Abstract: An aperture (5) connects a first chamber (1) with a second chamber (2), and is surrounded by an annular nozzle (7) formed by inner and outer walls (6, 8), which connects the first chamber (1) with a third chamber (3). A supersonic annular gas jet (9) is ejected by the annular nozzle (7) into the first chamber (1), creating a Venturi pumping action at the core of the jet in the vicinity of the aperture (5). The second chamber (2) may thus be maintained at a substantially lower pressure than the first chamber (1). Inner wall (6) and outer wall (8) may be relatively movable for varying gas flow, and the first chamber (1) may include baffles or skimmers to modify gas flow, e.g., to create a high density molecular beam. An electron or ion beam (4) may be transferred from the second chamber (2) to the first chamber (1), e.g., as part of an environmental scanning electron microscope.

Abstract: A printed circuit board includes a rectangular, insulating substrate and a conductive land formed on the substrate. The land is arranged near a selected one of the longitudinal edges of the substrate. An L-shaped terminal is mounted on the substrate, so that its longer horizontal portion overlaps the land, while its shorter bent portion is engaged with a positioning groove formed in the selected longitudinal edge of the substrate. The land is caused to protrude from the overlapping horizontal portion of the terminal toward the opposite longitudinal edge of the substrate.

Abstract: A drive IC chip (A) has a primary surface (10) which includes a corner (11a) at which a first and a second pads (3a, 3b) are provided so that their respective centers (Oa, Ob) are deviate positionally from each other in both directions x, y. With this structure, even if two wires for electric connection are extended from the first and the second pads (3a, 3b) either in the x direction or in the y direction, it is possible to advantageously prevent the wires from becoming too close to each other into shorting contact.

Abstract: A product marking system particularly for marking delicatessen or cheeses at a manned service counter for the purpose of displaying the identity or price of the product. The marking system includes a sign (4) that has a foot (41). A connecting element (2) is adapted to stably embrace the product (1) and to carry an attachment means (3) for releasable magnetic connection with the foot (41).

Abstract: Through electro slag refining of a bloom of a stainless, precipitation hardenable stainless steel of 17-7 PH type, the fatigue resistance of springs made of cold drawn wires of said material is increased substantially. This depends on the fact that large slag inclusions, which can initiate fatigue failures, are eliminated at the ESR remelting, while longer zones containing concentrations of small slag inclusions are substantially reduced. The material is particularly suitable for springs in injection pumps for Diesel engines.

Abstract: Over an information input space to which an information inputting person comes, a pair of near-infrared light illuminators are arranged in such a manner that the illumination ranges thereof are adjusted so as to illuminate the information inputting person from different directions. A pair of near-infrared-light-sensitive video cameras are also arranged in different positions so as to correspond to the illuminators. The image pickup range of the video cameras is adjusted so that it is out of the range on the floor surface illuminated by the corresponding illuminator, while the information inputting person is within the image pickup range. A controller allows one illuminator at a time to be switched on/off. An image of the information inputting person is picked up by the video camera corresponding to the switched-on illuminator.

Abstract: A process for the transesterification of keto esters and alcohols in approximately stoichiometric amounts using a solid acid catalyst. Solid acid catalysts may be sulfated zirconia, sulfated tin oxide, sulfated titania, sulfated iron oxide, heteropoly acids, acidic clays, acidic zeolites, or any other solid acids with high acidity or super acidity, with or without dopants. One equivalent or more of keto ester, one equivalent or more of alcohol, the solid acid catalyst, and an appropriate solvent are mixed and heated to 70 to 120° C. at atmospheric or reduced pressure to furnish the keto transester in high yields.

Abstract: A method is provided for stabilizing a low-concentration standard reference gas. The stabilizing method includes the steps of treating an inner wall surface of a container with high-purity water for causing the inner wall surface to adsorb the high-purity water, and charging the container with the standard reference gas.

Abstract: A portable, combustion engine powered cutting or sawing machine comprises a rear part (1) with a motor housing (3) with a combustion engine (4), an engine block (5) with a crank house, and a front part (2) with an annular blade (30) and a blade holder (31). The blade is provided in/or adjacent to a center blade (37) of the machine. The engine block forms a central body in the machine, including portions of said body on both sides of said center plane, and the blade holder comprises a blade holder chassis (35), which is provided substantially on a first side of said center plane. The blade holder chassis is fixedly connected on one hand with the portion of the engine block, which is located on said first side of the center blade, and on the other hand with a portion which is located on a second, opposite side of the center plane.

Abstract: A lens array includes a plurality of lenses, a holder portion for fixing the lenses, and an acrylic transparent layer for covering the lens surfaces of the respective lenses. The holder portion and the lenses are made of the same transparent resin to be formed as a one-piece element. The lens array also includes a dark-colored light shielding layer for preventing the unwanted passage of light. The transparent layer is formed on the light shielding layer for preventing the latter from peeling off.

Abstract: An inertia charge intake manifold is associated with an internal combustion engine having a plurality of cylinders. The intake manifold includes a plurality of elongated separate branch pipes each corresponding to a respective one of the cylinders. The intake manifold also includes a common flange for connecting a first end of each branch pipe to the internal combustion engine. The common flange has a first surface attached to the internal combustion engine. Further, the intake manifold includes a surge tank to which a second end of each branch pipe is connected. The common flange, the surge tank and each branch pipe are made of a hard thermoplastic synthetic resin. The common flange is integrally connected to the surge tank.

Abstract: A vacuum apparatus has a recessed portion which is provided at an appropriate position of a fan casing. When incoming materials frequently pass through the fan casing, the recessed portion wears more quickly than the rest of the inner surface of the fan casing. Hence, a user of the vacuum apparatus can easily know when to replace the fan casing by visually checking the recessed portion from outside the fan casing.

Abstract: A steel material for hot work tools has an alloy composition that in weight-% essentially consists of: 0.3-0.4 C, 0.2-0.8 Mn, 4-6 Cr, 1.8-3 Mo, 0.4-0.8 V, balance iron and unavoidable metallic and non-metallic impurities, said non-metallic impurities comprising silicon, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphor and sulfur, the contents of which does not exceed the following maximum contents: max. 0.25 Si, max. 0.010 N, max. 10 ppm O, max. 0.010 weight-% P.

Abstract: In an electrostatic sprayer, a pulsating voltage developed using a battery or a generator as a power supply is stepped up using a step-up transformer. A resultant high-voltage pulse is rectified and applied to an electrostatic electrode. A spray jetted from a spray nozzle is thus electrified. Herein, the step-up transformer is located near the spray nozzle. Owing to this structure, a high voltage produced by the step-up transformer can be applied to the electrostatic electrode with a loss minimized.

Abstract: An ABS apparatus according to the present invention has an arbitrary number of first sensors (15, 16) capable of obtaining road frictional force information according to road frictional force F acting between a wheel of a car and a road on which the car is moving and braking torque information according to braking torque T acting between the wheel of the car and a braking equipment, a differential parameter calculating means (21) for calculating a differential parameter M according to the road frictional force information and the braking torque information from these first sensors (15, 16), and a solenoid valve controlling means (23) for starting and then stopping a pressure reducing operation when the differential parameter M calculated by the differential parameter calculating means (21) reaches a first threshold provided according to a peak value of the differential parameter M or a second threshold having an absolute value slightly smaller than that of the first threshold while the barking equipment is in

Abstract: A steel material which is manufactured in a non-powder metallurgical way, comprising production of ingots or castings from a melt, consists of an alloy having the following chemical composition in weight-% Carbon: 2.0-4.3%, Silicon: 0.1-2.0%, Manganese: 0.1-2.0%, Chromium: 5.6-8.5%, Nickel: max. 1.0%, Molybdenum: 1.7-3%, wherein Mo completely or partly can be replaced by double the amount of W, Niobium: max. 2.0%, Vanadium: 6.5-15%, wherein V partly can be replaced by double amount of Nb up to max. 2% Nb, Nitrogen: max. 0.3%, wherein the contents of on the one hand carbon and nitrogen and on the other hand vanadium and any possibly existing niobium shall be balanced relative to each other, such that the contents of the said elements shall lie within the area of A, B″, E, F, B′, B, C, D, A in the co-ordinate system in FIG. 2, where V+2Nb, C+N co-ordinates for said points are A: (9,3.1), B″: (9,2.85), E: (15,4.3), F: (15,3.75), B′: (9,2.65), B: (9,2.5), C: (6.5,2.0), D: (6.5,2.

Abstract: The Intelligent Tutoring System (ITS) uses the Internet as a constructivist learning environment and aims to provide intelligent assistance to improve both quality of training and distribution of knowledge in a distance learning situation. The assistance is based on various intelligent Agents which act collaboratively to support learning at different steps. A first Agent (pedagogical Agent), close to the learner, is able to detect his difficulties using a learner model and provides local explanations when needed or on request. A second Agent (dialog Agent) provides access to other explanations or learners available on the Web, in synchronous or asynchronous mode. Taking into consideration all possible helps a third Agent (negotiating Agent) is in charge of finding and selling explanations according to a market of requests and helps.

Abstract: A method for fabricating a capacitor electrode on a semiconductor substrate includes the steps of: forming a conducting layer over the semiconductor substrate; forming a photoresist layer over the conducting layer; pattering the photoresist layer through an interfering exposure step; and pattering the conducting layer using the patterned photoresist layer as a mask, thereby forming a capacitor electrode.

Abstract: An interface apparatus for use with a computer system. The apparatus in the preferred embodiment having three concentric annular rings. The outer most of which is a solid ring, the two inner rings each being segmented into for equal arcs, which arcs form four pairs of two buttons each. The interface also has at its center two buttons. The interface is used to position an object for imaging and also to manipulate and position the image of an object for comparison and analysis. The two center buttons and the outside annular ring are used to generate signals to rotate an object or the image of the object in a common reference frame. The four pairs of arcs of the two inner concentric rings are used to generate signals for translational motion of the object or the image of the object. The four pairs of arcs being positioned to move the object or the image of the object in one of four perpendicular directions within the common reference frame.