Abstract: An IC card reader comprising a contact head holding body which is given a force in the card discharge direction and makes contact with an IC card at the insertion of the card. The card reader also comprises a card latch lever that is operated between an open mode, in which an IC card can be inserted and removed, and a closed mode, in which an IC card cannot be inserted or removed; an operating arm for moving the card latch lever and for holding the card latch lever in the closed mode; and an operating lever for moving the operating arm. The card latch lever enters the closed mode with the movements of the operating lever and the operating arm after an IC card is inserted to a predetermined position. The contact head holding body and the operating lever are connected with each other so that the operating lever moves synchronously with the movement of the contact head holding body.

Abstract: A dynamic pressure bearing device includes a rotary shaft, a dynamic pressure bearing member for supporting the rotary shaft, two radial dynamic pressure bearing parts and a thrust dynamic pressure bearing part formed between the dynamic pressure bearing member and the rotary shaft, and a lubricating fluid continuously filled in the two radial bearing parts and the thrust bearing part. A bypass passage for pressure release is provided for communicating across the two radial dynamic pressure bearing parts to flow the lubricating fluid corresponding to the amount of the unbalance caused by the unbalance of the pumping effect forces from a high-pressure side to a low-pressure side through the bypass passage to reduce the unbalance.

Abstract: A method for updating data in a nonvolatile memory is provided. The method comprises the steps of writing in a RAM data stored in a data writing region of the non-volatile memory, updating the data in the RAM, updating a data error detection region in the RAM based on the data updated, writing in data saving region of the non-volatile memory the data updated in the RAM, updating an end flag region of the data saving region, deleting the data from the data writing region, writing in the data writing region the data in the RAM, updating an end flag region of the data writing region, and deleting the data from the data saving region.

Abstract: A motor includes a stator and a rotor having drive permanent magnets and a rotary shaft. The stator supports a core with coils wound thereon and includes a base plate. The base plate is formed with a resin, and is composed of a core supporting section that supports the core, a shaft supporting section that rotatably supports the rotary shaft, and attachment sections for attaching the motor to an apparatus. The core supporting section, the shaft supporting section and the attachment sections of the base plate are formed in one piece.

Abstract: A motor control device for a flow control device includes an opening part through which an upstream side of a fluid flow passage is in communication with a downstream side of the fluid flow passage, a valve element that controls a flow of a fluid which passes through the opening part, a motor which includes a rotor and a stator that relatively moves the valve element with respect to the opening part and a drive control section by which the motor is rotationally driven and controlled. Drive pulses are outputted from the drive control section for rotationally driving the rotor of the motor and a stop pulse is outputted from the drive control section and set to be a period width longer than that of the drive pulse for stopping the rotor of the motor at a prescribed position. The stop pulse is applied to the motor and the rotor stops at the prescribed position by a magnetic detent torque between the rotor and the stator.

Abstract: A stepping motor includes a pair of drive coils arranged to sandwich a magnetic rotor in the axial direction of a rotor shaft in order to decrease the motor size. The drive coils are configured to be annular around the rotor shaft that extends in both directions from the magnetic rotor. A pair of cylindrical yokes are provided to enclose the drive coils. A pair of sintered bearings that support the rotational movement of the rotor shaft are made of a magnetic material, and the cylindrical yokes and the sintered bearings are formed together.

Abstract: A valve driving device includes a plurality of valve bodies that are simultaneously driven. Driven gears are disposed symmetrically with respect to an axis of the a common gear. Rubber valve bodies which are separate from the driven gears are disposed on the lower surfaces of the driven gears. The valve bodies are slidably aligned with a valve seat which is formed by smoothly denting a valve seat plate. The driven gears are brought into contact with the valve seat under pressure by one leaf spring member to open or close communication holes (valve openings) thereby interrupting or opening a flow-path from an inflow hole.

Abstract: A motor comprises a casing made of magnetic material for housing a rotor and a coil wherein side surfaces of the casing have openings. The openings are closed by the magnetic plates that are thinner than the thickness of the material of the casing.

Abstract: A card reader may comprise a power supply part for the card reader, a peripheral device including at least an inlet part for connecting a power cable to the power supply part from outside, a card reader part, a lower case for housing the power supply part and the peripheral device which is disposed in a linear manner, an upper case for housing the card reader part, and a recessed part for allowing the power cable to be inserted into the inlet part for connection. The inlet part and the recessed part for allowing the power cable to insert into the inlet part may be arranged in a linear manner and parallel to the power supply part.

Abstract: A valve driving device comprises a main case having one or more inlet pipes through which a fluid flows in from an external compressor and two or more outlet pipes through which the fluid flows out and also having built-in valve elements to open and close openings that are portions of a fluid path for the fluid and are connected to the outlet pipes to flow and stop the fluid and a driving portion for driving the valve elements. When the driving portion is driven in the driving direction, the openings and the valve elements together can switch between four operation modes (close-close, open-close, close-open, and open-open) with respect to the two outlet pipes; three or more of the operation modes, including the close-close mode, being obtained; the driving portion is driven back and forth while two modes of the three or more modes are assigned to be at both ends of the driving direction; and the close-close mode is assigned to be at one of the ends.

Abstract: An electrolytic machining method for electrolytically machining a workpiece is provided. The method uses a masking member having through-hole patterns that correspond to the shapes of concave parts to be formed in the workpiece. The masking member is brought in contact with a machining surface of the workpiece. An electrolytic solution is supplied and allowed to flow in the gap between the masking member and an electrode tool. The electrolytic solution is allowed to enter into and flow within the through-hole patterns of the masking member in order to electrolytically machine surfaces of the workpiece only in the through-hole patterns.

Abstract: A motor includes a plurality of core assemblies forming three phases, and a plurality of coil windings provided on the respective core assemblies, wherein one of the coil windings is wound in a coil winding direction opposite to a coil winding direction of the coil windings on other of the coil assemblies, grip sections that are arranged in an axial direction to hold the core assemblies, and pole teeth that connect to at least two of the grip sections on both sides of the center one of the core assemblies and extend from each of the two grip sections in both directions in the axial direction. The pole teeth extending in both directions from each of the two grip sections are arranged along a circumferential direction so as not to overlap one another in the axial direction, and the at each of the grip sections is formed from a single magnetic plate.

Abstract: The flux densities formed by plural electromagnet poles M1 to M12 which are arranged at a predetermined interval in a circumferential direction of a rotary body 1 at the same position in an axial direction of the rotary body 1 are gradually changed in the circumferential direction of the rotary body. Even if there is a difference between the maximum value of the flux density and the minimum value, the change of the flux densities between the adjacent electromagnet poles is small and smooth. Accordingly satisfactory detective sensitivity and detection results can be obtained.

Abstract: A valve device having a novel vale seat plate is provided. The valve seat plate has an inlet opening, an outlet opening, a front side and a back side. A sealing case covers the front side and inlet and outlet pipes are attached to the back side to communicate respectively with the inlet and outlet openings. A valve element moves to cover the outlet opening on the front side to close the outlet opening. The novel valve seat plate includes at least two plates that are joined to each other. One plate forms the area around the outlet opening and the other plate forms other areas of the valve seat plate.

Abstract: A motor-operated damper device includes a baffle driving device equipped with a motor, a baffle that is driven by the baffle driving device, a frame defining an opening section that is closed and opened by the baffle, the opening section having a peripheral edge section, and a buffer member that is attached to the baffle and that resiliently deforms and contacts the peripheral edge section of the opening section when the opening section is closed by the baffle. A detent torque of the motor is used to maintain a stopping state in which the buffer member is resiliently deformed to provide a close contact with the peripheral edge section of the opening section. The motor-operated damper device includes a stopper that allows an appropriate amount of elastic deformation of the buffer member and yet prevents the peripheral edge section of the opening section from excessively sinking into the buffer member.

Abstract: A motor has a stator core having a plurality of salient poles and stator coils wound on the salient poles, respectively, each of the stator coils having a common side coil end part and a coil winding part. The common side coil end part of each of the stator coils extends radially outward from corresponding one of the coil winding parts into a region radially outside of the corresponding coil winding part of the corresponding stator coil. Then, the common side coil end part is bent to extend in the circumferential direction towards adjacent one of the salient poles in the circumferential direction, and connects electrically to a common side coil end part of adjacent one of the stator coils, wherein the common side coil end parts are joined to surround in a circular ring-shaped manner an entire outer circumference of the stator core.

Abstract: An optical pickup device is equipped with a first light source that emits first light, a second light source that emits second light having a wavelength different from a wavelength of the first light, and a diffraction element that deflects the first light or the second light to match optical axes of the lights. The diffraction element is a step-like diffraction element in which one of an incident face and an emitting face thereof has a step-like grating face. A step difference of the step-like grating face is set to have a measurement that generates a phase difference of one wavelength of one of the first light and the second light, and the number of steps of the step-like grating face is set to maximize a (+) first order diffraction efficiency or a (?) first order diffraction efficiency for the other light.

Abstract: A stepping motor includes a stator whose outer diameter is 8 mm or less and a rotor having a magnet disposed opposing to the stator. The stator has a core with pole teeth formed therein. The ratio between the thickness of the pole teeth formed in the core in the radial direction on the stator side and an outer diameter of the magnet on the rotor side, in other words, the quotient derived by dividing the thickness of the pole teeth by the outer diameter of the magnet, is set in a range between 0.121 and 0.148 to achieve good torque characteristic and linearity.

Abstract: A temperature control method for a refrigerator includes providing a valve device, in which an inflow port where a refrigerant flows into, at least two outflow ports having a first outflow port and a second outflow port where the refrigerant flows out, and a valve element for performing opening/closing of the outflow ports are positioned in a sealed space. The method also includes providing a valve element drive device for driving the valve element. The method further includes controlling the valve element drive device, at the time a power source of the refrigerator is turned on, to reciprocate between a first mode as an OPEN-CLOSE mode and a second mode on a CLOSE-OPEN mode until a temperature in a first chamber where the refrigerant is supplied through the first outflow port, and a temperature in a second chamber where the refrigerant is supplied through the second outflow port, are lowered to reach to a prescribed temperature.

Abstract: A stator structure of a motor includes a stator assembly having a coil bobbin on which coil windings are wound, terminal pins affixed to the coil bobbin, a substrate having a wiring pattern and affixed to the terminal pins, and a connector member that is equipped with connector pins for supplying external power. The connector member is provided independently of the terminal pins. The connector pins of the connector member are electrically connected through the wiring pattern on the substrate to the terminal pins. At least a connection section between the substrate and the terminal pins, a connection section between the substrate and the connector pins, and a part of the connector member are sealed with sealing resin.