Abstract: This proximity sensor includes: a cylindrical housing having an opening at one end in the axial direction; a detection part housed at the other end of the housing and detecting the presence or absence of a detection target contactlessly; a substrate housed in the housing and mounted with a control circuit for controlling the detection part; a detection part shield preventing external noise from entering the detection part and including a first face part adhered to the front surface on the other side of the detection part, and a side face part configured from multiple side pieces connected to the outer periphery of the first face part and bent from the first face part to cover the side surface of the detection part; and a resin provided around the detection part and the detection part shield.

Abstract: A pressing device includes a rotator, a secured member, a pressure rotator, and lubricant. The rotator has flexibility and a sleeve form and includes an inner portion having a sliding surface. The inner portion has an elastic power of 55% or more. The secured member is inside a loop of the rotator and has a slide surface on which the sliding surface of the rotator is to slide. The slide surface has a smaller surface roughness than a surface roughness of the sliding surface. The pressure rotator presses the rotator against the secured member and forms a nip between the rotator and the pressure rotator. The lubricant between the rotator and the secured member has a consistency of 275 or less.

Abstract: A fixing device includes a rotator, a secured member, a pressure rotator, and lubricant. The rotator has flexibility and a sleeve form. The rotator includes an inner portion having a sliding surface. The inner portion has an elastic power of 55% or more. The secured member is disposed inside a loop of the rotator and has a slide surface on which the sliding surface of the rotator slides. The slide surface has a larger hardness than a hardness of the sliding surface of the rotator. The pressure rotator presses the rotator against the secured member and forms a nip between the rotator and the pressure rotator. The lubricant is provided between the rotator and the secured member.

Abstract: A fixing device includes a rotator, a secured member, a pressure rotator, and lubricant. The rotator has flexibility and a sleeve form. The rotator includes an inner portion having a sliding surface. The inner portion has an elastic power of 55% or more. The secured member is disposed inside a loop of the rotator and has a slide surface on which the sliding surface of the rotator is to slide. The slide surface has a smaller surface roughness in a sliding direction of the rotator than a surface roughness of the sliding surface in the sliding direction of the rotator. The pressure rotator presses the rotator against the secured member and forms a nip between the rotator and the pressure rotator. The lubricant is provided between the rotator and the secured member.

Abstract: A surface emitting laser includes a substrate, a lower contact layer disposed on the substrate, a semiconductor layer mesa including a lower reflector layer, an active layer, an upper reflector layer, and an upper contact layer which are laminated, in the order named, on the lower contact layer, an annular electrode disposed on the upper contact layer, and a light transmitting window situated inside the annular electrode to transmit laser light, wherein the upper reflector layer includes a first region and a second region, the first region being inclusive of an area situated directly below the electrode and the light transmitting window, the second region being inclusive of an area outside the mesa and inclusive of a surrounding area of the first region within the mesa, and wherein a proton concentration in the first region is lower than a proton concentration in the second region.

Abstract: A heater includes a base, a plurality of heat generators arranged on the base in parallel to a longitudinal direction of the base, a plurality of electrodes on the base, and conductor paths disposed on the base. The conductor paths are electrically connected to the heat generators and the electrodes. The conductor paths include a main conductor path connected to one of the electrodes and a branch conductor path branched from the main conductor path. At least a part of the branch conductor path has a lower electrical resistance per unit length than an electrical resistance per unit length of the main conductor path.

Abstract: A first fiber is connected to a first end of a third fiber doped with a rare earth element, and a second fiber is connected to a second end of the third fiber. In the third fiber doped with the rare earth element, a central portion of a core is more heavily doped with the rare earth element than a peripheral portion of the core is.

Abstract: A computer system comprises an analysis module configured to execute dynamic analysis for a sample of a malicious program, and to output an analysis result including a coupling destination to and from which the malicious program communicates; a variation detection module configured to detect variation of the coupling destination based on results of cyclic observation of the coupling destination, and to output a result of the detection; and an information sharing module configured to store information output from the analysis module and information output from the variation detection module in a form that allows sharing among a plurality of external computers.

Abstract: A vertical cavity surface emitting laser includes a substrate that has a main surface including a first area and a second area, a post that is provided on or above the first area, and that includes a first-conductive first distributed Bragg reflector provided on or above the first area, an active layer provided on the first distributed Bragg reflector, and a second-conductive second distributed Bragg reflector provided on the active layer, a stack that is provided on or above the main surface, and that includes an upper surface having at least one recess portion disposed above the second area, a resin portion that is disposed in the at least one recess portion, and an electrode pad that is provided on the resin portion and that is electrically connected to either one of the first distributed Bragg reflector and the second distributed Bragg reflector.

Abstract: A conveying method includes first and second pads conveying workpieces with speeds of the first and second pads being varied; circumferential velocities of the first pads and the second pads are accelerated by variable speed mechanisms; the first and second pads move and separate in a state in which a distance between the first pad and the second pad, whose speeds were increased, is increased; the circumferential velocities of the first pads and the second pads are decelerated by the variable speed mechanisms; and a first slider and a second slider, which were subjected to deceleration, overlap each other in a part in a circumferential direction, which causes the first pad and the second pad to approach each other, and the first pad and the second pad move and approach each other in this state in which the first pad and the second pad have approached each other.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus is provided. The image forming apparatus includes an image bearer and a cleaning blade configured to remove toner particles remaining on the image bearer. The cleaning blade includes an elastic member in contact with a surface of the image bearer to remove the toner particles. The elastic member has a Martens hardness of from 3 to 8 N/mm2 when measured by a nanoindentation method with a load of 1 ?N. The toner particles comprise toner base particles and an external additive, and the external additive comprise silica particles. A liberation ratio (Xs) of the silica particles liberated from the toner particles is from 40% to 75% when measured by an ultrasonic vibration method. A proportion (R70) of the silica particles having a volume-based particle diameter of 70 nm or more in the silica particles liberated from the toner particles is from 70% to 90% by number.

Abstract: Provided is an image forming apparatus including an image bearer, a developing unit configured to develop with a toner, an intermediate transfer member, and a transferring unit, wherein the intermediate transfer member is a laminate including a base layer and an elastic layer including particles at a surface thereof to form convex-concave shapes at the surface, the particles have volume resistivity of from 1×100 ohm*cm through 1×109 ohm*cm, the toner includes additive, an amount of the additive separated from the toner is from 20 percent by mass through 35 percent by mass relative to a total amount of the additive in the toner when a toner dispersion liquid in which the toner is dispersed in a dispersant is irradiated with ultrasonic wave vibration with an irradiation energy dose of 4 kJ, and the toner has a dielectric constant of 2.6 or greater but 3.9 or less.

Abstract: A toner is provided. The toner comprises toner particles each comprising a toner base particle and an external additive. The toner base particle comprises a binder resin and a colorant. The toner satisfies the following conditions (a) and (b): (a) an average surface roughness Ra [nm] of the toner particles, detected by a scanning probe microscope analyzer, satisfies the following formula (1): 10<Ra<200??Formula (1); and (b) the external additive comprises coalesced particles being non-spherical secondary particles in which primary particles are coalesced with each other, the coalesced particles having a number average particle diameter of 50 nm or more.

Abstract: A fuel cell stack at least includes a stack body including a plurality of power generation cells each having a membrane electrode assembly stacked in a stacking direction, and a first dummy cell provided at one end of the stack body in the stacking direction. A dummy structural body of the first dummy cell is joined to a dummy resin frame member through an adhesive layer which adheres a first outer peripheral portion and a second outer peripheral portion, and inner periphery of the dummy resin frame member to each other.

Abstract: In order to manufacture a wearable article of the first size, the introduction velocity is set to the first introduction velocity having a high velocity and the arrangement velocity is set to the first the arrangement velocity having a high velocity. In order to manufacture wearable article of the second size having a shorter length in the carrying direction than that of the first size, the introduction velocity is set to the second introduction velocity lower than the first introduction velocity and the arrangement velocity is set to the second arrangement velocity lower than the first the arrangement velocity and the drum velocity is set to a fixed velocity regardless of the size.

Abstract: An electrical connector includes a power feeding portion and a powered portion that contacts the power feeding portion. At least one of the power feeding portion and the powered portion includes a surface layer, a primary coat layer, and an exposed portion. The surface layer is made of a first conductive metal and includes a contact portion where the power feeding portion contacts the powered portion. The primary coat layer mounts the surface layer and is made of a second conductive metal. The exposed portion is separated from the contact portion and exposed to an atmosphere.

Abstract: In a joining method in a method of producing a dummy cell, a dummy structural body and a dummy resin frame member are stacked together into a dummy stack body in a state where an adhesive is interposed between the dummy structural body and the dummy resin frame member, and heat and pressure are applied to the dummy stack body to harden the adhesive to join components of the dummy stack body together into a single piece of the dummy stack body. In the joining step, in a state where a limitation projection is brought into contact with an outer peripheral end surface of the dummy resin frame member to limit outward deformation of the dummy resin frame member, heat and pressure are applied to the dummy stack body.

Abstract: A ceramic heater including a heater electrode embedded in a plate made of ceramic, wherein, of the heater electrode, a specific area surrounding portion surrounding a specific temperature area in which temperature of the plate becomes low has a smaller thickness than a normal portion of the heater electrode.

Abstract: Provided is a proximity sensor that can limit degradation in voltage resistance. A proximity sensor includes: a housing; a coil portion that is accommodated in one end of the housing; a clamp portion that is connected to the other end of the housing; a substrate which is accommodated inside the housing and the clamp portion, and on which a circuit electrically connected to the coil portion is mounted; a shield that covers a part of the substrate located on a side of the housing; and a resin portion which is arranged inside the housing and the clamp portion, and covers at least a part of the substrate. The shield has an extension portion which extends to an inside of the clamp portion and covers at least a part of the circuit located inside the clamp portion.

Abstract: Providing a white pigment dispersion that shows good storage stability because the white pigment contained therein is less likely to sediment, an ink composition comprising the white pigment dispersion, and a method of image formation using the ink composition.