Abstract: A method is disclosed for solidification of waste fluids such as used antifreeze solutions, thereby facilitating disposal of said waste fluids. The method is applicable to aqueous waste fluids, which may be formed by addition of appropriate amounts of water, if necessary, to the original waste fluids. The method comprises mixing an ion adsorption agent with the aqueous waste fluid, followed by addition of a water-absorbent acrylic polymer material. Following agitation or stirring of the aqueous waste fluid/ion adsorption agent/water-absorbent polymer mixture, solidification is achieved. The solidified mixture is readily handled for disposal such as by incineration.

Abstract: An obstacle sensing apparatus for vehicles which enables efficient obstacle sensing and improves sensing precision. The apparatus comprises a section for predicting a deduced traveling-passage on which the vehicle will travel, based on a steering angle, a yaw rate and a velocity of the vehicle, a section having a CCD camera, for detecting a current traveling-passage on which the vehicle is currently moving, a scanning-type radar unit for sensing obstacles within a predetermined area, and a danger level judging section for judging danger levels of the sensed obstacles, based on the deduced traveling-passage and the current traveling-passage.

Abstract: An obstacle sensing apparatus for vehicles is provided in which detection of obstacles is performed efficiently by predicting the traveling path of the vehicle appropriately when detection of obstacles by a radar unit is limited to a region along the traveling path. The apparatus is provided with a radar unit for transmitting radar waves ahead of the vehicle and sensing obstacles present ahead of the vehicle, a steering angle sensor for sensing the steering angle of the vehicle, and a yaw rate sensor for sensing the yaw rate produced by the vehicle. First traveling-path predicting device predicts a traveling path of the vehicle based upon the steering angle, and second traveling-path predicting device predicts a traveling path of the vehicle based upon the yaw rate. One of these traveling paths is selected in dependence upon the operating state of the vehicle and detection of articles by the radar unit is carried out within a limited region along the traveling path selected.

Abstract: An obstacle detection apparatus for a motor vehicle detects another vehicle traveling in front of the vehicle as an obstacle. The apparatus has a first unit, providing a course on which the vehicle is supposed to travel, a second unit, providing a reserve course located outside of the course, an obstacle detector detecting the other vehicle traveling in the course or the reserve course as an obstacle, and an obstacle detection continuation unit continuously detecting the other vehicle until a predetermined condition has been satisfied when the other vehicle moves from the course to the reserve course.

Abstract: An obstacle detection device for a vehicle includes an area determining section for determining a detection area extended forward of a running vehicle and provided for detecting an obstacle, a split section for splitting the area into a plurality of small split zones, a detecting section for detecting an obstacle in each of the small split zones, inferring section for an inferring a path of the vehicle in the obstacle detection area, and a judging section for judging a rank of danger of an obstacle in the detection area. The obstacle can be properly detected so that the vehicle can take a responsive and appropriate action for avoiding the obstacle.

Abstract: An automatic brake control system produces a warning before automatically making the braking action of a driving vehicle according to the velocities of the driving vehicle and the vehicle ahead. The system calculates the desired vehicle distance according to the velocities of the driving vehicle and the vehicle ahead, and sets a warning distance which is longer than the desired vehicle distance. The warning distance is set in accordance with the driver's feeling. According to the present invention, the system is prevented from producing undesirable warning.

Abstract: A vehicle suspension device includes a shock absorber disposed between a sprung portion and an unsprung portion of a vehicle for each of the vehicle wheels, a damping force changing device for changing a damping characteristic of the shock absorber, a detecting device for detecting a difference in a damping force among the shock absorbers for respective wheels, and a control device for controlling the damping characteristic of the shock absorber so as to restrict the difference in the damping force among the wheels when the vehicle is in a specific running condition. Through the use of such a vehicle suspension device, diagonal vibration can be suppressed, improved running stability can be obtained and riding comfort can be improved.

Abstract: A suspension system of a vehicle for calculating a product of the absolute speed zs of the sprung member and the relative speed zs-zu between the sprung member and the unsprung member and for controlling the damping force characteristic of the shock absorber to be higher if that product is more than the predetermined value and to be lower if the product is less than that value. An insensible range is formed for restricting switching of the damping force characteristic when .vertline.zs.vertline. and .vertline.zs-zu.vertline. are less than the predetermined value .delta.z, .delta.r, so that the damping force characteristic of the shock absorber is kept lower if .vertline.zs.vertline.>.delta.z and .vertline.zs-zu.vertline. or .vertline.zs-zu.vertline.<.delta.r and it is kept higher if .vertline.zs.vertline.>.delta.z and .vertline.zs-zu.vertline. or .vertline.zs-zu.vertline.<.delta.r.

Abstract: A rolling mill in which an upper housing is guided upward and downward along columns, a fluid chamber is formed between the upper end section of each column and a column insertion hole of the upper housing; a fixed piston fixedly mounted on the column is fitted in the fluid chamber; a roll gap rapid widening piston is fixedly installed on the upper end of the column, and on this piston is vertically movably fitted a hydraulic cylinder; the hydraulic cylinder is fixedly mounted in the upper housing; pressure fluid is constantly supplied to an upper fluid chamber on the piston; a fluid chamber is provided in the column insertion hole of the upper housing, and a column clamping sleeve is fitted therein; and the pressure fluid is fed into, and discharged out of, the fluid chamber to move the upper housing upward and downward.

Abstract: An automatic braking system for a motor vehicle includes a sensor for detecting a distance and a relative speed between the vehicle and an obstacle in front of the vehicle. A judging device for judging an alarm sounding region and a region in which the vehicle has a possibility of contact with the obstacle, based on the detected distance and the relative speed and an automatic brake for automatically braking respective wheels when the judging device judges the region in which the vehicle has a possibility of the contact with the obstacle are provided. The automatic brake incudes a vacuum type booster which has a first chamber to which negative pressure is introduced and a second chamber to which atmospheric pressure is introduced. The first chamber is connected to the down stream portion, from a throttle valve, in an intake path of an engine. The booster uses a pressure difference between the negative pressure and the atmospheric pressure.

Abstract: A suspension system for a vehicle has shock absorbers, each provided so as to be associated with one wheel and between sprung parts and unsprung parts, step motors, each being adapted for changing damping force characteristics of one of the shock absorbers by open loop control, and a controller for outputting control signals to the step motors. The controller is adapted for outputting control signals every predetermined time interval so as to make the damping force characteristics of the shock absorbers harder. According to the thus constituted suspension system for a vehicle, it is possible to prevent the driving stability from being lowered even when at least one of the step motors is thrown out of synchronism.

Abstract: Disposed between a sprung element and an unsprung element is a shock absorber of multi-degree variable-damping-coefficient type. The change control of the damping coefficient is carried out so that an actual damping force generated by the shock absorber can harmonize with a target damping force, Fa. The foregoing target damping force, Fa, as functions of the sprung vertical displacement velocity Xs and the unsprung vertical displacement velocity Xu, is obtained by the formula: Fa=-Xs.multidot.gs-Xu.multidot.gu, wherein both gs and gu are coefficients and the relations of gs>0; gu.gtoreq.0 hold. Thus, while controlling the sprung vertical motion, cushioning action of the wheels can be enhanced to improve traveling stabilization.

Abstract: In a suspension system for a vehicle comprising a shock absorber of which damping force characteristics can be changed into four or more characteristics, detecting means detect the oscillation frequency range of the sprung member of the vehicle and a bumpy road. From the four or more damping force characteristics of the shock absorber, the number of characteristics on the higher level side are limited to two or so when the sprung member is in a low frequency oscillation range, that of the characteristics on the lower level side are limited to two or so when the sprung member is in a high frequency oscillation range, and that of the characteristics on the medium level side are limited to two or so when a road is bumpy. The damping force characteristic of the shock absorber is selected and changed on the basis of a given control rule only within the limited damping force characteristics.

Abstract: A suspension system for a vehicle having sorbers, each provided so as to be associated with one wheel and provided between sprung parts and unsprung parts, includes step motors, each being used to change damping force characteristics of one of the shock absorbers by open loop control, and a controller for outputting control signals to the step motors so as to change the damping force characteristics of the shock absorber. The suspension system further includes stoppers, each provided so as to be associated with one of the step motors for locating the corresponding step motor at its reference position at which a reference damping force is produced. The controller is used to adjust the step motors, which are thrown out of synchronism after the step motors have been located at their reference positions by the stoppers.

Abstract: Disposed between a sprung element and an unsprung element is a shock absorber of multi-degree variable-damping-coefficient type. A damping coefficient of the shock absorber is changed so that an actual damping force generated by the shock absorber becomes equal to a target damping force that causes no sprung vertical motion. Such a change is inhibited when the difference between the damping force and the target force falls in the range of a predetermined value. The value is changed according to the magnitude of an damping coefficient now in selection of the shock absorber. This allows the shock absorber to effectively produce damping forces while at the same time preventing the damping coefficient from being changed too often to avoid the occurrence of chattering. Additionally, control delay due to the presence of a dead band zone is lessened. Traveling stabilization and riding comfort is improved.

Abstract: A suspension system of a vehicle which judges the direction of a damping force of a shock absorber of damping force characteristic variable type, provided between the sprung member and the unsprung member, either oscillation-stimulating direction or oscillation-restraining direction with respect to vertical osciallation of the sprung member, and it also judges the size of the damping force of the shock absorber. The damping force characteristic of the shock absorber is set higher when it is larger than the predetermined value and it is set lower when it is less than the predertemined value. The predetermined value can be changed according to the road surface, oscillation-restraining energy becomes larger than the oscillation-stimulating energy thereby.

Abstract: In a suspension system of a vehicle which the damping force characteristic is changed into three or more characteristics, the damping force characteristic is changed step by step when the damping force characteristic selected by a given control rule is different from the damping force characteristic at that moment in several steps. Also, the running state is detected by detecting means and the damping force characteristic to be selected is limited to two or so from three or more characteristics according to the vehicle running state. The damping force characteristic is changed only within the above selected damping force characteristics based on a given control rule. Through the above, noise and oscillation caused by large changes of the damping force characteristic can be lowered.

Abstract: In a suspension system for a vehicle comprising a shock absorber of which damping force characteristic can be changed into three or more characteristics, the predetermined running state of the vehicle is detected by detecting means and there is limited to two or so the number of the damping force characteristics to be selected from the three or more characteristics of the shock absorber according to the running state. The damping force characteristic of the shock absorber is selected and changed on the basis of a given control rule only within the limited damping force characteristics. In addition, the threshold of the control rule is changed such that the damping force characteristic of the shock absorber can easily be changed into the higher or lower level side according to the rate of change in the predetermined running state. Thus, it is possible to prevent noise and oscillation from being caused by the large change of the damping force characteristic.