through words. There have been a lot of wonderful comments about the beautiful photos in Joy. They are very appreciated and are passed on to the FlashBang Photography team that works so hard to make Joy look great. Susan and Danny Feller, the terrific mom-and-son team behind FlashBang Photography (see their ad at the bottom of this page), are photojournalists-intraining. They already were skilled in the more traditional forms of photography and were thrilled to take on the new challenge of learning photojournalism. Want a copy of those great shots of family, friends, once-in-a-lifetime events, and more that appear in Joy of Medina County Magazine? Photos from any issue can be purchased by calling 440-263-4502 or e-mailing sfeller1@neo.rr.com. If you have not already, please share JoyofMedinaCountyMagazine. com on your social media pages so the wonderful people you are connected with can get a free subscription to the e-edition.
PUBLISHER Blake House Publishing, LLC E D I TO R Amy Barnes P H O TO G R A P H E R FlashBang Photography A R T D I R E C TOR Ryan Burdzinski C O N T R I B U TO R S Bob Arnold Rich Bailey Paul McHam Kent Von Der Vellen MASCOT Rico Houdini OFFICE 330-461-0589 EMAIL Joy@BlakeHousePublishing.com JOY of MEDINA COUNTY MAGAZINE is published monthly by Blake House Publishing, LLC, 1114 N. Court, #144, Medina, Ohio, 44256. Send change of address cards to above. It is distributed for free in a print edition and as an e-edition that can be found by clicking on Free E-Edition at JoyofMedinaCounty. com. Copyright 2018 by Blake House Publishing, LLC. All rights reserved. Reproduction or use of editorial or pictorial content without written permission is strictly prohibited. Printed in the United States. Any unsolicited materials, manuscripts, artwork, cartoons, or photos will not be returned.
Sharon and Tony Gordon have spent a remarkable 41 years sharing their treasures and gaining friends at the Medina County Flea Market.
Crawling critters, slurpy spaghetti, hungry humans, beautiful baskets, jumping jazz, and more!
Cam returns to the duct, earns a scream, finds a surprise, and gets in the middle of a chase.
Wishes from those who attended The Children's Center of Medina County Pinwheel Walk.
From friends to monkey lamps, you will find it all at the flea market!
If you can't seem to get well, it is time to check for mold growth in your environment.
Learn some tips on how to get a solid pre-approval for a house purchase.
Strong buildings and successful networking share a common bond.
ON THE COVER: Sharon and Tony Gordon hold court at the Medina County Flea Market.
Once a popular dish in taverns, this is a great recipe for a now littlein-demand cut of beef.
Twenty years and $147,772 later, the Medina County Women's Endowment Fund is going strong and adding a new fundraiser with the help of a tree.
An easy recipe for a little something sweet with a surprise ingredient.
Time to get outside and enjoy the beauty of Medina County.
From left, Sharon and Tony Gordon share a light-hearted moment with friend and fellow vendor Frank Armenio.
Cy Levkanich, left, first time vendor at the flea market, discusses marketing strategies with Frank Armenio, who was a regular flea market character for eight years, but has now retired.
Gas where she worked as a bookkeeper for 10 years. She married her first husband and quit her job to become a homemaker and mother to their daughter, Vanessa. It was after her first husband was no longer in the picture that Sharon and Tony met. Twelve years after Vanessa was born, Sharon and Tony added another daughter, Colleen, to the family. Tony started as a welder at age 14 and continued welding for 35 years. He also was an Army paratrooper during the Korean War, where they had him jumping out of planes over Germany. He said it did not make any sense to him that the war was in Korea, but they had him on missions in Germany. It is bad luck to count missions, Tony said, so he does not know how many he was on but says that he served as a paratrooper for almost three years before becoming injured when he landed from a jump. He says his knee has never been the same since the injury, and at the same time he downplays the danger of the missions. "It was more dangerous getting thrown out of a beer garden on Clark Avenue in Cleveland than it was jumping out of planes," Tony said, with a twinkle in his eye, causing Sharon to give him a look of admonishment. She shook her head and mentioned that Tony loves to tell tall tales. He has fond memories of his days as the owner of Tony Gordon's Barber Shop at 51st Street and Clark Avenue in Cleveland. By the time he retired, he had a shop in Cleveland and one in Brunswick. The shops were busy from morning to night, Tony said, with obvious pride. Sharon and Tony are planning to continue having a booth at the flea market for the foreseeable future. They are ready to share their knowledge and expertise and are looking forward to gaining new friends, with Tony ready and willing to spin a tall tale for listening ears. They will be there, in their usual spot, enjoying the adventure.
Martin Warchola teaches Barb Kefalos, left, and Tammy Clark dog first aid with the help of a dog dummy at Wolf Creek Park, Wadsworth.
Helping at the Feeding Medina County fundraiser were Spring Leadership Ball honorees, from left, Adrian Slovenec, Meriwether Harmon, Janiece Joyner, and Brooke Swain.
ORMACO brought the Lempner Jazz Duo, guitarist Adam Sarata and saxophonist Tom Lempner, to perform at the Wadsworth Public Library.
During Buzzard Fest at Brongers Park in Hinckley, Matilda the turkey vulture (called a buzzard locally) is a true friend and likes to provide shade for handler Jaime Mautz from the Medina Raptor Center. Matilda is 25 years old and weighs 4 1/2 pounds. A large crowd at the Galaxy in Wadsworth enjoyed the Breaking Bread on Bourbon Street fundraiser for Feeding Medina County. Matilda Kirchner accepts the challenge of crossing a rope bridge at Brongers Park during Buzzard Fest. Assisting her are Life Scout John Pesarchick, left, and Life Scout Matt Bearer, while Eagle Scout Robby Cerrito supervises.
Turkey vulture Matilda shows off her 6-foot wing span.
A wild turkey struts its stuff at Wolf Creek Park.
Ken Gill Jr. backs up a Stormtrooper while his son, Ken Gill III, delivers some punishing blows on Medina Public Square. From left, Tom Richards, Becky Richards, basket weaving instructor's assistant Emily Smith, and Belinda Charbonneau work together building baskets.
Marlene Wolfe concentrates on making a basket at Wolf Creek Environmental Center, Wadsworth.
From left, Sherry Ulrich and Ginny Venditti get the hang of basket weaving.
Basket weaving instructor Betty Rettig gives encouragement to Rose Marie Tramonte.
Two-year-old Andrew Sturgill and his father, Terry Sturgill, wait for the armadillo in Deb Brady's hands to unfold at the Seville Library's Zoomobile. Brady is an Akron Zoo education specialist.
Deb Brady holds an armadillo for (from left) Makenna Lucas and Maisen Lucas while their mother, Amy Lucas, and Madeline Schuett enjoy the Akron Zoo's Zoomobile visit to the Seville Library.
Kelsey Hurley, Medina County Fair queen, and Joan Jellison share a laugh at Breaking Bread on Bourbon Street. Enjoying the festivities at Breaking Bread on Bourbon Street are, from left, Medina County Commissioner Patricia Geissman, Feeding Medina County Director Sandy Hinkle, and Lafayette Township Trustee Lynda Bowers.
Leading other walkers back from the Pinwheel Walk to Prevent Child Abuse are Warriors for the Children members, Wheelz (left) and Crash.
Annabelle Stanec (right), a Highland High School senior, held a spaghetti dinner fundraiser for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society with help from friends and family, including her sister Abbey, on the left.
Catch up on previous chapters of our story in the Joy Magazine e-edition! Go to JoyofMedinaCounty.com for links to past issues.
from home, and they were messing with her things. I almost backed out, cut my losses and headed back to Devin's. I could try to forget about Marissa and the bowling alley and everything, but there was no way that would actually happen. I held my breath and pulled myself through the gap in the rotary fan, crawling into Marissa's room and making her scream bloody murder. A pillow hit me square in the face and fell in front of me. "What are you doing?!" she screamed at me. I froze, suddenly completely braindead. What was I supposed to say? I didn't even know what I was doing myself. Not to mention, I'm pretty sure I was about two seconds away from getting stabbed with one of the knives on the wall. "Um, I'm here to help you," I said, clueless as to what I meant exactly, but hoping I could wing it like I did most high school presentations I was forced to do. "Help me? With what exactly? And how did you even get in here? And-" She went off on me. Her questions got more and more aggressive and threatening until she finally stopped and frowned at me. "Well?" she shouted. I hadn't realized it was my turn to talk. Stupid me wasn't even thinking of what to say the whole time either, I was just staring at the wall of blades behind her, longing for their cold metal. "I-I…," my mouth gave out and I stood there like a statue. An idiotic statue. "Wait. You're Cam," she said as if that explained everything. The nickname my little sister had given me when she was first learning to speak because "Cameron" came out more like "Can-ban" didn't explain anything in this situation. At least, not as far as I was concerned.
Luckily, Marissa was smart and put together the pieces of the puzzle quickly. Considering I was standing there dumbfounded, it was a good thing she did, too. "You left me the note, didn't you?" This was the first question she'd asked that didn't sound like a threat. I rubbed the back of my neck and chuckled awkwardly. "Yes," I replied, staring at the floor. I couldn't peel my eyes from the shiny metal floor, but I heard movement from her side of the room. As I looked up, I found her arms wrapping around my torso, and her head resting gently against my shoulder.
falling asleep, and then all of a sudden think that you're falling off a cliff to your death and you jump yourself awake and sigh, annoyed at your body and mind for teaming up together and playing tricks against you. Except I didn't jump myself awake. I just fell. And fell. And fell. And I didn't stop. I fell for hours, wondering if it would ever end or if this was oblivion. Then I hit the ground with a metallic clang that was so loud I thought my eardrums would burst. My head followed, bashing itself into the hard metal floor and making my whole body feel numb. I heard someone shouting, but I still couldn't tell if I'd just been in a car crash or not. It was a limbo between a rock and a hard place, and to be quite honest, I wasn't very interested in waking up and discovering which nightmare I was really in.
another way…?" I couldn't finish a thought. All I could think of was how perfect it would be for me to end up in jail at the end of all this. It's not like anything else in my life was going right. Maybe prison was where I belonged.
pulled the metal sheet back in place and crawled off behind Marissa Colt as she led me through a metal maze. I had no idea where we were going, where we'd end up, or even if we'd make it, and yet, in that moment, I didn't really care. I felt safe with Marissa, and that was a feeling I wasn't sure I would ever have again after my dad passed. Maybe, just maybe, I could trust Marissa. The jury was still out, but everyone in the courtroom already knew the verdict.
I would like more scholarships for college.
I want my volunteer job to become a paid one I want it t o b e warmer.
My wish is not get h for kids to urt anym ore.
The Children's Center of Medina County Community Pinwheel Walk to Prevent Child Abuse. Walk participants returning to Medina Public Square after planting pinwheels at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church at 606 E. Washington Street, Medina.
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Hello Friends & Neighbors Over 100 homes sold in 2017!
Clue to a Cause of Persistent Illness by Paul McHam So, maybe you have been feeling sick, but it is really hanging on and you do not know why. It could be the flu or even just a cold, but then I am no doctor. I do know, however, that it is said that nearly 80 percent of all human ailments comes from the environment they live in. If you are feeling bad and do not know why, it may be that your environment is affecting you. Mold, for example, can have a negative human health effect. There may be tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of mold species. It is estimated that 90 percent are allergens and the remaining 10 percent are toxigenic. The allergens are serious because they can cause minor allergic reactions like sneezing, nose dripping, or coughing and clearing the throat, or they can cause asthma or even emphysema. Toxigenic molds can lead to a far more serious response like cancer, lupus, memory loss, or even organ failure. Maybe it is time to examine your home and business environments to determine if they are affecting you. Look for areas that may have gotten wet, such as the basement, under sinks, and in the attic and look for discoloration from the mold colonizing. Once you find discoloration, use a strong flashlight to expose small filaments growing out of the wet or recently wet material. You may have to turn the flashlight sideways against the surface to really make the profile of those filaments stand out. If you see filaments or what may look like hundreds of small beards sticking out from the surface, it is likely time to get a professional to render an opinion or, even better, to test it. Next month's column will cover what makes a good professional a "good professional!" Paul McHam is a local expert on mold remediation. For more information, visit his website at http://myairxperts.com/ and his Facebook page Moldsporewars http://bit.ly/2E2Fj3y or call 330-331-7500.
Bricks Fall Hard and so can Respect by Bob Arnold It is humbling to realize how networked the materials are that we live and work in every day. I was called in recently to help analyze and redesign the 226 South Court Street building in Medina, which housed the Gardener's Cottage and recently had its three-story rear wall collapse. As an architect, I find it fascinating how we can take these common materials and put them into networkable products and forms. I am never more humbled than when I see these networks malfunction. Yes, the buildings we live and work in are networks! Our buildings are built upon the same principles our business and social networks are: the principle of bonding. All of the materials used in building a facility are carefully placed to respect their adjacent materials and they must bond together to accomplish their task to give you a comfortable place to work and live. Sometimes, just like in our business networking relationships, a building experiences a breach in the bonding capacity of some of its materials, thus the plight of the South Court building. The brick and mortar became compromised and lost their capacity to hold each other up, so down they went in a heap on the ground. When a business relationship loses respect for a networking partner, the relationship comes apart. I hate seeing this kind of thing happen to those of us in business, however, I also know that truly profitable relationships are built on a mutual bond, and we must work at them to see them flourish and continue to hold. I encourage you to let someone in your networking circle know how much they mean to you today. Don't delay, bonds can look strong but fail instantly. Bob Arnold is the founder of ONward Networking and an international best-selling author. More networking tips and information are available at "Bob's Pencil Points" blog at OnwardNetworking.com or by contacting Arnold at TheNetworkingPencil@gmail.com.
Find a reason to say, "thank you," to someone.
A Legacy of Giving by Kent Von Der Vellen In 1998, three local women decided it was time for a fund that would focus on the needs of Medina County's women and children. Jane Lang, Katie Horn and Gwen Rivers grew the Medina County Women's Endowment Fund from the Medina County Community Fund by spearheading efforts to raise $104,000 to start the new fund, said Mary Isaac, MCWEF's president.
The local Women's Health Fair received the first MCEWF grant in 2001 to provide child care and transportation for low-income women so they could attend the fair. In the 20 years since, the MCWEF has awarded $147,772 to 49 organizations, while the Akron Community Foundation provides administrative, legal and investment expertise. This year, MCWEF is honoring Lang and Rivers, both of whom died in 2017, and is celebrating 20 years of helping the community. The new Legacy Tree of Giving Campaign's goal is to match the $104,000 that was initially raised in 1998. Donors are asked to donate $100 a month to MCWEF for a year. The first 100 donors will receive a photograph by Matthew Platz of the Legacy Tree, which is located along Route 3.
When measuring brown sugar, packing it down always has seemed a waste of time. The brown sugar is never the same amount twice because the final amount depends on how firmly it is packed. It also makes it a large lump to add to the mixer, rather than the softer form prior to packing. My rule of thumb is to add a quarter cup extra of brown sugar and skip the packing. •	2 ½ cups flour •	½ teaspoon salt •	1 teaspoon baking soda •	2 sticks margarine •	1 cup brown sugar (do not pack) •	¼ cup granulated sugar •	1 tablespoon vanilla •	¼ cup sour cream •	3 eggs •	1 pound chocolate chips (be aware, a bag of chocolate chips is less than a pound) •	Optional: 1 cup coarsely chopped nuts, 14 ounce bag shredded coconut Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Use a balloon whisk or fork to combine flour, salt, baking soda. In separate bowl, use mixer to thoroughly combine butter, sugars, vanilla, sour cream, eggs. Add flour mixture. Add chips. Add nuts and coconut, if desired. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or with foil sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Drop by teaspoon, approximately 2 inches apart, onto prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 10 minutes or until browned around the edges. Yield is approximately 5 dozen.
Let's do it! Tuesday, May 1 Mother Goose Day http://bit.ly/2GkHk93 and Batman Day http://bit.ly/2p6R2Ug 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. American Red Cross Blood Drive; Medina Library, 210 S. Broadway Street, Medina. http://www.redcross.org/local/ ohio/northeast 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. American Red Cross Blood Drive; Grace Baptist Church, 3480 Laurel Road, Brunswick. http://www.redcross.org/local/ohio/ northeast 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Gearheads: Robotics Challenge; Medina Library, 210 S. Broadway Street, Medina. Divide into teams, create robot. Must attend all four sessions. Register at https://bit. ly/2qjB7Ds 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. ORMACO: The Great Gatsby touring company performs; Highland High School Auditorium, Highland High School, 4150 Ridge Road, Medina. Tickets $15 in advance at all Medina County Buehler's starting April 1, $18 at the door. www.ormaco.org , 330-722-2541.
Friday, May 4 May the Fourth be With You: Star Wars Day http://bit.ly/2p4f2bj , Migratory Bird Day http://bit.ly/1wIvwE5 and International Tuba Day http://bit.ly/1nPT6L3 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Master Gardener Coffee Chat; OSU Extension Office, Professional Building, 120 W. Washington Street, Medina. $5 For topic, more information, and to register go to http://bit.ly/2DDEYQw 5:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. Bluegrass Jam and Dinner; Lafayette United Methodist Church, 6201 Lafayette Road, Medina. Kitchen opens at 5:30 p.m., music starts at 7 p.m. Donation admission $3, dinner is additional donation request. Bring favorite dessert to share. Bluegrass bands welcome, arrive early to be scheduled. 7:30 p.m. Medina Community Band: Spring Concert; Highland High School Auditorium, 4150 Ridge Road, Medina. Free.
Park, 8600 Hubbard Valley Road, Seville. Four to five mile hike at brisk pace. Dress for the weather. Ages 10 and up. Free. No registration. 9 a.m. to noon. American Legion Post 202 Paper Shredding Day, 620 N. Broadway Street, Medina. No plastic, no binders. Flags will be given proper disposal. Donations accepted. 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Medina County Pet-Tacular!; Pinnacle Sports, 313 Medina Road, Medina. Pet adoption, obedience classes, dog vaccinations, face painting, pet massage, and more. Free. 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Cinco de Mayo; Brunswick Library, 3649 Center Road, Brunswick. Make a piñata, maraca, snacks. Grades kindergarten third grade. Register at https://bit. ly/2IIXoBw 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Fabulous and Fancy Tea Party; Buckeye Library, 6625 Wolff Road, Medina. Dress in exquisite ensemble, enjoy teas, snacks. Grades kindergarten through fifth. Register at https://bit.ly/2qoxr2n 10:30 a.m. to noon. Laura Ingalls Wilder's Farmer Boy Presentation; Medina Library, 210 S. Broadway Street, Medina. Stories, artifacts. https://bit.ly/2qkXU1P 11 a.m. Book Lovers Luncheon; Seville Library, 45 Center Street, Seville. Bring appetizer to share. Register at https://bit.ly/2GRyI9n 11 a.m. to noon. Hot Wheels and Trucks; Highland Library, 4160 Ridge Road, Medina. Stories, race cars. Grades kindergarten to fifth. Register at https://bit.ly/2GNye3Y Noon to 4 p.m. Computer Support, Medina Library, 210 S. Broadway Street, Medina. Help removing viruses and malware from laptops. Library tech department will assist. Ages 55 and up. First come, first serve. NO PHONE CALLS. 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. Cinco de Mayo; Brunswick Library, 3649 Center Road, Brunswick. Make a piñata, maraca, snacks. Grades fourth through sixth. Register at https://bit.ly/2JyP1cO 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. Mom and Me Scrapbook; Medina Library, 210 S. Broadway Street, Medina. Make scrapbook for mom, bring small mementos, photos. Register at https://bit.ly/2EC3KQC 5:30 p.m. Children's Center Night at the Races; Weymouth Country Club, 3946 Weymouth Road, Medina. Doors open 5:30 p.m., heavy appetizers 6 p.m., post time 7 p.m. Tickets $50. Sponsorships and tickets http://www.medinacountychildrenscenter.org/ 7 p.m. Medina Chorus Spring Concert; Medina Presbyterian Church, 5020 Burgundy Bay Boulevard, Medina.
Joy of Medina County Magazine | May 2018 Brunswick. http://www.redcross.org/local/ohio/ northeast 2 p.m. Wadsworth Community Choir Spring Concert; O.J. Work Auditorium, 151 S. Main Street, Wadsworth. 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. ORMACO Avenue Brass Quintet; Wadsworth Public Library, 132 Broad Street, Wadsworth. Free, but reservations urged, 330-334-5761. 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. OSU Extension: Nature Rocks!; Wolf Creek Environmental Center, 6100 Ridge Road, Wadsworth. Workshop about butterflies with plant scavenger hunt and paint a suncatcher. Ages 6 to 12. Fee $6. Register with Ashley Kulhanek, 330-725-4911, Ext. 106, or e-mail kulhanek.5@osu.edu.
Drive; Medina Community Recreation Center, 855 Weymouth Road, Medina. http://www. redcross.org/local/ohio/northeast 1:30 p.m. Summer Book Preview; Brunswick Library, 3649 Center Road, Brunswick. Penguin Random House rep shares new releases. Snacks, prizes. https://bit.ly/2HdWQq7 2:30 p.m. Candy Olympics; Buckeye Library, 6625 Wolff Road, Medina. Skittle sorting, candy taste-testing, races, more. Grades 7 to 12.
10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Sit, Stay, Read; Lodi Library, 635 Wooster Street, Lodi. Practice reading with Griffin, a trained therapy dog. Ages 4 and up. Register at http://bit.ly/2GkRKFI 4:15 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. Snack Attack; Story Time Room, Medina Library, 210 S. Broadway Street, Medina. Quick and easy recipes. Counts toward wellness Points. Grades 3 to 5. Register at http:// bit.ly/2Hum8g6 5:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. Bluegrass Jam and Dinner; Lafayette United Methodist Church, 6201 Lafayette Road, Medina. Kitchen opens at 5:30 p.m., music starts at 7 p.m. Donation admission $3, dinner is additional donation request. Bring favorite dessert to share. Bluegrass bands welcome, arrive early to be scheduled.
Sunday, May 20 Be a Millionaire Day https://bit.ly/R4H42p Noon to 5 p.m. Wonderful World of Warblers; Susan Hambley Nature Center, 1473 Parschen Boulevard, Brunswick. All ages. https://bit. ly/2GR3hM9 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Kitchen Gardens; Wolf Creek Environmental Center, 6100 Ridge Road, Wadsworth. Fee $20. Ages 13 and up. https:// bit.ly/2Hr9Iqt Call 330-722-9316 to register by May 11.
Friday, May 25 Sing Out Day https://bit.ly/2IxUEXv and Towel Day ("Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy") https:// bit.ly/2q9k2es Civil War Encampment; Spring Grove Cemetery, 785 E. Washington Street, Medina.
3 p.m. to 4 p.m. Crafternoon; Story Time Room, Medina Library, 210 S. Broadway St., Medina. Paint, craft supplies provided to create art. Grades 1 to 5. Register at http://bit.ly/2FE0Wno 5:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. Bluegrass Jam and Dinner; Lafayette United Methodist Church, 6201 Lafayette Road, Medina. Kitchen opens at 5:30 p.m., music starts at 7 p.m. Donation admission $3, dinner is additional donation request. Bring favorite dessert to share. Bluegrass bands welcome, arrive early to be scheduled.
Monday, May 28 Amnesty International Day https://bit. ly/2He07mS All libraries are closed for Memorial Day. 10 a.m. Memorial Day Parade; Medina. Emphasis on Medina history.
Submitting Calendar Events "Let's Do It!" is a calendar of events sponsored or hosted by non-political, non-profit groups in Medina County. The calendar also is available online at JoyofMedinaCounty.com, where it is regularly updated with additional events. There is no charge to list an event in the calendar. To have an event listed, please send date, time, event name, location, cost of event, organization benefitting from the event (and hosting or sponsoring organization if different), contact name and phone number, website if available, and name and phone number of the person submitting the information to joy@ BlakeHousePublishing.com with Calendar in the subject line or you can mail the information to Attn: Calendar, Joy of Medina County Magazine, 1114 N. Court, #144, Medina, Oh. 44256. Calendar information will not be taken by phone.
Treasures, clues, wishes, and so much more in our May issue to explore. Enjoy the wonderful stories of Medina County!


There is a bit of nonsense – and to be fair, a bit of sense – being talked this week about craft beer and real ale, as if the two were somehow mutually exclusive. CAMRA, we are told, is out of touch and needs to change the Great British Beer Festival – which is currently focused on cask-and bottle-conditioned beers – to include the new kegged craft beers that are stealing all the headlines.
Yet I look around GBBF and I see craft beer everywhere. Some of it is 'traditional craft' – breweries that have been in business for decades or centuries, making finely-crafted ales the way our forefathers did (and all that jazz). Some is old brewers learning new ways – there is a Brains Craft Brewery bar, for instance, offering four or five of its newest craft ales. And others are new-wave craft – Hardknott has beers here, as do Burning Sky, Arbor, Ilkley and lots more.
At the same time, the London Craft Beer Festival opened today – I'll be along there tomorrow, I hope. It's promising draught and bottled beer from two-dozen breweries, mostly from the UK and the rest of Europe, plus two from the USA.
The only thing that divides the two is the method of dispense. CAMRA favours cask-conditioning, and with good reason – plenty of the modern craft brewers also put (some of) their beer in casks because they know that, properly treated, it can be a superb way to develop the flavours and carbonation over time.
Most keg beer on the other hand – though not all, because some can and does condition in the keg – is intended to be drunk the way it leaves the brewery. That is not a bad thing at all, although it can be limiting.
Yes, CAMRA has its Puritans, but I'd bet that most members here at GBBF will drink anything that's well made and flavoursome. And they won't care whether it comes out of a handpump or not (just as well really, because most other CAMRA beer festivals serve their beers by gravity, straight from a tap on the cask).
The odd thing is that craft keg has its Puritans too. They regard cask conditioning and especially handpumps as signs of 'old men's ale', stuff to be revolted against – just as CAMRA revolted against the fizzy, homogenised and often tasteless keg beers of the 1970s. On Twitter, they complain that this year's Champion Beer of Britain, Timothy Taylor's Boltmaker, is a boring bland brown bitter instead of a hop-forward tastebomb.
It's funny really. Plus ça change, and all that. Sometimes you need subtlety rather than obviousness, and sometimes you ought to wonder why some of those US craft brewers you idolise are so intrigued by cask ale – to the extent that they will do collaborations with JD Wetherspoon in order to brew a properly cask-conditioned ale, based on traditional craft methods, and then see it get a national release served in ale-led pubs on handpump.
Sometimes you really do have to say, "A pint please" and get on with it.


text:
Classical Ballet of WNY
2022 SUMMER INFORMATION
THE NUTCRACKER INFO
TUITION/COSTUME FEES
Clarence 2022-23
Lockport 2022-23
Creative Movement
Susannah Dwyer Gentes, Director
Originally from Buffalo, NY, Ms. Dwyer received her ballet training at the American Academy of Ballet. She attended summer programs at the New York State Summer School of the Arts in Saratoga Springs, the School of American Ballet in New York City, and the Pacific Northwest Ballet School in Seattle. Ms. Dwyer continued her training on scholarship at the School of Cleveland Ballet, where she also performed with the Cleveland Ballet. She then danced professionally for 11 years with Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, Louisville Ballet, Milwaukee Ballet, and BalletMet in Columbus. Additionally, she taught on the faculty of the BalletMet Dance Academy.
After retiring from dancing, Ms. Dwyer was the ballet mistress for the Festival dancers at the Chautauqua Institution's School of Dance. She has taught and choreographed extensively for the Lockport City Ballet and the Classical Ballet of WNY for the past 12 years. Students of Ms. Dwyer have gone on to dance professionally with the Semperoper Ballet in Dresden, Germany, the Pennsylvania Ballet in Philadelphia, the Washington Ballet, River North Dance Chicago, and Nashville Ballet II. Her students have attended numerous summer intensive ballet programs, including the School of American Ballet, American Ballet Theatre School, Boston Ballet School, San Francisco Ballet School, Pacific Northwest Ballet School in Seattle, the National Ballet School in Toronto, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre School, the New York State Summer School of the Arts (NYSSSA) in Saratoga Springs, the Chautauqua Institution's School of Dance, and Miami City Ballet School. Ms. Dwyer has been a guest teacher for Ballet Western Reserve in Youngstown, Ohio, SUNY Brockport, Little Red Dancing School in Rochester, NY, and the New York State Ballet. In 2005, Ms. Dwyer was a recipient of the Business First Magazine's 40 Under 40 award.
William Gentes, Co-DirectorBorn in Vietnam and raised in California, Mr. Gentes began his ballet training with Kenneth Delmar and with Maria Vegh at the Marin Ballet School. He received a full scholarship to the San Francisco Ballet School, where he also performed with the company. Mr. Gentes danced professionally as a guest artist with the Universal Ballet Company of Korea. He then danced with the Miami City Ballet under the direction of Edward Villella, a former principal dancer with the New York City Ballet and protégé of George Balanchine. Mr. Gentes also danced with the Milwaukee Ballet Company and taught on the faculty of the Milwaukee Ballet School, and then danced with BalletMet in Columbus, OH. Because of his professional career with these companies, Mr. Gentes had the opportunity to tour throughout the United States, Europe, and South America. After retiring from dancing, Mr. Gentes taught and choreographed at the Chautauqua Institution's School of Dance. He founded his own ballet school, the Lockport City Ballet in Lockport, NY in August of 2002. In the summer of 2004, Lockport City Ballet expanded to a second location, the Classical Ballet of Western New York, in Williamsville. Students of Mr. Gentes have gone on to dance professionally with the Semperoper Ballet in Dresden, Germany, the Pennsylvania Ballet in Philadelphia, the Washington Ballet, River North Dance Chicago, and Nashville Ballet II. His students have attended numerous summer intensive ballet programs, including the School of American Ballet, American Ballet Theatre School, Boston Ballet School, San Francisco Ballet School, Pacific Northwest Ballet School in Seattle, the National Ballet School in Toronto, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre School, the New York State Summer School of the Arts (NYSSSA) in Saratoga Springs, the Chautauqua Institution's School of Dance, and Miami City Ballet School. Additionally, students of Mr. Gentes have competed in the Youth America Grand Prix ballet competition, with some students qualifying for the New York City finals. Mr. Gentes has been a guest teacher and choreographer for Ballet Western Reserve in Youngstown, Ohio, and a guest teacher at SUNY Brockport, at Little Red Dancing School in Rochester, NY, Dance Master of America, the New York State Ballet, and the University at Buffalo. Mr. Gentes WAS an adjunct professor, teaching advanced ballet at the University at Buffalo.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Aberdeen manager says Covid 'put real estate in the crosshairs'
Bill Pekowitz, portfolio manager for the Aberdeen Global Premier Properties Fund, says that lockdowns during the coronavirus pandemic hit brick-and-mortar retail, hotels, office space and the urban apartment sectors, but boosted cell towers, warehouses, industrial data centers and more. Now, with economic recovery, he expects some troubled areas to rebound and suggests balancing real estate investments between those that are peaking with those that are recovering.
CHUCK JAFFE: Covid-19 has dramatically changed the market for commercial, residential, and alternative real estate investments. Bill Pekowitz, portfolio manager for the Aberdeen Global Premier Properties Fund is here to talk about it now on The NAVigator. This is The NAVigator, where we talk about all-weather active investing and plotting a course to financial success with the help of closed-end funds. The NAVigator is brought to you by the Active Investment Company Alliance, a unique industry organization that represents all facets of the closed-end fund industry from users and investors to fund sponsors and creators. If you're looking for excellence beyond indexing, The NAVigator's going to point you in the right direction. Today it's pointing us in the direction of Bill Pekowitz, portfolio manager for the Aberdeen Global Premier Properties Fund, it's ticker symbol AWP and you can get more information at Aberdeen's closed-end fund center which is online at AberdeenStandard.US/CEFcenter. If you want to learn more about investing in closed-end funds check out AICAlliance.org, the website for the Active Investment Company Alliance. Bill Pekowitz, thanks for joining me on The NAVigator.
BILL PEKOWITZ: No problem, Chuck. Pleasure to be here.
CHUCK JAFFE: Coronavirus has of course affected the entire world, but there are not that many markets that seem to be as impacted long-term as real estate. How much has the real estate market been permanently changed?
BILL PEKOWITZ: In many ways the Covid pandemic really put real estate right in the crosshairs and hit the sector really hard in a number of ways. The lockdowns, they hurt brick-and-mortar retail and entertainment focused locations. Travel restrictions, stay-at-home measures, that hurt the hotels. Working from home trends, that's impacted how everyone is thinking about the office and the future of office. And then we've even seen things, that lack of urban amenities has really hurt demand for apartments in dense urban markets. And so all of these sectors suffered a big pullback last year in demand and are struggling with that. But I think it's important to mention that while there was the weakness in those segments of real estate, there were other parts of the real estate market that really were winners as trends moved in their favor. I think of things that are tied to e-commerce and fulfilment, so cell towers, data centers, industrial warehouses, all of those sectors really benefited from increased demand and increased importance in people's lives. So that sector's really benefited off of this and we think a lot of these trends will continue. And then on the other side, these sectors that were hurt, some of them we think will come back strongly and others we think it's going to be a longer-term issue where there is some impairment. It's early on in the recovery but we think there is still a lot of opportunities in real estate.
CHUCK JAFFE: Well it sounds like real estate like say the rest of the economy, is going through what could best be described as a K-shaped recovery. You've got those things that are on the rise, those things that are on the downswing, so how has this changed what you're investing in and where you see the opportunities right now?
BILL PEKOWITZ: Right now we have very low interest rates around the globe. We have a ton of monetary and fiscal stimulus that is coming into the sector, and all of these things are going to drive an economic recovery as the vaccines are rolled out. That kind of an environment of recovering economic growth, low interest rates, and a return to business activity has historically been very good times to be investing in real estate, and we think those trends are going to repeat themselves this cycle as we come out of it. Now when we're building the portfolio, we are being very selective in how we're going to build that portfolio, and we're taking a bit of a barbell approach to building that portfolio. So there's a number of sectors that we would say are at cheap valuations relative to their historical multiples or their historic underlying value of their real estate, but we think that there is differences in how those sectors will recover because of what has gone on and the pandemic. And so when we're building a portfolio, there's some sectors that we think are going to be early on winners in that reopening trade, so something like hotels, entertainment properties, healthcare related properties, especially on the senior housing side. These are sectors that were really hard hit during the downturn. We think as people get vaccinated, as they return back to a more normal type of life as much as that will happen, these are going to be sectors that we're going to see outsize growth and recovery there. And so early on we think those are going to be areas that you want to look at. We think there's even some select brick-and-mortar retail locations that we think can benefit off of that same thing. At the same time, we're including still those sectors like the industrial, like the data center, like the cell towers that I mentioned earlier, that we think there are structural demand drivers that still exist for those sectors, and those sectors are going to continue to benefit going forward. And so therefore you want to have those sectors also in your portfolio, so you have these things that you're playing on for more short-term kind of trading opportunities and then you have your longer-term underlying fundamental drivers which are then going to give you that stability on the dividend side and drive that cashflow growth that'll give us the income that we need in real estate.
CHUCK JAFFE: One of the things that I noticed looking at your fund is Morningstar Data, unlike any fund I've ever seen in my long career. There are plenty of funds that are feast or famine, but if we look at AWP, the Aberdeen Global Premier Property Fund in terms of rank in its category by net asset value, it is truly feast or famine. It is like, "Hey, we're number on in our category, or we're number 100 in our category. We're always top or bottom." Is there something going on in the construction of the portfolio or the way you look at real estate that says this is why we come into or out of favor? And is there reason to believe that the sweet spot is coming?
BILL PEKOWITZ: I think there's a couple factors there. I think one part is when we're constructing our portfolios we try to take fairly concentrated positioning, and we do that both through bottom-up company selection and then we'll overlay a global outlook and a top-down view as well. And so at times we might be, I would say early on seeing some of the trends. Because when we're building these portfolios we do like to take more of a longer-term view, say three to five-year view through the course of the entire real estate cycle. And so because of that there are some segments that may be out of favor and then come back into favor, but we think that the longer-term trend is the way to look at it instead of just shorter time horizons.
CHUCK JAFFE: Obviously we're seeing these changes in real estate and you've talked about a few of them. What are the long-term trends that you're looking for for the next few years coming out of coronavirus?
BILL PEKOWITZ: Real estate, we view it as it's constantly evolving and constantly changing. Because real estate does touch every aspect of our existence from where you live, where you work, where you play, how you get things, all of that at some point touches real estate. So over time there's definitely been this shift in what is considered real estate, and we think that trend kind of continues. If we go back just as recently as 2012 and we were to look at the real estate market, traditional real estate sectors, things like apartments, office, industrial warehouse, and retail was call it 60% of the U.S. REIT market and that was more than 80% of the global REIT market. If we look at that now at the end of 2020, that has shifted where those alternative sectors are now a little over 60% of the U.S. market cap are in the alternative sectors and 40% are in those traditional sectors. It's completely reversed itself. We think a lot of those trends continue and these sectors will continue to get that capital. Some of this is from the emergence of new technology and new ways of doing things, so that would be that cell tower, data center, industrial trade where those things have really been the winners at the expense of a retail landlord. If you think about that, if you're on your phone and you go to Amazon and you want to order something, so your phone is now connected to the cell tower, the cell tower sends that signal of your purchase to Amazon's servers that are inside of a data center, that then send that information to the warehouse from where it's packed up and shipped to you. A large portion of that transaction has now gone through elements of real estate and REITs, versus in the past that would have been you got in your car, you drove to the mall, you bought something and you go home. But we also have seen, and I think we're going to continue to see growth in those areas, because you have things like going forward the rollout of 5G technology, and that's going to continue the cell carriers to continue to have to spend on their locations. And so that's really going to allow greater demand still for cell towers and data centers as cloud computing and remote working, all of those factors continue to benefit there, so we think those areas continue to grow. Other element of real estate and how it evolves, we could look at something that's been around for a long time but how it is structured has changed, I think of things like alternative housing. So single-family rentals as a product has existed for long, long time, but it was traditionally you or I owned a second home and we rented it out. And we had to do all of the maintenance, we had to do all that, but we were able to generate a little bit of income. But it was a very much a hit or miss type product, it wasn't commoditized, there wasn't consistency in it. But then look at what happened during the Financial Crisis, and all of a sudden there was a large number, portfolios of homes that had been foreclosed upon and institutional capital with the help of the public markets was able to acquire large portfolios of single-family homes. They were then able to make the operations of those homes very similar, and make it that they can then rent that product and give you a product that you know if you're renting a home from Invitation Homes or American Homes 4 Rent, in Atlanta it's going to be similar to what they have in Phoenix. And that business model, we've now seen they've been able to drive a lot of costs out of that business, the efficiencies are there, they can get strong occupancies, they can keep their CapEx at manageable levels, and that is an area then that's continuing to grow as well. And we think things like that continue to have some growth prospects. And those are just two examples over the last call it 10 years or so, so those sectors we think still have growth opportunities going forward. But there will probably be other things that are going to emerge in the next two years that right now would be considered maybe more alternative in the commercial real estate world but they will also emerge and provide other investment opportunities as we go forward as well.
CHUCK JAFFE: Bill, this has been great. Thanks so much for joining me to talk about it.
BILL PEKOWITZ: Thank you Chuck, appreciate it.
CHUCK JAFFE: The NAVigator is a joint production of the Active Investment Company Alliance and Money Life with Chuck Jaffe. I am Chuck Jaffe and you can check out my show on your favorite podcast app or at MoneyLifeShow.com. To learn more about closed-end funds, interval funds, and business-development companies go to AICAlliance.org, the website for the Active Investment Company Alliance. On Facebook and LinkedIn @AICAlliance. Thanks to my guest, Bill Pekowitz, portfolio manager for AWP, the Aberdeen Global Premier Properties Fund. Learn more about it at AberdeenAWP.com and check out their closed-end fund investing center at AberdeenStandard.US/CEFcenter. They're on Twitter @ASInvestments. The NAVigator podcast is available every Friday, please subscribe on your favorite podcast app and join us again next week to learn more about investing with closed-end funds. Until then, stay safe everybody.
Admin Bantics2021-02-16T12:30:19-05:00February 12th, 2021|


Early Tuesday, Mark Lavoie walked into his wife's hospital room, shot her, then turned the gun on himself. When authorities responded to a call about gunshots in the hospital, they discovered both Lavoie, 50, and his wife Katherine, 49, dead. Just before the murder-suicide, Lavoie wrote a lengthy status update on Facebook explaining why he did what he did.
It's not entirely clear how Katherine ended up on life support to begin with, but in the end, Lavoie seems to believe that he did what his wife would have wanted him to do.
"Though a difficult subject I hope my family whom I love dearly can make some sense of what I'm doing though unless you have dealt directly with mental illness if will be difficult," Lavoie continued.
The case has now been turned over to the New Hampshire Attorney General's Office for investigation.
Near the closing of his note, Lavoie seemed to have a positive outlook on the end of his life.


text:
Ешлі-Гайтс () — переписна місцевість (CDP) в США, в окрузі Гоук штату Північна Кароліна. Населення — 380 осіб (2010).

Географія
Ешлі-Гайтс розташоване за координатами  (35.090061, -79.373791).  За даними Бюро перепису населення США в 2010 році переписна місцевість мала площу 5,75 км², уся площа — суходіл.

Демографія
Згідно з переписом 2010 року, у переписній місцевості мешкало 380 осіб у 142 домогосподарствах у складі 98 родин. Густота населення становила 66 осіб/км².  Було 154 помешкання (27/км²).

Расовий склад населення:

До двох чи більше рас належало 4,7 %. Частка іспаномовних становила 9,5 % від усіх жителів.

За віковим діапазоном населення розподілялося таким чином: 25,3 % — особи молодші 18 років, 63,6 % — особи у віці 18—64 років, 11,1 % — особи у віці 65 років та старші. Медіана віку мешканця становила 38,6 року. На 100 осіб жіночої статі у переписній місцевості припадало 100,0 чоловіків;  на 100 жінок у віці від 18 років та старших — 98,6 чоловіків також старших 18 років.

Середній дохід на одне домашнє господарство  становив  доларів США (медіана — ), а середній дохід на одну сім'ю —  долари (медіана — ). За межею бідності перебувало 9,9 % осіб, у тому числі 23,7 % дітей у віці до 18 років та 0,0 % осіб у віці 65 років та старших.

Цивільне працевлаштоване населення становило 164 особи. Основні галузі зайнятості: освіта, охорона здоров'я та соціальна допомога — 32,9 %, мистецтво, розваги та відпочинок — 20,1 %, транспорт — 9,1 %, роздрібна торгівля — 8,5 %.

Джерела

Переписні місцевості Північної Кароліни
Населені пункти округу Гоук (Північна Кароліна)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Never before had anyone evoked such a delightful tremor of thrilling sensation in me.
An unknown force propels me towards the fruit-stall. I stand near her and made pretence of choosing a papaya, trying to look at her with sidelong glances when I think she isn't noticing.
Does one have to speak to express love?
Are words from the mouth the only way to communicate love?
Just one word would spoil everything, destroy our enthralling state of trancelike bliss, bring everything crashing down from supreme ecstasy to harsh ground reality.
How long should we go on making love like this?
Tell me, should I make a move, talk to her, break the spell…?
Tell me, My Dear Reader…Should I tell her…?


Carnegie Mellon University researchers have developed techniques for combining the views of 480 video cameras mounted in a two-storey geodesic dome to perform large-scale 3D motion reconstruction.
Though the research was performed in a specialised, heavily instrumented video laboratory, Yaser Sheikh, an assistant research professor of robotics who led the research team, said the techniques might eventually be applied to large-scale reconstructions of sporting events or performances captured by hundreds of cameras wielded by spectators.
The video lab, called the Panoptic Studio, also can be used to capture the fine details of people interacting.
In contrast to most previous work, which has typically involved around 10 to 20 video feeds, the Carnegie Mellon researchers weren't concerned about gaps in data as their camera system can track 100,000 points at a time. Instead, they need to ascertain which of the multiple video trajectories can see each of those points and select only those camera views for the reconstruction.
The research team is said to have developed a technique for estimating visibility that uses motion as a cue. In contrast to motion capture systems that use balls or other markers, the researchers used established techniques for automatically identifying and tracking points based on appearance features, in this case, distinctive patterns. For each point, the system then seeks to determine which cameras see motion that is consistent with that point.
If a point on a person's chest is being tracked and most cameras show that point is moving to the right, a camera that picks up motion in the opposite direction is likely seeing a person or object that is in between the target and the camera. Alternatively, it may indicate the person has turned and the chest is no longer visible to the camera. In either case, the system knows that camera cannot see the target point and that its video feed is not useful for 3D reconstruction involving that point.
Other researchers have been able to use images from a large number of cameras, such as smartphones, to create 3D reconstructions of still images, Joo said in a statement. But without methods such as the visibility estimation technique, 3D motion reconstruction at such a large scale has not been possible.
Such a dense array of cameras enables the researchers to perform 3D motion reconstructions not previously possible. These include 3D reconstructions of a person tossing confetti into the air, with each piece of paper tracked until it reaches the floor. In another case, confetti is fed into a fan, enabling a motion capture of the airflow. 'You couldn't put markers on the paper without changing the flow,' Joo explained.
Likewise, such techniques might be used for reconstruction of the motion of animals, which typically can't be instrumented.
The findings were presented at the Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition conference, June 24-27, in Columbus, Ohio.


text:
Dark Sublime at the Trafalgar Studios: 'Over-long and burdened with unnecessary romantic narratives'
Arts, Theatre · 2 weeks ago ·
Do you remember the one where Counsellor Troi was driven mad by an alien music box that beamed an endless waltz directly into her brain? How about when her mom visited and they had a telepathic throwdown on the bridge? No? Then you must not know your Star Trek: The Next Generation. You must not be a real fan. Michael Dennis's Dark Sublime is at its best when it considers the nature of fandom, and our often inexplicable attachment to low-brow pop culture. Over-long and burdened with unnecessary romantic narratives, however, the show stumbles repeatedly. Not even the meta-delicious casting of Marina Sirtis, Counsellor Troi herself, can create sufficient interest to save Andrew Keates's production.
The action begins with a drink. Marianne (Sirtis), a former television star, and Kate (Jacqueline King) are catching up about work. Marianne fills her time, and makes her mortgage payments, giving emotion intelligence workshops to non-actors. She still occasionally gets fan letters, and produces one such missive to distract her friend, who is describing her new lover, Suzanne (Sophie Ward). The letter writer is Oli (Kwaku Mills), an aficionado of Dark Sublime, the camp sci-fi programme Marianne headlined thirty years ago. The young man's entry into her life forces her to confront its disappointments, both professional and romantic.
Marina Sirtis in Dark Sublime.
The show is funny in a 1990s sort of way. Jokes are cued up and visible at a hundred metres. Sirtis's delivery in particular is reminiscent of a sitcom; she seems to pause after the punchline for the soundtrack. While King does good work with the few reflective moments afforded Kate, it is Mills who shines, expertly rendering both Oli's enthusiasm as a fan, and his struggles as an awkward, unpopular youth. In an age in which viewers regularly petition to save their favourite shows, and when a disappointing Game of Thrones finale gets more press than the Brexit negotiations, the power of the fan is an interesting but underexamined area. When Oli explains to Marianne her programme's significance in his life, the play finds its true theme. It's a pity its focus strays so often.
The script includes two separate subplots concerning unrequited same-sex love. The storylines are not only distracting, but also underdeveloped. Dennis appears convinced that homosexual desire is sufficiently freighted that its mere existence generates dramatic tension. But it's 2019. Being gay is not shocking, or even particularly interesting.
Furthermore, it's 2019, and narratives centered on a meeting with a pop culture hero who turns out to be an alcoholic, embittered disappointment now feel as formulaic and dated as an episode of Dark Sublime. We know where the story is going from the outset. The fact that it takes nearly two-and-a-half hours to get there adds insult to interstellar injury. If only someone could have beamed me up at the interval.
Dark Sublime is at the Trafalgar Studios until 3rd August, 2019.
Photograph: Scott Rylander
Sarah Gibbs is a graduate student pursuing a PhD in English Literature at University College London (UCL). Her writing has appeared in Descant, Filling Station, and Novelty magazines.
Interview with Mary Doherty, Artistic Director of The Actors Class: 'Everyone in the room has a right to be there and the slate is wiped clean.'
Anthony Walker-Cook sat down to chat with Mary Doherty about The Actors Class as part of a new interview series…
My Friend the Polish Girl: an effortlessly complex treatise on the quantum mechanics of the movie camera
Interview with Ewa Banaszkiewicz and Mateusz Dymek, directors of My Friend the Polish Girl: "There is always an imbalance of power… especially in closer relationships"
Peter Gynt at the National Theatre: a sprawling, surreal nightmare


text:
Q: Using THREE.Raycaster to detect collisions I've created this function which is called in my render loop to detect collisions and move the player/camera (it's a first-person game) The collisions are detected using a CubeGeometry named pCube which is moved to match the camera every frame:
// Player movements
function pMovements() {
    mPlayer.colBottom = false;

    pCube.position.x = mPlayer.yawObject.position.x + 50; // The cube is placed +50 so we can see/debug it.
    pCube.position.y = mPlayer.yawObject.position.y - 10;
    pCube.position.z = mPlayer.yawObject.position.z;

    // -- COLLISION DETECTION START --
    var originPoint = pCube.position.clone();

    for (var vertexIndex = 0; vertexIndex < pCube.geometry.vertices.length; vertexIndex++)
    {
        var localVertex = pCube.geometry.vertices[vertexIndex].clone();
        var globalVertex = localVertex.applyMatrix4( pCube.matrix );
        var directionVector = globalVertex.sub( pCube.position );

        var ray = new THREE.Raycaster( originPoint, directionVector.clone().normalize() );
        var collisionResults = ray.intersectObjects( collidableMeshList );
        if ( collisionResults.length > 0 && collisionResults[0].distance < directionVector.length() ) {

            // Bottom vertices
            if (vertexIndex == 2 || vertexIndex == 3 || vertexIndex == 6 || vertexIndex == 7) {
                mPlayer.colBottom = true;
                mPlayer.velocity.y = Math.max( 0, mPlayer.velocity.y ); // Stop falling
            }
        }
    }
    // -- COLLISION DETECTION END --

    var delta = (Date.now() - time) * 0.1;

    mPlayer.velocity.x += (-mPlayer.velocity.x) * 0.08 * delta; // walking
    mPlayer.velocity.z += (-mPlayer.velocity.z) * 0.08 * delta; // walking
    if (mPlayer.colBottom == false) {
        mPlayer.velocity.y -= 0.1 * delta; // falling
    }

    if (mPlayer.moveForward) mPlayer.velocity.z -= mPlayer.speed * delta;
    if (mPlayer.moveBack) mPlayer.velocity.z += mPlayer.speed * delta;
    if (mPlayer.moveLeft) mPlayer.velocity.x -= mPlayer.speed * delta;
    if (mPlayer.moveRight) mPlayer.velocity.x += mPlayer.speed * delta;

    mPlayer.yawObject.translateX(mPlayer.velocity.x);
    mPlayer.yawObject.translateY(mPlayer.velocity.y);
    mPlayer.yawObject.translateZ(mPlayer.velocity.z);

    if (mPlayer.yawObject.position.y < -2000) {
        // Player has fallen out of bounds :( so re-initialise the players position
        mPlayer.velocity.y = 0;
        mPlayer.yawObject.position.y = 100;
        mPlayer.yawObject.position.x = 0;
        mPlayer.yawObject.position.z = 0;

        mPlayer.yawObject.rotation.y = 0;
        mPlayer.pitchObject.rotation.x = 0;
    }

    if (mPlayer.moveDown) {
        mPlayer.yawObject.position.y -= 1;
    }
    if (mPlayer.moveUp) {
        mPlayer.yawObject.position.y += 1;
    }
}

Click here for the demo.
WASD to move. Space to jump (sort of). The black cube/rectangle mirrors the cameras position +50 on the x-axis. Collisions are detected on the cube.
Basically I have two questions about this. Should I be using the vertices of the cube to detect collisions, or the faces? If an object was smaller than the cube, no collision would be detected because it wouldn't hit any vertices. So should I rewrite it for the faces instead?
Secondly, how can I prevent the cube falling too far down when a collision is detected. If you check the demo, whenever the cube falls off something it will keep falling for a while before stopping. I assume has something to do with mPlayer.velocity.y but I haven't been able to fix it. Even jumping makes the cube sink to far down into the floor.

A: To increase the "resolution" of your collision detection, you could add more vertices to the cube, e.g. when you declare pCube try:
pCube = new THREE.CubeGeometry(100,100,100, 5,5,5);

and the rest of your code could remain unchanged.
With regards to smaller objects "slipping between" the rays created for collision detection, in general if you use this method but have the small object create the rays, then you will detect collisions more accurately.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


2005-05-03 Assigned to LINEAR TRANSFER SYSTEMS, LTD. reassignment LINEAR TRANSFER SYSTEMS, LTD. ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST (SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS). Assignors: BROADLEY, MALCOLM, BROWN, RYAN, CHILDS, MONTGOMERY W.
A coupling device for releaseably securing together two objects. The coupling device comprises a first housing securable to a first object, a second housing securable to a second object, and an actuator secured to the first housing. The second housing has a hollow bore therein. At least part of the actuator is releaseably receivable within the hollow bore of the second housing. The actuator has an activated and a deactivated configuration. When in its activated configuration at least a portion of the periphery of the actuator is in an expanded state such that when situated within the hollow bore of the second housing the expanded periphery of the actuator releaseably secures the first housing to the second housing. When the actuator is in its deactivated configuration the periphery of the actuator in a retracted state permitting separation and relative movement between the first and second housings. The actuator and the first and second housings receive and dissipate bending moments applied thereto across the first and second objects to resist flexure therebetween.
This application claims priority from Canadian Patent Application 2,345,860 filed May 1, 2001.
This invention relates to coupling devices, and in one embodiment hydraulic couplings that may be used to releaseably secure together adjacent ends of transfer rails in a press transfer system.
The manufacturing industry, and in particular the metal fabrication and stamping industries, commonly utilize automated systems that allow a workpiece to be conveyed or transferred between equally spaced workstations where particular operations are carried out upon the workpiece. For example, many metal parts on automobiles and appliances are formed by means of a stamping procedure wherein a series of separate dies are situated on a series of aligned and equally spaced workstations within a press bed such that a workpiece will be stamped between a pair of dies upon each stroke of the press. Automated transfer systems are typically employed to grasp the workpiece, remove it from one set of dies, and transport it laterally through the press bed to the next adjacent workstation where the workpiece will be stamped a second time with a further set of dies upon the next stroke of the press.
A press transfer system utilized in conjunction with a typical multi-stage press would commonly include at least one transversely oriented transfer rail situated adjacent to the press bed and aligned with the various workstations. Depending upon the particular application and press design, a single transfer rail may be positioned along one side of the press bed or, alternatively, a separate transfer rail may be located on each side of the bed of the press. Regardless, the primary function of the transfer rail is to provide a mechanism by which grippers or fingers may be supported adjacent to the workstations for grasping a workpiece so that it may be transported to the next workstation. Such grippers or fingers would typically be mounted either to the transfer rail or to a secondary rail that is in some manner secured or attached to the transfer rail. Movement of the workpieces from workstation to workstation accordingly involves the movement of the transfer rail, often in a relatively complex three dimensional manner. Described generally, this movement involves (i) moving the rail toward the workstation such that the grippers may grasp the workpiece; (ii) lifting upwardly to remove the workpiece from the dies in the workstation; (iii) moving laterally and parallel to the press bed to align the workpiece with the next adjacent workstation; (iv) lowering to allow the grippers to release the workpiece onto the next adjacent set of dies; and, (v) retracting from the workstation and returning back to the starting position.
It will therefore be appreciated that to present an effective mechanism by which a workpiece may be moved in the above-described fashion, the transfer rails must be relatively rigid, must be of a sufficient strength to support workpieces without significant flexure or deflection from the horizontal, and preferably of a relatively light weight construction so as to minimize the inertia of the moving transfer rails to permit more precise and faster movement of workpieces between workstations.
It is common in metal fabrication and stamping facilities for one press to be used in the manufacturing of a variety of different components. Changing the set up of a press to enable the stamping of different components usually necessitates the removal and change-out of the dies. It may also be necessary for the press operator to change or modify the grippers or fingers to accommodate a new workpiece. Changing the dies within the press bed typically requires the transfer rails to be removed from the transfer system to allow for complete and open access to the dies. In addition, changing grippers or fingers to accommodate a new size and shape of workpiece often requires the transfer rails be removed so that new grippers or fingers can be mounted thereon, or that a new transfer rail be installed that has already been pre-fitted with the necessary grippers. In either instance the physical removal of the transfer rail can be a laborious and time consuming procedure adding expense to the manufacturing process by way of increased operator time and by increasing the down time of the press.
To address the need to be able to easily and quickly remove transfer rails to gain access to the press bed, and to facilitate the change-out of grippers or fingers, others have manufactured transfer rails in a series of separate longitudinal sections fastened together at their ends to form a single elongate rail. Consecutive sections of the rail are typically fastened together through the use of bolts, plates or a variety of externally mounted mechanical, pneumatic or hydraulic latches and/or catches. Unfortunately, such transfer rails have generally met with limited success as the systems utilized to fasten rail sections together end to end have tended to be either no more convenient than simply removing the entire rail, or mechanically complex thereby making them more costly and more prone to failure. Furthermore, such prior connecting systems have tended to present a weakness in the structural integrity of the rail at the juncture of adjacent sections. To combat the potential weakness at the location where successive rails are connected, others have reverted to the use of bulky, heavy, high strength components that are capable of transferring load between rail sections without significant deflection or sag. Such components are typically undesirable on account of the increased weight that they add to the transfer rail.
The invention therefore provides a coupling device that may be used to releaseably secure together two objects, such as two sections of a transfer rail utilized in a linear transfer system. The invention provides such a coupling device that is mechanically efficient, that operates quickly and without significant operator intervention, that is structurally sound to provide a mechanism that readily transfers load between adjacent parts, and that is of a relatively light weight.
Accordingly, in one of its aspects the invention provides a coupling device for releaseably securing together two objects, the coupling device comprising a first housing securable to a first object; a second housing securable to a second object, said second housing having a hollow bore therein; and, an actuator secured to said first housing, at least part of said actuator releaseably receivable within said hollow bore of said second housing, said actuator having an activated and a deactivated configuration, when in said activated configuration at least a portion of the periphery of said actuator in an expanded state such that when situated within said hollow bore of said second housing said expanded periphery of said actuator releaseably securing said first housing to said second housing, when said actuator in said deactivated configuration the periphery of said actuator in a retracted state permitting separation and relative movement between said first housing and said second housing, said actuator and said first and second housings receiving and dissipating bending moments applied thereto across the first and second objects to resist flexure therebetween.
In a further aspect the invention provides a coupling device for releaseably securing together two objects, the coupling device comprising a first housing securable to a first object, one end of said first housing having an elongate load transferring member receivable within the first object, the opposite end of said housing having and elongate spigot; a second housing securable to a second object, said second housing including an elongate load transferring member receivable within the second object, said elongate load transferring member having a hollow bore therein for receiving said elongate spigot of said first housing; and, an expandable locking member for releaseably securing said spigot within said hollow bore of said second housing, when said expandable locking member securing said spigot within said hollow bore of said second housing said spigot and said elongate load transferring members of said first and second housings dissipating bending moments across the first and second objects and resisting flexure therebetween.
In yet a further aspect the invention provides a coupling device for releasably securing together the ends of a first and a second longitudinal rail, one end of the second rail having a hollow bore formed therein, the coupling device comprising a first housing securable to the end of the first rail, one end of said first housing having an elongate load transferring member securable to the first rail and the opposite end of said housing having an elongate spigot, said spigot of a size and shape such that said spigot is closely receivable within the hollow bore in the end of the second longitudinal rail; and, an activator that upon activation causes at least a portion of the periphery of said spigot to expand such that when said spigot is received within the hollow bore in the end of the second rail said spigot releaseably secures the ends of the first and second rails together, said spigot and said elongate load transferring member receiving and accommodating bending moments resulting from loads applied to the first and second rails and dissipating bending moments across the first and second rails to resist flexure therebetween.
The invention also provides a coupling device for securing together the ends of segments of a transfer rail for use in a press transfer system, the coupling device comprising a first housing securable to one end of a first segment of the transfer rail, said first housing having on one end an elongate load transferring member securable to one segment of the transfer rail, the opposite end of said first housing having an elongate spigot; a second housing securable to one end of a second segment of the transfer rail, said second housing including an elongate load transferring member receivable within a bore in the end of the second segment of the transfer rail, said elongate load transferring member of said second housing having a hollow bore therein for receiving said elongate spigot of said first housing such that when said spigot is received within the hollow bore in said second housing said spigot releaseably secures the ends of the first and second segments of the transfer rail together, said spigot and said elongate load transferring members of said first and said second housings receiving and dissipating bending moments applied thereto across the first and second segments of the transfer rail and resisting flexure therebetween.
Further advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description taken together with the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line 6—6 in FIG. 4.
The present invention may be embodied in a number of different forms. However, the specification and drawings that follow describe and disclose only some of the specific forms of the invention and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention as defined in the claims that follow herein.
The coupling device in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention is noted generally in the attached drawings by reference numeral 1. While it will be appreciated that coupling device 1 may be utilized to secure together a variety of different objects, for illustration purposes in the attached drawings coupling device 1 has been shown as it would typically be used to secure together the ends of two sections of a transfer rail 2.
FIGS. 1 and 2 generally depict a press 3 having mounted thereon a linear transfer system 4 that utilizes a pair of transfer rails 2 (only one of which is shown in the drawings) in order to assist in the movement of workpieces between adjacent workstations within the press bed. As shown specifically in FIG. 2, where coupling device 1 is used to secure together the ends of adjacent transfer rails for use in a press transfer system, typically two such coupling devices would be incorporated into the transfer rail such that the middle portion 5 of the rail can be easily and quickly decoupled to allow for the change-out of the dies, or for the adjustment or changing of the grippers or fingers which engage the workpieces. As will be appreciated from a complete understanding of the present invention, where coupling device 1 is hydraulically or pneumatically operated, a supply of pressurized hydraulic fluid or air would typically be provided to the coupling device from an exterior source either positioned or attached to press 3, or from a centralized source located elsewhere within the manufacturing facility.
Referring now to FIGS. 3 through 6, there is shown therein one preferred embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment coupling device 1 comprises a first housing 6 that is securable to an object, that in this instance comprises the end 8 of a section of transfer rail 7. Typically end 8 of transfer rail 7 would have incorporated into it a series of threaded bores that enable first housing 6 to be secured thereto by means of bolts or threaded studs. Coupling device 1 further includes a second housing 9 securable to a second object, that in this instance comprises a second section 10 of a transfer rail. Once again second housing 9 would typically be secured to transfer rail 10 through the use of bolts or threaded studs received within threaded bores in end 11 of section 10. Second housing 9 includes a hollow bore 12 therein that is preferably positioned centrally upon the outer face 13 of the housing.
As shown best in FIG. 5, in a preferred embodiment housings 6 and 9 each include an elongate load transferring member 33 and 34, respectively. Load transferring members 33 and 34 are closely received within correspondingly shaped bores in the ends of rail sections 7 and 10, with the exterior surfaces of the load transferring members in contact with the internal surfaces of the bores into which they are received. To enhance the contact between load transferring members 33 and 34 and the bores in rail sections 7 and 10 the load transferring members may be dimensioned so that they are press fit into the bores. Through the use of load transferring members 33 and 34, and through their close fit within the bores in the ends of rail sections 7 and 10, it will be appreciated that bending moments and loads received by housings 6 and 9 will be dissipated over an enhanced portion of rail sections 7 and 10 than would be the case if first housing 6 and second housing 9 were merely bolted onto the ends of the rail sections.
Coupling device 1 further includes an actuator that is noted generally in the attached figures by reference numeral 14. Actuator 14 is secured to first housing 6 with at least a part of the actuator releaseably receivable within hollow bore 12 of second housing 9. The operation of actuator 14 (which will be described in more detail below) is such that when first housing 6 is pushed against second housing 9 actuator 14 is received within bore 12 of the second housing. Thereafter, activation of actuator 14 causes at least a portion of the periphery of the actuator to expand thereby securing the first housing to the second housing. Similarly, when the actuator is deactivated the portion of the periphery of the actuator that was expanded is allowed to retract permitting first housing 6 to be separated from second housing 2, and also permitting relative movement between the respective housings.
The structure and operation of actuator 14 will now be described in further detail. As shown in the attached Figures, actuator 14 preferably includes a generally hollow elongate spigot 15 that constitutes the portion of the actuator that is releaseably receivable within hollow bore 12 of second housing 9. Spigot 15 is preferably dimensioned so as to closely fit within bore 12 so that any bending moments applied to, or borne by, the spigot will be transmitted to housing 9 with either no, or only minimal, movement of the spigot relative to housing 9. The elongate nature of spigot 15 helps to dissipate loads borne by the spigot to housing 9 and to load transferring member 34.
To facilitate in the assembly of the internal components of actuator 14, in one embodiment of the invention the outer end 27 of spigot 15 comprises a cap or plug 30 that is received and threaded over the end of the spigot. Spigot 15 would typically be mounted upon a cylinder housing 16 that is fixed to first housing 6 by means of a plurality of bolts or threaded studs. Cylinder housing 16 would typically include a hollow, general cylindrical, chamber 17 opposite spigot 15. When cylinder housing 16 is secured to first housing 6 chamber 17 will be received within a hollow bore 18 extending through the first housing 6. The internal diameter of chamber 17 is such that it helps control movement of the internal parts of actuator 14, as will also be discussed in more detail below. However, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that in an alternate embodiment hollow bore 18 within first housing 6 may be constructed and machined to acceptable tolerances such that the utilization of chamber 17 may not be necessary.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention the primary mode of activating and deactivating coupling device 1 (and specifically actuator 14) is through the use of an activator that would typically be in the form of a fluid activated cylinder 19. Cylinder 19 is preferably received within chamber 17 of first housing 6 and connected to a source of pressurized hydraulic fluid or gas through hoses or conduits (not shown) running through the generally hollow interior 20 of transfer rail 7. Cylinder 19 has an engaged and a disengaged position such that when the cylinder is in its engaged position actuator 14 is in its activated configuration with at least a portion of its periphery in an expanded state. Similarly, when cylinder 19 is in its disengaged position actuator 14 is in its deactivated configuration and in a retracted or non-expanded state.
In the embodiment shown in the attached drawings, cylinder 19 is a double acting cylinder such that alternate pressurization of its internal chambers causes activation or deactivation of actuator 14. However, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that a single action cylinder may equally be used in conjunction with a spring mechanism designed to return the cylinder to its disengaged position. Alternatively, a pair of one acting cylinders could be used in place of a single double acting cylinder. It will also be appreciated that the activator cold be an electric solenoid used in place of cylinder 19.
As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, cylinder 19 is secured in place at the rearward end 21 of chamber 17 by means of a lock on jam nut 22. Connected to the opposite end of cylinder 19 and attached to its internal piston is a piston rod 23. With the generally hollow interior of spigot 15 aligned with the interior of chamber 17, when piston rod 23 is attached to cylinder 19 it will extend through chamber 17 and into the hollow interior of spigot 15.
The expansion and retraction of at least a portion of the periphery of actuator 14 to allow the actuator to secure first housing 6 to second housing 9 is accomplished through an expandable locking member that is comprised generally of plurality of balls 24 and a wedge 25, both of which are positioned within the hollow interior of spigot 15. Spigot 15 includes a plurality of openings or holes 26 through its outer surface that are in communication with its hollow interior. Openings 26 are of a shape corresponding to balls 24 but have a smaller diameter so as to prevent the complete passage of the balls therethrough. Accordingly, when balls 24 are aligned with openings 26 and pushed outwardly from the interior of spigot 15 they will extend partially through the openings but will not completely escape the interior of the spigot. Movement of the balls in this fashion is accomplished by means of wedge 25 which is secured to the end of piston rod 23.
Movement of the piston rod longitudinally through chamber 17 and the interior of spigot 15 by cycling cylinder 19 between its engaged and disengaged positions causes piston rod 23 to drive wedge 25, in one case toward the outer most end 27 of spigot 15, and in the other case away from end 27. As wedge 25 is driven toward the end of 27 of spigot 15 a ramped exterior portion 29 contacts and engages balls 24 causing the balls to be pushed outwardly through openings 26. The rearward end 35 of ramped portion 29 is of a generally cylindrical configuration such that as the wedge is driven toward end 27 of spigot 15 ramped portion 29 will push balls 24 into openings 26, after which cylindrical portion 35 will maintain balls 24 in position extending partially through openings 26. The diameter of cylindrical portion 35 will accordingly be generally the same as the outer diameter of sloped or ramped portion of the wedge. Once in contact with cylindrical portion 35, there will be no tendency for balls 24 to place a load upon cylinder 19, as would be the case if they were bearing directly upon the sloped ramped surface of the wedge. In addition, with balls 24 bearing against cylindrical portion 35 the balls will remain in position in the event of a loss of fluid pressure to cylinder 19, thereby maintaining the integrity of the connection between spigot 15 and housing 9.
Retracting piston rod 23 away from outer end 27 of spigot 15 by disengaging cylinder 19 retracts wedge 25 from balls 24 allowing the balls to be received back within the hollow interior of the spigot. A constant diameter outer portion 28 of wedge 25, having a smaller diameter than ramped portion 29, will remain in contact with balls 24 upon the retraction of piston rod 23 so as to allow the balls to retract back into the hollow interior of the spigot but to retain them adjacent to openings 26 and prevent them from becoming misaligned or lost within the hollow interior of the spigot. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, the ramped portion 29 and the constant diameter portion 28 of wedge 25 are shown as two separate parts. Forming portions 28 and 29 as two separate parts helps to facilitate the assembly of actuator 14, and specifically the insertion and placement of balls 24 within the spigot. However, it will be appreciated that if desired a single part having the attributes of both ramped portion 29 and constant diameter portion 28 could be utilized.
In order to assist in the securement of spigot 15 within hollow bore 12 of second housing 9, the second housing preferably includes an internal circumferential race 31 positioned about its interior surface. Race 31 is of a size and configuration to receive the portion of balls 24 that are forced through openings 26 by wedge 25. Race 31 is also located along the internal wall of bore 12 at a location such that it will align with balls 24 when the spigot is received within hollow bore 12. In this manner, when wedge 25 causes balls 24 to extend through openings 26 with spigot 15 received within hollow bore 12, the balls will be received within race 31 thereby securely holding spigot 15 within hollow bore 12 and securing first housing 6 to second housing 9. Retraction of wedge 25 will allow balls 24 to also retract back through openings 26, thereby releasing the balls from race 31 and allowing the spigot to be removed from hollow bore 12.
It will be appreciated that when secured together in the manner as described above, spigot 15 and hollow bore 12 will prevent separation of first housing 6 from second housing 9 and thereby provide a means to secure two objects together. However, where the spigot and hollow bore are cylindrical their structures will not be conducive to preventing rotational movement between the two objects secured together. For that reason, to prevent rotation of first housing 6 relative to second housing 9 when so secured together, in one preferred embodiment of the invention coupling device 1 includes at least one anti-rotation member. In the attached drawings, two anti-rotation members are shown in the form of plates 32. Plates 32 are preferably positioned on opposite sides of transfer rail 2 and span the outer surfaces of first housing 6 and second housing 9 when the housings are secured together. In this way plates 32 will prevent relative rotation between the housings, and between adjacent sections of the transfer rail. In an alternate embodiment the anti-rotation members may be comprised of one or more torque pins or torque plates extending outwardly from the face of either first housing 6 or second housing 9 and received within correspondingly shaped recesses within the face of the opposite housing.
It will therefore be appreciated and understood from a thorough understanding of the present invention that coupling device 1 provides a mechanism that is mechanically efficient, may be operated quickly and without significant operator intervention, and that is of a relatively light weight. Coupling device 1 also has the ability to transfer loads between objects which it connects together in a manner that resists flexure therebetween. That is, through manufacturing spigot 15 and internal bore 12 under relatively tight tolerance constraints, and through the receipt of a portion of balls 24 within internal circumferential race 31 within hollow bore 12, a coupling structure is created that is capable of distributing bending moments that may be applied thereto while resisting deflection or sag. Where the objects to be coupled together are transfer rails for use in a press transfer system, horizontal alignment is critical in order to ensure the proper positioning of grippers or fingers to move workpieces through successive workstations within the press bed. Misalignment of connected transfer rail sections while under load can result in the improper grasping of workpieces and the failure to position workpieces properly upon the dies and the workstation. If the misalignment is significant enough, workpieces could be improperly pressed and finger or gripper members could be destroyed during the stamping operation. The structure of the above described invention helps to prevent such occurrences.
The ability of coupling device 1 to receive and dissipate bending moments that may be applied to rail sections 7 and 10 is also enhanced through the use of load transferring members 33 and 34. As described above, with load transferring members 33 and 34 closely received within bores in the ends of rail sections 7 and 10, loads received by housings 6 and 9 are dissipated over a greater area of the two segments of the transfer rail. This structure presents a more rigid connection between the respective sections of the transfer rail and increases the ability for coupling device 1 to accept bending moments. The described structure also provides a "tight" connection that is less likely to "work" itself loose during operation. Both of these attributes are particularly important in the context of a transfer rail used in a press transfer system. Such rails are typically formed from a light weight, hollow, aluminum extrusion. Being able to dissipate bending moments over an enhanced area of such extrusions is advantageous in terms of preventing flexing and sag.
It is to be understood that what has been described are the preferred embodiments of the invention and that it may be possible to make variations to these embodiments while staying within the broad scope of the invention. Some of these variations have been discussed while others will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art. For example, while in the above described embodiment first and second housings are secured to the objects sought to be coupled together, the objects themselves could be machined such that one object includes a spigot that is receivable within a hollow bore machined into a second object.
said spigot having a generally hollow interior and including a plurality of balls partially protruding through openings about the circumference of said spigot, said openings of a shape corresponding to said balls but having a diameter smaller than said balls to prevent the complete passage of said balls therethrough, said spigot further including a wedge positioned within said hollow interior of said spigot, said wedge connected to said activator such that said activator causes said wedge to be driven within said hollow interior of said spigot and into contact with said balls causing said balls to partially extend through said openings about the circumference of said spigot, when said spigot received within said hollow bore of said second rail said partially extending balls received within an interior race in said hollow bore and securing said spigot within said hollow bore.
2. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said elongate load transferring member receivable within an internal bore situated within the end of the first rail, said load transferring member dissipating bending moments received thereby across the length of the internal bore that is in contact with said load transferring member.
3. The device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said wedge includes a generally cylindrical portion, when said balls partially extending through said openings about the circumference of said spigot said balls in contact with said cylindrical portion of said wedge.
4. The device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said activator is a fluid actuated double acting hydraulic or pneumatic cylinder.
5. The device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said activator is an electric solenoid.
wherein said spigot has a generally hollow interior with a plurality of balls received within said hollow interior, said balls partially protruding through openings about the circumference of said spigot, said openings of a shape corresponding to said balls but having a diameter smaller than said balls to prevent the complete passage of said balls therethrough, said spigot further including a wedge positioned within its hollow interior, said wedge connected to an activator such that operation of said activator causes said wedge to he driven within said hollow interior of said spigot and into contact with said balls causing said balls to partially extend through said openings about the circumference of said spigot, when said spigot received with said hollow bore of said second housing said partially extending balls received within a circumferential race on the inner surface of said hollow bore and securing said spigot therein.
7. The device as claimed in claim 6 wherein said wedge includes a generally cylindrical portion, when said balls partially extending through said openings about the circumference of said spigot said balls in contact with said cylindrical portion of said wedge.
8. The device as claimed in claim 6 wherein said activator is a fluid actuated double acting hydraulic or pneumatic cylinder.
9. The device as claimed in claim 6 wherein said activator is an electric solenoid.
10. The device as claimed in claim 6 including at least one anti-rotation member, upon the receipt of said spigot within said hollow bore of said second housing said anti-rotation member resisting rotation of said first housing relative to said second housing.
11. The device as claimed in claim 6 wherein said elongate load transferring member of said first housing is receivable within a bore within the end of the first segment of the transfer rail, said load transferring member dissipating bending moments received thereby across the length of the internal bore within the end of the first segment of the transfer rail that is in contact with said load transferring member.
NL2013311B1 (en) * 2014-08-07 2016-07-25 Prolyte Group B V Female coupling part and coupling, truss provided therewith, and an associated method, and use.
DE4309237A1 (en) * 1993-03-23 1994-09-29 Schuler Gmbh L Apparatus for coupling and uncoupling or for locking and unlocking of expansion / replacement parts, such as tools, gripper rail sections u. like.


Safety First AND a sense of humor!
"My friends and I rafted the Taos Box with Kokopelli. I was initially really nervous about the rapids, but the guides explained everything thoroughly and I felt prepared and excited going into it. Our guide, Avery, was absolutely fantastic! She was funny and had all sorts of information to share about the area and the river. She knew the river like the back of her hand, and even while joking around and making the ride more fun, she always had her eyes on the water and I felt safe the whole time. The process, from pickup to loading, went extremely smoothly, and all of the guides were professional and well-organized.
The "Box," perhaps the premier one-day wilderness trip in the US, contains the most advanced class IV whitewater in New Mexico. This 17-mile trip starts just northwest of Taos. We float through relatively calm water for a few miles, practicing our teamwork and paddle strokes for the demanding rapids downstream, including Ski Jump, Dead Car, and Powerline Falls. As the gorge deepens and the whitewater increases, we'll still take time to look around at the beauty of northern New Mexico, possibly spotting a bald eagle high on the cliff-tops or a great blue heron on the river's edge. Bighorn Sheep are almost always spotted on this incredible New Mexico raft trip.
The last two-and-a-half miles of the "Box" are known as the "Rio Bravo," or wild river, section. Here we challenge one class III or IV rapid after another, then catch our breaths, before dropping into the grand finale, Sunset Rapid. This river rafting trip is demanding but unsurpassed in its combination of excitement and wild beauty.
A fresh, all-you-can-eat buffet lunch is included, as well as polar fleece tops and full splash suits to keep you comfortable. Minimum age on the Taos Box is 13, although at some water levels we advise that guests have the physical stamina to fully participate.
The Taos Box runs from April through mid-June in a typical year, and into July during years with exceptional snow-pack.
This trip is for the adventurous, physically fit thrill-seeker, and features sections of continuous whitewater, especially during higher flows.
Price: $115* per person weekdays. $125* per person weekends.
Participant Requirements: Must be in generally good physical fitness, have the ability to brace yourself inside the raft, and paddle periodically as requested by the guide. Must be age 13 and up. Participants over 225 lbs in weight require additional screening.


Associated Organisation : English Indoor Bowling Association.
The "Banks Bowling Association" was established in 1935, to spread the interest in the game of bowling amongst employees of the Banks. Various competitions were held between members but these were suspended during the War and never restarted.
Today we have a very interesting fixture list of approximately 41 matches against Counties, other Associations, and various club sides; outdoors and indoors. These currently extend from Croydon and Crystal Palace down to the South Coast, and from Reading to Eastbourne. This is a considerable area which gives most members an opportunity of playing.
Details of our playing programme, along with results of completed matches, can be seen on the appropriate Fixtures page.
Matches are usually comprised of six rinks and followed by a meal and conviviality enjoyed by all.
Because of the distances involved some members are not able to play regularly, or even at all, but sometimes those from further afield do join the annual tour, which is based at a different location each year as selected by the President. This may be a coastal or an inland area, and matches are arranged with local clubs. For further details please see the appropriate Tour page.