Apparatus and methods are described including an additional lens (24) made from an amorphous viscoelastic material and having an optical design. A curvature of the additional lens (24) is changed such as to conform with a curvature of abase eyeglasses lens (22), without causing a loss of the optical design of the additional lens (24), by heating the additional lens (24) to a temperature at which a Tan Delta of the amorphous viscoelastic material is between 0.2 and 0.8, and shaping the additional lens (24). Subsequently, the additional lens (24) is adhered to the base eyeglasses lens (22). The optical design of the additional lens (24) is such that, upon being adhered to the base eyeglasses lens (22), the adhered base eyeglasses lens (22) and the additional lens (24) provide a combined lens (20) having a desired optical prescription. Other applications are also described.

A sonotrode includes multiple layers of a material melted to one another to form a structure. The structure provides a base that has an attachment feature that is configured to operatively secure to an ultrasonic converter. The structure includes a shaft that extends from the base to a terminal end that provides a working surface that is configured to selectively engage a workpiece. The structure has at least one shaft that includes a first shaft that extends from the base to a first terminal end that provides a first working surface that is configured to selectively engage a workpiece. The first shaft is integrally formed with the base from the multiple layers to provide an unbroken, monolithic construction.

Systems and methods for controlling a pump system for use in negative pressure wound therapy are described herein. In some embodiments, a method for controlling a pump system includes applying a drive signal to a pump assembly of the pump system, the drive signal alternating between a positive amplitude and a negative amplitude and the drive signal having an offset, and sampling a pressure within a fluid flow path configured to connect the pump system to a wound dressing configured to be placed over a wound during one or more time intervals. Each of the one or more time intervals can occur when the drive signal is approximately at an amplitude equal to one or more sampling amplitudes.

The invention relates to a punching and/or welding machine for acting on a piece of motor vehicle bodywork that is made of plastics material, the machine having movable punching and/or welding tools, each of which is adjusted to perform a punching and/or welding operation and that are transferred from a waiting position to a working position for performing the punching and/or welding operation, the punching and/or welding operation being performed in three stages: a) transferring from a waiting position at a distance from a skin of the piece in order to come into a working position in contact with the skin; b) performing the punching and/or the welding; and then c) returning to the waiting position;
the device further comprising a support for receiving the skin in a determined position. The support and the movable tools are arranged in such a manner that, once the skin has been positioned on the support, it defines, possibly in association with a protective screen, a safety volume within which the movable tools move in order to perform the punching and/or welding operations on the skin.

A welding method for welding a first component to a second component using a welding device including an upper tool mounted to an upper support for receiving the first component, a lower tool mounted to a lower support for receiving the second component as well as a preheating arrangement for preheating the first and/or the second component and a controller. A welding device in accordance with the welding method is further provided.

With the traction means tensioner, a traction means having at least two ends is tensionable. The traction means tensioner comprises a first fastening means, a second fastening means and a coupling means. The first fastening means has a first fastening portion at which the first end of the traction means as fastenable. The second fastening means has a second fastening portion at which the second end of the traction means is fastenable. The coupling means couples the first and the second fastening means to each other so that the first and the second fastening means are movable with respect to each other and their movability is at least restricted on one side. Further, the first and the second fastening means are pre-tensionable with respect to each other via at least one spring element.

A horn and an anvil are moved toward and away from each other by axially reciprocating a driving rod and thereby reciprocatingly rotating a forked lever in a predetermined angle range. The horn and the anvil are moved toward and pressed against each other with a predetermined force with a bag mouth b held therebetween. A sensor detects the position of a second mounting block secured to the rear end of a sliding shaft of the anvil, thereby detecting the distance between respective pressing surfaces of the horn and the anvil, i.e. the thickness m of a portion of the bag mouth held between the pressing surfaces. When the thickness m is not less than a predetermined threshold value M, a vibrator is activated to perform sealing. When the thickness m is less than the threshold value M, no sealing is performed.

An elastic nonwoven material includes a first non-woven fabric including a plurality of rows. Each row has a plurality of adjacent bonds formed therein. The elastic nonwoven material also includes a first elastic strand entrapped between a first pair of adjacent bonds within a first row of the plurality of rows, and a second elastic strand entrapped between a second pair of adjacent bonds within the first row. A third pair of adjacent bonds within the first row is free of elastic material therebetween and is located between the first pair of adjacent bonds and the second pair of adjacent bonds.

A battery cell sealing apparatus includes: a first sealing block and a second sealing block pressurizing a case, provided with an accommodation space in which an electrode assembly is accommodated, to seal the case; a moving unit connected to at least one of the first sealing block and the second sealing block and moving at least one of the first sealing block and the second sealing block; and a heating unit connected to the first sealing block and the second sealing block and supplying heat energy to the first sealing block and the second sealing block. The first sealing block and the second sealing block may include a plurality of block members, and may pressurize the case with the plurality of block members to form a plurality of sealing portions on the case.

A process for packaging a product arranged on a support comprising unrolling a film, moving the film to a packaging assembly defining at its inside a packaging chamber, progressively moving a number of supports inside the packaging chamber of the packaging assembly, closing the packaging chamber with the film sheets held above the respective support, optionally causing one or both of: a gas withdrawal from the hermetically closed packaging chamber and gas injection of a gas mixture of controlled composition, heat sealing the film to said support, wherein the heat sealing uses one or more heaters having heating surfaces which are heated for discrete and short time periods only. An apparatus for performing the above process is also disclosed.