Abstract: A damping valve includes: a ring-shaped leaf valve having either one of an outer circumference and an inner circumference as a free end, the free end being allowed to be deflected toward both sides in the axial direction; a ring-shaped opposing portion that opposes the free end of the leaf valve with a gap; a first sub leaf valve stacked on one side of the leaf valve in the axial direction; and a first passage formed in the leaf valve so as to extend in parallel with the gap, the first passage being configured to be opened when the leaf valve is deflected in the direction away from the first sub leaf valve.

Abstract: A shock absorber has a damping force generator including a spool valve body that is reciprocally engaged with a cylindrical portion of a piston and pressed from both sides by a pair of compression coil springs. The cylindrical portion has first openings for extension and compression strokes, and the spool valve body has second openings for extension and compression strokes. When the piston is displaced relative to the cylinder, the spool valve body is displaced by a difference between pressures in upper and lower cylinder chambers, so that the damping force generator changes a degree of overlap of the first and second openings for the extension stroke in the extension stroke and a degree of overlap of the first and second openings for the compression stroke in the compression stroke.

Abstract: A damping valve includes: a ring-shaped leaf valve having either one of an outer circumference and an inner circumference as a free end, the free end being allowed to be deflected toward both sides in the axial direction; a ring-shaped opposing portion that opposes the free end of the leaf valve with a gap; a first sub leaf valve stacked on one side of the leaf valve in the axial direction; and a first passage formed in the leaf valve so as to extend in parallel with the gap, the first passage being configured to be opened when the leaf valve is deflected in the direction away from the first sub leaf valve.

Abstract: A particulate detector that is used to detect a particulate in gas, the particulate detector includes an electric-charge generator that applies an electric charge generated by electric discharge to the particulate in the gas that is introduced into a gas flow path to obtain a charged particulate and a first collector that collects an excess electric charge that is not applied to the particulate and a second collector that collects the charged particulate and a detection unit that corrects a second physical quantity that varies in response to the charged particulate collected by the second collector on the basis of a first physical quantity that varies in response to the excess electric charge collected by the first collector and that detects an amount of the particulate on the basis of the corrected second physical quantity.

Abstract: A particle detection device includes a ceramic housing, a charge generator that adds electric charge generated in accordance with electric discharge to particles in gas introduced into a gas channel so as to turn the particles into charged particles, a collector that collects the charged particles, and a number measuring device that detects the number of particles based on an electric current that changes in accordance with the charged particles collected by the collector. The collector has a collection electrode exposed in the gas channel and a counter electrode facing the collection electrode with the gas channel interposed therebetween. The housing has a guard electrode that absorbs a leakage current flowing from the counter electrode toward the collection electrode via the housing.

Abstract: A shock absorber has a damping force generator including a spool valve body that is reciprocally engaged with a cylindrical portion of a piston and pressed from both sides by a pair of compression coil springs. The cylindrical portion has first openings for extension and compression strokes, and the spool valve body has second openings for extension and compression strokes. When the piston is displaced relative to the cylinder, the spool valve body is displaced by a difference between pressures in upper and lower cylinder chambers, so that the damping force generator changes a degree of overlap of the first and second openings for the extension stroke in the extension stroke and a degree of overlap of the first and second openings for the compression stroke in the compression stroke.

Abstract: A particle detection element used to detect the number of particles in a gas includes: a casing having a gas flow passage through which the gas passes; an electric charge generating unit that imparts charges generated by a discharge to the particles in the gas introduced into the casing to thereby form charged particles; and a collecting unit including a collecting electrode that is disposed inside the casing and collects a collection target that is the charged particles or the charges not imparted to the particles. The casing has a reinforcing portion on at least one of an outer circumferential surface and an inner circumferential surface of the casing, and the reinforcing portion partially thickens a wall of the gas flow passage.

Abstract: A particle counter includes a charge generation unit that applies charges generated by discharge to particles in a gas introduced into a gas flow channel to generate charged particles, a collection electrode that collects the charged particles, and a counting unit that determines the number of particles on the basis of a physical quantity that changes in accordance with the number of charged particles collected by the collection electrode. The counting unit determines an average number of charges on the particles using a relationship between a particle diameter and a probability density of the particles and a relationship between the particle diameter and the number of charges on the particles, and determines the number of particles on the basis of the physical quantity and the average number of charges on the particles.

Abstract: A particle detection element includes: a casing having a gas flow passage; an electric charge generating unit that imparts charges generated by a discharge to particles in a gas introduced into the casing to thereby form charged particles; a collecting electrode that is disposed inside the casing so as to be exposed to the gas flow passage and collects a collection target that is the charged particles or the charges not imparted to the particles; and a plurality of exposed electrodes including the collecting electrode and exposed to the gas flow passage. The casing has a short circuit-preventing structure disposed on a connection surface that is part of an inner circumferential surface exposed to the gas flow passage. The connection surface connects at least two of the plurality of exposed electrodes to each other, and the short circuit-preventing structure includes at least one of a recess and a protrusion.

Abstract: A particle detection element used to detect particles in gas, the particle detection element includes a housing having a gas flow passage through which the gas passes, wherein the gas flow passage is a rectangular-cuboid-shaped space that extends continuously from a gas inlet having a rectangular shape to a gas outlet having same shape as the shape of the gas inlet, and when the particle detection element is disposed in the flow of the gas so that the gas passes through the gas flow passage, a low-flow-velocity region in which the gas flows at a flow velocity lower than a flow velocity at which the gas passes through the gas flow passage is generated in a region downstream of the gas outlet.

Abstract: A particle detection element includes: a casing having a gas flow passage; an electric charge generating unit that imparts charges to particles in a gas introduced into the casing to thereby form charged particles; a collecting unit including at least one collecting electrode that is disposed so as to be exposed to the gas flow passage and collects a collection target that is the charged particles or the charges not imparted to the particles; and a heating unit that heats the collecting electrode. The casing includes at least one collecting electrode-disposed wall on which at least one of the at least one collecting electrode is disposed. At least one of the at least one collecting electrode-disposed wall has a thin-central wall shape whose thickness in a cross section perpendicular to a center axis of the gas flow passage is smaller in a central portion than in other portions.

Abstract: A particle counter includes a ventilation path, an electric-charge generator that applies the electric charge to a particle in the gas that passes through the ventilation path to obtain a charged particle, a charged-particle-collecting electrode, a heater that is capable of heating the ventilation path, and a controller for performing a particle count detection process, wherein, when the process is performed, the controller obtains a flow rate of the gas on the basis of a calorific value that is supplied to the heater and a difference between the temperature of the gas and the temperature of the surface of the heater, with the heater heating the ventilation path, and obtains the count of the particle per unit volume in the gas on the basis of the flow rate of the gas and a physical quantity that varies depending on an electric charge amount of the charged particle.

Abstract: A gas flow sensor includes a housing including a gas flow path, a charge generator causing aerial discharge and generating charges within the gas flow path, a charge capturing electrode capturing the charges generated within the gas flow path, and a first control unit determining information about a gas flow on the basis of a physical quantity that varies depending on a quantity of the charges captured by the charge capturing electrode.

Abstract: A particle counter includes an electric-charge generating element that adds electric charges generated by discharge to particles in a gas introduced into a gas flow pipe to form charged particles, a charged-particle collection unit that is disposed downstream of the electric-charge generating element in a direction of a flow of the gas and collects the charged particles, and a number detection unit that detects the number of the charged particles based on a physical quantity at the charged-particle collection unit, wherein the gas flow pipe has a skeleton-forming portion that is formed of a ceramic material and that is dense and a stress-relieving portion that is in contact with the skeleton-forming portion, that is formed of a material having a Young's modulus lower than a Young's modulus of the ceramic material, and that is dense.

Abstract: A charge generation element has a discharge electrode on a front surface of a dielectric layer and ground electrodes on a rear surface, and generates electric charge as a result of a discharge upon application of a voltage between the discharge electrode and the ground electrodes. The discharge electrode has a flat base surface and a bulging surface having a shape bulging from the base surface, and the angle ? between the base surface and the bulging surface is from 5° to 45° at an edge E of the discharge electrode.

Abstract: A particulate detecting element includes a casing having a gas flow channel that enables gas to pass therethrough, a charge generating unit configured to impart charges generated by electric discharge to the particulates in the gas introduced into the casing and turn the particulates into charged particulates, a collection electrode disposed in the casing, where the collection electrode collects a collection target representing one of the charged particulate and the charge not imparted to the particulate, and a deceleration electrode disposed such that at least part of the deceleration electrode is away from an outer wall of the gas flow channel in the casing, where the deceleration electrode generates a deceleration electric field that decelerates the collection target at least one of upstream of the collection electrode in a gas flow direction and above the collection electrode.

Abstract: In a particle counter and a method of counting a number of particles, the particle counter includes a casing made of a ceramic, an electric charge adder configured to add electric charges to particles in a measurement target gas supplied into the casing, a first electric charge collector configured to collect the electric charges added to the particles, and a number measuring unit configured to measure a number of the particles based on a quantity of the collected electric charges.

Abstract: A particle counter includes a ceramic-made vent pipe, electric charge generating elements that generate electric charges by gaseous discharge, an electric field generating electrode, a collecting electrode, an electric field generating electrode and a removing electrode. Ground electrodes included in the electric charge generating elements are embedded in the vent pipe. Discharge electrodes included in the electric charge generating elements, the electric field generating electrodes for collection and removal, the collecting electrode, and the removing electrode are disposed along the inner wall surface of the vent pipe. The electric charge generating elements are disposed along the inner wall surface of the vent pipe.

Abstract: An ion generator may be configured to generate ions within a fluid passage that is at least partly defined by an electrical insulator, where the ion generator may include: a discharge electrode placed within the fluid passage; a ground electrode placed in a vicinity of the discharge electrode; and a power source configured to intermittently apply a predetermined discharge voltage to the discharge electrode with respect to the ground electrode. The power source may be configured to apply a base voltage to the discharge electrode with respect to the ground electrode during at least part of a time period after applying the discharge voltage, the base voltage having an opposite polarity to the discharge voltage.

Abstract: An ion generator configured to generate ions within a fluid passage that is at least partly defined by an electrical insulator may be provided with: a discharge electrode placed within the fluid passage; a ground electrode placed in a vicinity of the discharge electrode; a power source configured to intermittently apply a predetermined discharge voltage to the discharge electrode with respect to the ground electrode; and an antistatic electrode placed downstream relative to the discharge electrode within the fluid passage and to which a direct current voltage is applied, the direct current voltage having a same polarity as the discharge voltage.