Abstract: A mixing tank for a fuel cell is provided with a container housing fuel for the fuel cell, an absorbent member housed in the container, which has a cavity therein, an inlet flow path interconnecting the fuel cell and the container so as to conduct an exhaust from the fuel cell to the container and admix the exhaust with the fuel to form a mixture absorbed in the absorbent member, an exhaust flow path interconnecting the cavity and an outside of the mixing tank so as to conduct gas to the outside and an outlet flow path interconnecting the absorbent member and the fuel cell so as to conduct the mixture absorbed in the absorbent member to the fuel cell.

Abstract: A liquid cartridge for supplying liquid to an external device connected therewith is provided with a casing, a partition member movably fitted in the casing, which partitions the casing into a first chamber and a second chamber, an outlet port communicating between the first chamber and the external device and a pressure unit housed in the second chamber, which presses the partition member so as to discharge the liquid out of the outlet port.

Abstract: A fuel cell system is provided with a fuel cell having an anode, a cathode and an electrolyte film put therebetween, a fuel supply unit supplying fuel to the anode and a gas supply unit having a pump, the pump giving negative pressure to the cathode so as to introduce gas containing oxidant to the cathode.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus prepares dot cluster within block by pixel value shift to determine phase quantity every pixel value block at the time of constituting stripe pattern or texture of dots by set of dot clusters within respective blocks to control value of pixel shifted from respective pixels within block to shifted pixel designated within block in accordance with phase quantity thereof. Thus, it is possible to control position within block of dot cluster within corresponding block by level smaller than pixel size. In addition, an image processing system includes at least an image reading unit in addition to such an image processing apparatus and preferably comprises an image forming unit to thereby obtain high picture quality and stable image.

Abstract: In an image processing device, image data is buffered by an image buffer section to output an interested pixel value and surrounding pixel values of a pixel surrounding an interested pixel. A shift condition determination section determines on the basis of the interested pixel value and the surrounding pixel values whether or not the interested pixel value should be shifted, and outputs a shift determination result. A pixel shifting amount computing section computes the pixel shifting amount of the interested pixel, and the shifted pixel position calculation section outputs a shift pixel position signal on the basis of setting parameters Tx and Ty, and clock signals XCLOCK and YCLOCK. A pixel value shifting section outputs the interested pixel value after the shifting on the basis of the interested pixel value, a shift determination result, the pixel shifting amount, and the shift pixel position signal.

Abstract: A coding and/or decoding system for an image including bit-sops of different levels, is provided in an image recoding system which recodes bit-map data including small-level bit-map data and multilevel bit-map data in an image memory and which read the bit-map data out of the image memory to recode an image. In this coding and/or decoding system, after small-level bit-map data and multilevel bit-map data are divided into blocks, each of which is composed of a plurality of picture elements, the divided small-level bit-map data and the divided multilevel bit-map data are inputted to small-level bit-map data coding section and multilevel bit-map data coding section, respectively. The small-level bit-map data are transformed into codes representative of the number of black or white and half-tone picture elements in the block, and the multilevel bit-map data are transformed into codes representative of the average value or the total in the block.

Abstract: A picture output apparatus capable of carrying out picture output at a high speed is provided. In the picture output apparatus adapted for converting picture data of a first form, which is not permitted to undergo picture output, inputted along with a picture output instruction into picture data of a second form which is permitted to undergo picture output, wherein this apparatus comprises a configuration to convert picture data of the first form inputted without the picture output instruction into picture data of the second form to hold it as predictive picture data of the second form with respect to picture data of the first form predicted to be inputted along with the picture output instruction later. In the case where the picture data of the first form inputted along with the picture output instruction and the previously inputted picture data of the first form are the same, since the picture data of the second form already exists, it is possible to carry out picture output without conversion processing.

Abstract: In the image processing apparatus of the present invention, the dot pattern analysis section determines a plurality of black pixels neighboring a notice pixel of a predetermined positioned black pixel in a window of the binary image and determines a white pixel as a compensation pixel in the window in accordance with coordinates of the notice pixel and the plurality of black pixels. A notice pixel multivalued section converts the black pixel of the notice pixel to a multivalued half tone pixel and outputs the multivalued half tone pixel based on the coordinate of the notice pixel. A compensation pixel multivalued section converts the white pixel of the compensation pixel to a multivalued half tone pixel and outputs the multivalued half tone pixel based on the coordinate of the compensation pixel.

Abstract: In the image output apparatus of the present invention, a window forming section extracts a window including a notice pixel from bit map data of the image. A contour extraction section extracts contour pixels from the window based on the position of the notice pixel. An outline estimation section estimates an outline based on positions of the contour pixels. A smoothing signal generation section generates a smoothing signal for the notice pixel based on the relative position of the notice pixel and the outline.

Abstract: According to the present invention, an image processing/converting section comprises a pixel position calculating section, a pulse width changing section, a pixel value shifting section, and a recording device driving pulse generating section. The pixel position calculating section generates main scanning direction coordinate information and sub-scanning direction coordinate information on the basis of parameters input into the pixel position calculating section resistor setting values xreg252 and yreg254, a main scanning direction clock signal, and a sub-scanning direction clock signal. The pixel value shifting section calculates an output value of the processed pixel after shifting operation on the basis of the main scanning direction coordinate information, the sub-scanning direction coordinate information, and the pulse width data which is obtained by converting input data of a pixel to be processed by the pulse width changing section.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus according to the present invention comprises image forming unit for forming an image from a plurality of first pixels having a predetermined size, and smoothing processing unit for executing a smoothing process by controlling the image forming unit so that picture elements situated near the outline of the image formed by unit of the image forming unit are composed of second pixels having a size larger than that of the first pixels.

Abstract: An optical recording head comprises a cathode for emitting electrons, and an emission element array, provided apart from the cathode. The emission element array has a substrate, a plurality of anodes arranged at predetermined intervals on the substrate, a plurality of phosphor cells, arranged in contact to the anodes on the substrate, for emitting light based on the electrons from the cathode, and an insulation layer formed on the substrate, and a control electrode, laid out on the insulation layer while being electrically insulated from the anodes, in such a way as to surround the phosphor cells. The control electrode accelerates the electrons from the cathode.

Abstract: An image recording apparatus according to the present invention is characterized by comprising first signal conversion section for converting a pixel density value of an current pixel of an input image signal into a first recording control signal for defining a recording amount, second signal conversion section for referring to an adjacent-pixel recording control signal for defining a recording amount of at least one adjacent pixel connected to the current pixel to convert the first recording control signal into a second recording control signal, being closest to the first recording control signal, for defining a recording amount at which pixel formation for the current pixel is stabilized, recording section for recording an image based on the second recording control signal, and error diffusion section for diffusing an error between the pixel density value and a recording density value of the second recording control signal to a pixel density value of each of non-processed pixels located around the current p

Abstract: An image processing apparatus for performing predetermined processing on an image of a document having a character/line portion, a gradation portion and a background portion. The apparatus reads the document image, converts image densities to binary pixel data, and expands the black pixels in the vertical and horizontal directions. Using this expanded image, character/line, gradation and background portions can be accurately distinguished from each other.