Abstract: A moving apparatus includes a first actuator having a movable element and a stator, and a second actuator for driving the stator. The second actuator drives the stator in a direction to suppress rotation of the stator which accompanies movement of the movable element.

Abstract: An apparatus for manufacturing a glass base material which is an parent material of an optical fiber, comprising: a tank which contains a raw material of the glass base material to vaporize the raw material to generate a raw material in gas phase; a temperature control unit which controls a temperature of the raw material; and a pressure control unit which controls the pressure of the raw material in gas phase.

Abstract: A cleaning blade of an image forming apparatus is formed of urethane rubber, a modulus of repulsion elasticity (JIS K6255) is not less than 20% at 10° C. to not more than 70% at 40° C., a 300% modulus (JIS K6251) is not less than 200 kgf/cm2, and a tear strength (JIS K6252 crescent type) is not less than 35 kgf/cm. A tension set (JIS K6262) of the cleaning blade (3) is preferably not more than 2.5%, and is more preferably not more than 1.0%, and is still more preferably not more than 0.5%.

Abstract: An exposure apparatus has an illumination system for transferring a reticle pattern formed on a reticle as a master onto a wafer as a photosensitive member by a laser source, a stop for setting an illumination region by the laser source, and a mechanism for synchronously scanning the reticle and wafer in predetermined scanning directions. Exposure processing by synchronous scanning of the reticle and wafer and relative movement of the wafer in a direction crossing the scanning direction are repeated, thereby forming a transfer pattern with connected exposure regions on the wafer. The stop driving mechanism performs exposure while driving a vane of the stop for setting the illumination region in the direction perpendicular to the scanning direction in the direction crossing the scanning direction during the exposure processing.

Abstract: An apparatus for grinding a glass base material having a core and a clad comprising: a grinding wheel for grinding the clad; a measuring unit for measuring an eccentricity between a center position of the glass base material and a center position of the core at a plurality of positions along a longitudinal direction of the glass base material; a design unit for calculating target diameters substantially continuous throughout the longitudinal direction of the glass base material so that the eccentricity becomes substantially zero for each of the plurality of positions; and a control unit for controlling the grinding wheel to grind the clad so that a diameter of the glass base material to be the target diameter substantially continuous throughout the longitudinal direction of the glass base material based on the target diameters calculated by the design unit.

Abstract: A cleaning blade of an image forming apparatus is formed of urethane rubber, a modulus of repulsion elasticity (JIS K6255) is not less than 20% at 10° C. to not more than 70% at 40° C., a 300% modulus (JIS K6251) is not less than 200 kgf/cm2, and a tear strength (JIS K6252 crescent type) is not less than 35 kgf/cm. A tension set (JIS K6262) of the cleaning blade (3) is preferably not more than 2.5%, and is more preferably not more than 1.0%, and is still more preferably not more than 0.

Abstract: Apparatus (700) for sintering a glass base material (2) which is a base material for an optical fiber. The sintering apparatus (700) includes: a control unit which varies a condition for sintering the glass base material; and a furnace (12) which sinters the glass base material by heating the glass base material in an atmosphere of dehydration gas and inert gas. The control unit includes a drive source (3) which supplies the glass base material to the furnace at various speeds. The control unit includes a temperature control unit which controls the temperature of a heating source provided in the furnace.

Abstract: An apparatus for grinding a glass base material having a core and a clad comprising: a grinding wheel for grinding the clad; a measuring unit for measuring an eccentricity between a center position of the glass base material and a center position of the core at a plurality of positions along a longitudinal direction of the glass base material; a design unit for calculating target diameters substantially continuous throughout the longitudinal direction of the glass base material so that the eccentricity becomes substantially zero for each of the plurality of positions; and a control unit for controlling the grinding wheel to grind the clad so that a diameter of the glass base material to be the target diameter substantially continuous throughout the longitudinal direction of the glass base material based on the target diameters calculated by the design unit.

Abstract: An exposure apparatus has an illumination system for transferring a reticle pattern formed on a reticle as a master onto a wafer as a photosensitive member by a laser source, a stop for setting an illumination region by the laser source, and a mechanism for synchronously scanning the reticle and wafer in predetermined scanning directions. Exposure processing by synchronous scanning of the reticle and wafer and relative movement of the wafer in a direction crossing the scanning direction are repeated, thereby forming a transfer pattern with connected exposure regions on the wafer. The stop driving mechanism performs exposure while driving a vane of the stop for setting the illumination region in the direction perpendicular to the scanning direction in the direction crossing the scanning direction during the exposure processing.

Abstract: An external addition toner that sufficiently exhibits the effect of an external additive and is excellent in transfer property, and an apparatus for forming an image and a process for forming an image excellent in general purpose property that provide an image of good quality without formation of image defects, such as transfer unevenness and drop off due to transfer failure of the toner. An external addition toner is employed, in which the shape coefficient of the toner particles, as well as a coating ratio x (%) of the external additive to a surface area of the toner particles, a volume average particle diameter D (&mgr;m) of the toner particles and a volume average particle diameter d (&mgr;m) of the external additive having the maximum average particle diameter satisfy the prescribed relationship.

Abstract: Proposed is an improvement in the VAD process for the preparation of a porous silica glass preform for double-core optical fibers by using three oxyhydrogen flame burners installed one above the other in a flame hydrolysis chamber in which a porous silica glass body consisting of the center core portion formed by the lowermost burner, side core portion formed by the middle burner and the cladding layer formed by the uppermost burner is gradually pulled up as it grows under rotation. Different from conventional procedures in which the extension of the nozzle axis of each of the burners intersects with the rotation axis of the growing body, the extension of the nozzle axis of the middle burner for the side core is displaced in a horizontal direction by a limited distance not to intersect nor to be in parallel with the rotation axis in the invention. By this means, an improvement is obtained in the uniformity of distribution of the refractive index in the side core which otherwise is remarkably disordered.

Abstract: An improvement is proposed in the process for the preparation of a porous silica glass preform as a precursor of optical fibers by the VAD method, in which fine silica particles produced by the flame hydrolysis of a silicon-containing compound are deposited on the lower end of a seed rod suspended at the lower end of a suspender rod rotated by a carriage in a vertical tubular reactor furnace to grow in the vertical direction. Instead of taking the fully grown porous preform out of the tubular furnace by pulling up as suspended on the suspender rod as is undertaken in the prior art, the seed rod is temporarily held by clamping with a holding device with disconnection from the suspender rod and the porous preform and seed rod are pulled up by a separate vertical driving device so that the overall height of the apparatus can be greatly decreased contributing to a reduction of the manufacturing cost of optical fibers of silica glass.

Abstract: An improvement is proposed in the apparatus and method for the preparation of a transparent silica glass preform as a precursor of optical fibers by sintering and vitrifying a porous silica glass preform in a sintering furnace as vertically suspended at the lower end of a suspender rod rotated by a carriage. Different from the conventional process in which the porous preform is lowered into the sintering furnace and the transparent preform after vitrification is pulled up out of the furnace as suspended at the lower end of the suspender rod throughout, a separate vertical driving device is provided along with a horizontal driving device for the carriage so that the effective up-and-down stroke of the carriage can be greatly reduced and the apparatus as a whole can be by far more compact contributing to the reduction of the manufacturing costs of the optical fibers of silica glass.

Abstract: An improvement is proposed in the method for the flame hydrolysis of a silicon-containing gas, e.g., silicon tetrachloride, to produce fine silica particles to be deposited on a substrate in a process for the preparation of a silica glass preform of optical fibers by using a fivefold concentric multiplex-tube burner nozzle. In contrast to the conventional way for the flame hydrolysis in which the center or first nozzle opening of the burner serves for ejection of a mixture of silicon tetrachloride and oxygen and hydrogen is ejected from the third nozzle opening while argon is ejected from the second nozzle opening inbetween, the gas ejected from the second nozzle opening is, instead of argon alone, a mixture of oxygen and argon in a specified mixing proportion so that deposition of silica particles on the nozzle end can be prevented even when the feed rate of silicon tetrachloride is relatively high.