Abstract: The quantity of light from a backlight is monitored by a first photodetector, and the environment on the part of a user is monitored by a second photodetector disposed in the rear of a liquid crystal panel, not on the front thereof. It is possible to exclude the influence of external light from the user side on the first photodetector which detects the quantity of light from the backlight.

Abstract: A method and system for providing a mixed-mode (current- and voltage-source) audio amplifier is disclosed. The mixed-mode amplifier includes a voltage sensing feedback path including a first network comprising at least one circuit; and a current sensing feedback path including a second network comprising at least one circuit. According to the method and system disclosed herein, the first and second networks vary an output impedance or transconductance of the amplifier as a function of frequency of the input voltage signal, such that at a first frequency range, the amplifier operates substantially as a current amplifier, and at a second frequency range, the amplifier operates substantially as a voltage amplifier, thereby inheriting distortion reduction of the current amplifier and stability of the voltage amplifier.

Abstract: A method and system for using an audio transducer as both an input device and an output device is disclosed. The method and system include digitally modulating a primary input signal for driving the transducer as an output device, sampling an output signal generated from the transducer during off times of the modulated signal, and determining an input signal from the sampled output signal.

Abstract: An optical device formed on a substrate comprises: plural fiber channels formed in the top surface of the substrate; a mirror to be pushed into and pulled out of an optical path between optical fibers disposed in the fiber channels; a movable rod carrying at one end the mirror; a comb-type electrostatic actuator disposed in association with the intermediate portion of the movable rod, for moving the movable rod lengthwise thereof; and plural support beams disposed near the one and the other end of the movable rod on both sides of the point of application of driving force by the comb-type electrostatic actuator, for movably supporting the movable rod. The support beams support the movable rod at positions having line symmetry with respect to a center line parallel to the lengthwise direction of the movable rod, and points of supporting the movable rod by the plural support beams are symmetrical with respect to the point of application of the driving force by the comb-type electrostatic actuator.

Abstract: A properly level-controlled digital signal can be obtained every sample. An input signal is supplied to amplifiers having their gains of one, two, four and eight. Outputs of the amplifiers are converted to digital signals at the same time in corresponding A/D converters having the same characteristic, respectively, and inputted to a data selection part. In the data selection part, when an input signal is high level, one A/D converter to which is inputted the input signal passing through the corresponding amplifier having its large gain, overflows so that the overflow-bit thereof becomes “1”. The output digital signal of the A/D converter is selected and outputted, which is connected to the amplifier having the largest gain among the amplifiers connected to corresponding A/D converters each of which has its overflow-bit is “0”. The digital signal is corrected in its scale and outputted.

Abstract: There is provided an aligning implement for optical fibers by which an optical fiber array having a plurality of optical fibers aligned substantially in parallel with one another with a predetermined pitch therebetween can easily be fabricated. The aligning implement comprises a substrate having a plurality of ridges formed on one surface thereof with the predetermined pitch and aligned substantially in parallel with one another, and a cover member having a plurality of ridges formed on one surface thereof with the predetermined pitch and aligned substantially in parallel with one another.

Abstract: In a computer-implemented method for constructing a three-dimensional model of an object volume, cubic voxels cooperatively define a three-dimensional solid of the three-dimensional model of the object volume. Each voxel has a plurality of voxel faces, and each voxel face is parallel to one of three axes of a rectangular coordinate system. Each voxel has a data structure that includes an object flag portion for describing the corresponding three-dimensional solid, a face flag portion for indicating which ones of the voxel faces serve as a boundary face of the corresponding three-dimensional solid, and a set of distance-levels that represent sample points of the voxel on the three axes of the rectangular coordinate system. The topology and geometry of a boundary of the three-dimensional solid are represented by the face flag portions and the distance-levels of the voxels that are positioned at the boundary.

Abstract: In a touch panel structure in which transparent conductive films 13 and 14 are formed on opposing surfaces of glass substrates 11 and 12 and electrodes 15 and 16 formed on one of the transparent conductive films are connected to lead-out patterns 23 and 24 formed on the other transparent conductive film forming surface, connecting portions 15b, 16b of the electrodes 15, 15 and connecting portions 23b, 24b of the lead-out patterns 23 and 24 are planar and do not overlap in their thick-wise direction but mate each other in adjacent but slightly spaced relation, and these slightly separated connecting portions are connected through conductive paste.

Abstract: A pusher formed of a rubber material, a click plate, a membrane switch which serves as a second step switch, a reinforcing plate, a membrane sheet on which a plurality of first step switches are formed, a key operation base and a knob are sequentially assembled into a case. The knob includes a plurality of depressing pieces having on its internal surface a projection which moves into contact with each membrane switch and also includes a marginal portion which is supported by the top surface of the case. The knob is thin-walled except for the depressing piece, and the thin-walled portion comprises a thermoplastic elastomer or silicone rubber. The knob, the key operation base and the reinforcing plate are secured together. As the depressing piece is depressed, the thin-walled portion which is located therearound becomes flexed, whereby the membrane switch is depressed by the projection to turn the switch on.

Abstract: A connecting device, which connects detachably a main tool and an auxiliary tool of a combination tool, includes first and second clamping members, a pivot joint, and a fastening member. The pivot joint interconnects the first and second clamping members, and permits relative rotation of the first and second clamping members to a clamping position, where the first and second clamping members embrace the main tool. The fastening member serves to fasten releasably the first and second clamping members to the main tool when the first and second clamping members are rotated relative to each other to the clamping position.

Abstract: A movable part formed on a substrate and adapted to be displaced in a direction parallel to the sheet surface of the substrate, a fixing part formed and fixedly mounted on the substrate, and springy hinges extending parallel to the sheet surface of the substrate and having their opposite ends connected to the movable part and the fixing part for supporting the movable part in a displaceable manner are provided. As viewed in cross section in a plane perpendicular to the lengthwise direction of the hinges, the hinge has a width which is diminishing as the top surface of the substrate is approached, thus having a trapezoidal or triangular cross section. A width as measured on the top surface of the hinge which is required to provide an equivalent spring constant can be chosen to be greater than the width of a hinge having a rectangular cross section (constant width), and this facilitates the implementation of the photolithography during the manufacture.

Abstract: There is provided an optical switch configured such that the electrode-to-electrode distance can be easily set to a desired distance and a plurality of protrusions or an electrode pattern for preventing the sticking from occurring can easily be formed on the surface of a fixed electrode substrate on which a fixed electrode is formed. There is prepared an upper substrate comprising an insulation layer, a thick single crystal silicon layer formed on the top surface of the insulation layer, and a thin single crystal silicon layer formed on the bottom surface of the insulation layer. A movable plate-like electrode and a plurality of flexible beam-like members for supporting the movable plate-like electrode to be displaced vertically are formed in the thin single crystal silicon layer.

Abstract: An electric padlock includes a lock casing, a shackle member, a latch member, and a battery cap unit. The lock casing is formed with a receiving space for receiving a battery unit, a battery access hole, and an insert groove disposed adjacent to the battery access hole. The latch member is received in the lock casing, and is movable for locking and unlocking the shackle member relative to the lock casing. The battery cap unit includes a battery cap member mounted movably on the lock casing for closing selectively the battery access hole, and a retaining member provided movably on the battery cap member to engage the insert groove when in a retaining position such that opening movement of the battery cap member can be inhibited when the shackle member is locked on the lock casing.

Abstract: In a fiber optic gyroscope comprising a light source, a fiber optic coupler, an optical integrated circuit having a function of a polarizer and a branching optical waveguide, and a fiber optic coil, and detecting an angular velocity applied to the fiber optic coil about the axis thereof, a polarization maintaining optical fiber having its length L is connected to an input/output end of the optical integrated circuit nearer the light source in an optical system of optical fiber from the light source to the optical integrated circuit, the polarization maintaining optical fiber of its length L resulting in a difference in group delay time between the orthogonal two polarization modes and the difference at least exceeding a coherence length of light from the light source.

Abstract: There are provided frequency analyzing method and apparatus, and a spectrum analyzer capable of reliably detecting and displaying a radio wave even if the radio wave is a frequency spread or low level one. A signal to be measured existing in a frequency band to be measured is extracted by a plurality of measurement signal extracting devices, and each of the extracted plural signals to be measured is frequency analyzed to compute a correlation value with respect to the plural results of frequency analyses. If the computed correlation value is equal to or greater than a preset value, a decision that the signal to be measured exists in the analyzed frequency is rendered, and if the computed correlation value is smaller than the preset value, a decision that the signal to be measured does not exist in the analyzed frequency is rendered. The decision results are displayed.

Abstract: Estimates of spectral magnitude and phase are obtained by an estimation process using spectral information from analysis filter banks such as the Modified Discrete Cosine Transform. The estimation process may be implemented by convolution-like operations with impulse responses. Portions of the impulse responses may be selected for use in the convolution-like operations to trade off between computational complexity and estimation accuracy. Mathematical derivations of analytical expressions for filter structures and impulse responses are disclosed.

Abstract: A test pattern sequence is generated (101), then a logic simulation of the operation of an IC under test in the case of applying each test pattern of the test pattern sequence, and a logic signal value sequence occurring in each signal line of the IC under test (102). The logic signal value sequence in each signal line is used to register in a fault list parts (a logic gate, signal line or signal propagation path) in which a fault (a delay fault or an open fault) detectable by a transient power supply current testing using the test pattern sequence is likely to occur (103).

Abstract: A multidirectional audio decoder using an “adaptive” audio matrix derives at least one of a plurality of output audio signals from two or more directionally-encoded audio input signal streams (S1(?), S2(?), . . . SN(?), wherein ? is the encoded angle of a source audio signal. Each output signal is associated with a principal direction ?. In order to generate each output signal, a pair of intermediate signals (“antidominant” signals) are generated, constituting the antidominant signal for each of the two adjacent principal output directions of the decoder. The antidominant signal for any arbitrary principal (or “dominant”) direction is the combination of input signals having coefficients such that the combination goes to zero for that dominant direction. Amplitude control is applied to the two antidominant signals to deliver a pair of signals having substantially equal magnitudes that are additively or subtractively combined to provide the output audio signal associated with a principal direction.

Abstract: Ferrules are formed to extend from the bottom wall of a recess formed in a front face of an optical plug body such that forward ends of the ferrules are flush with or protrude forwardly of the front face. Forward ends of optical fibers inserted into the ferrules are exposed at forward ends of the ferrules. A ferrule cover is mounted in the recess for sliding over an outer periphery of the ferrules and is biased by a coil spring toward the front face. Movement of the ferrule cover in a forward direction is limited by pawls on the ferrules and locking projections on the body. The ferrule cover has a stop member adapted to abut against a shoulder formed at a window in a peripheral wall of the recess when the ferrule cover is moved in a rearward direction to prevent the ferrule cover from moving beyond a locking position.