bulbs around the plurality of balls and forming necks between pairs of the plurality of balls. The methods may include, after braiding the plurality of filaments, heat treating (e.g., shape setting) the plurality of filaments on the mandrel. Portions of the braided plurality of filaments may be secured to the mandrel, for example using bangles, wire, and/or adhesive.

A method of manufacturing a corrugated preform that allows a fiber volume fraction and an orientation angle to be substantially the same at a concave portion and at a convex portion when the corrugated preform is manufactured based on a braiding process. The method includes braiding a composite material corresponding to an outer diameter of a cylindrical cylinder shape, braiding the composite material by connecting a plurality of separate composite materials to one side of the braided composite material, and braiding the composite material to one side of the separate composite material corresponding to the outer diameter of the cylindrical cylinder shape.

A method of monitoring and/or controlling components of a railway system which includes a track and at least one train that is operable to run on said track, comprises the steps of: a) providing an acoustic transducer proximate the railway for picking up acoustic signals; b) receiving acoustic signals from the transducer; and c) analyzing the received signals.

A method and system for verifying trackside conditions in safety critical railroad applications by reporting the status of trackside signals and switches to a remote train control system. The system comprises at least one sensor for providing trackside conditions electrically connected to a circuit for providing trackside conditions to a railroad, said sensor being powered by voltage applied to the circuit such that the sensor is energized only when said electrical component is engaged. The system and method further comprises a method and system which is failsafe and which enables the control system to independently verify signals from each sensor.