Abstract: A flexible tube for a vacuum system includes a tube body and a cover. The tube body is made of hard material. The tube body has projected parts and depressed parts. The cover is provided over an outer surface of the tube body. The cover is made of elastic material. The cover may be in contact with the projected parts of the tube body and extend over the depressed parts of the tube body so that a vacant space is formed between the tube body and the cover.

Abstract: The invention provides an enhanced structure of a time display device includes a circle with 60 display units on the circumference of the clock face, among which 12 display units are made larger for displaying hour of time (hour display units) and the rest (smaller ones) displaying minute of time (minute display units). The display units are made with materials that shine or flicker to indicate time in the dark. To indicate hour of time, a given hour display unit and the two minute display units right next to this hour display unit would be switched on. To indicate minute of time, one of the minute display units would be switched on. While a given display unit has to indicate hour and minute at the same time, it flickers.

Abstract: A print head has driver circuitry that dynamically drives a row of driven elements, such as light-emitting elements, by driving different combinations of first and second terminals. The print head includes memory circuits storing compensation data for the driven elements, and multiplexing circuits that select the compensation data according to the combination of terminals being driven, thereby enabling the compensation data to be stored in the print head despite the use of dynamic driving. The compensation data are used in adjusting the amount of energy supplied to the driven elements. The amount of compensation data to be stored may be reduced by sharing the upper bits of the compensation data among a group of driven elements.

Abstract: A hairbrush head is connected to a front end of a handle and includes a solid cylindrical body having a bristle holder made of metal sheet attached to a circumferential surface thereof. The hairbrush head is so shaped that a space is provided between the circumferential surface of the cylindrical body and the bristle holder, so that hot air from a hairdryer passes through holes provided on the bristle holder into the space to circulate therein and thereby evenly distributes heat over the hairbrush head to facilitate easy hair setting.

Abstract: In a picture transmission system that transmits a series of pictures from a coding apparatus to a decoding apparatus, each picture being coded and decoded with reference to a preceding picture, when a transmission error occurs, the decoding apparatus detects a decoding error caused by the transmission error and sends an error signal to the coding apparatus. The coding apparatus and decoding apparatus then both modify part of a reference picture affected by the decoding error, making identical modifications. A subsequent picture is coded and decoded with reference to the modified reference picture, thereby recovering from the transmission error with minimum loss of coding efficiency and picture quality.

Abstract: A semiconductor laser having a lower clad layer, an active layer, a first upper clad layer and a dry-etching stop layer, all the layers being successively laminated on a compound semiconductor substrate. The semiconductor laser further includes (i) a second upper clad layer, in the form of a ridge, formed above the first upper clad layer, (ii) an etching stop layer present only between the dry-etching stop layer and the second upper clad layer, and (iii) block layers formed at sides of the second upper clad layer.

Abstract: The present invention provides a simple smaller-sized elastic integrated circuit having a lower power, to which data synchronized with a first clock is input and which outputs data synchronized with a second clock. The elastic integrated circuit includes a read address counter which operates with an internal clock to output a read address count value; a delay circuit to which the read address count value is input and which delays and outputs the read address count value by a predetermined time period; a write address counter which operates using the read address count value output from the delay circuit with a clock externally input so as to output a write address count value; and a memory circuit which writes data input thereto by the write address count value and reads data written therein by the read address count value.

Abstract: When an ionization section is taken out of a main body housing of a conventional air cleaner in order to wash the ionization section, an ionization line may be cut by being accidentally touched. In order to avoid this problem, a pre-filter (7) is mounted on a front surface of an ionization and dust collection unit (6) so as to be detachable. The pre-filter (7) is slidably guided by guide furrings (23) in a sub-frame (12), and is mounted on a front surface of the sub-frame (12). When the pre-filter (7) is mounted, ionization lines (15) are not exposed, so that the pre-filter (7) protects the ionization lines (15). When the ionization and dust collection unit (6) is detached from the main body housing, therefore, there is no problem that the ionization lines (15) might be cut by being accidentally touched with worker's hands, for example.

Abstract: Terminals are connected via cables in a star-shaped fashion with respect to a HUB in a LAN. Each of the cables includes therein signal lines and power feed lines. The HUB includes therein a power feed section. The power feed section and the power feed lines of each cable are connected to measure a value of current which flows in the power feed lines. If it is judged based on the measured current value that the terminal connected to the corresponding cable is a telephone terminal, the power feeding to the corresponding power feed lines is continued. On the other hand, if the terminal is judged to be a terminal other than the telephone terminal, the power feeding is stopped.

Abstract: A method of performing printhead maintenance comprises the steps as follow. First, the orifices of the printhead are defined to form a plurality of orifice groups. Then, a test graph comprising a plurality of test lines associated with the orifice groups is provided, and the ink is ejected through the printhead to obtain a printing result of the test graph. Next, the orifice groups containing the clogged orifices are selected according to the printing result. Then the orifice groups to be cleaned undergo the maintenance procedure. In the present invention, the orifice groups to be cleaned are determined by comparing the printing result and the test graph. Then the maintenance procedure can be selected to purge only the orifice groups containing clogged orifices, so that the unnecessary consumption of ink in purging unclogged orifices is reduced.

Abstract: An apparatus for manufacturing a liquid crystal display (LCD) panel with a uniform cell gap includes a pressurized device, a pressure distribution device and provide heat distribution. The pressurized device is used for assembling a first substrate and a second substrate of the LCD, and further used for heating the LCD panel, wherein the pressurized device is disposed on at least one of the first and second substrates. The pressure distribution device is used for distributing pressure imposed by the pressurized device evenly on a non-display area of the LCD panel so as to form a uniform cell gap. The pressure distribution device is disposed between the pressurized device, and one of the first and second substrate. The heat distribution device is disposed between the pressurized device, and one of the first and second substrate.

Abstract: A polyomino piece includes a cube with six sides. Five sides of the cube each have four openings defined therein and arranged in two rows and two arrays. The remainder sixth side of the cube has two openings catercorner defined along a diagonal of the sixth side, and two first lugs catercorner formed along the other diagonal of the sixth side. A plurality of polyomino pieces can be combined to form various patterns, and the first lugs are hidden inside the patterns and cannot be seen at the outer surfaces, so that the patterns have nice appearances and can be stably placed.

Abstract: A portable stamp is composed of a housing, a handle, a character unit, a control unit, and a cover. The handle is movably received in the housing, and the character unit is pivotally mounted at a distal end of the handle. The control unit extends through the housing and the handle. The cover is mounted on an open end of the housing. A user can press down the control unit to push the handle and the character unit out from the housing for stamping by using only one hand, which is convenient to operate and will not dirty the hand.

Abstract: A method for controlling a FIFO array. The method uses a write pointer to indicate a write address, a read pointer to indicate a read address, a flag to indicate the status of the write pointer and the read pointer, and a number of status parameters to indicate the status of the FIFO array. The FIFO array has M addresses, and a first address is one of the M addresses. When both the write pointer and the read pointer point to the first address of the FIFO array and a write data operation is performed, the flag is a first value and the write pointer points to the next address following the first address of the FIFO array. When both the read pointer and the write pointer point to the first address of the FIFO array and a read data operation is performed, the flag is a second value and the read pointer points to the next address following the first address of the FIFO array. Finally, status parameters are set. By these, the FIFO array is easily and effective controlled in various situations.

Abstract: Disclosed is a cutter releasing mechanism for direct connected spindle of machine tool comprises a pressured mechanism associated with the action of air and oil pressure serves to improve the function and effect of the cutter releasing mechanism. During releasing the cutter tool, a required actuating force is transmitted to the cutter tool equipped at the front end of the main shaft to perform cutter releasing mission, and clean the cutter with air blow conducted thereto at the moment the cutter is released. The cutter releasing mechanism of the present invention is suitable for both vertical and horizontal combination machinery by minimizing the increased length of the main shaft caused by adding the cutter releasing mechanism so as to alleviate vibration of the shaft working at a high speed.

Abstract: A voice packet decoder has following operations. A receiving buffer stores receiving packets and outputs the oldest packet in every fixed period. When in every the fixed period, if the receiving buffer stores no packets, then a complement packet insert circuit inserts a predetermined complement packet and a counter adds one. Furthermore, a voice decoder generates a synthetic voice signal. A speech/non-speech detection circuit detects whether the synthetic voice signal is speech signal or non-speech signal. When a result of the detecting is non-speech, the counter's value is more than zero, and a number of the stored receiving packets in the receiving buffer is more than one, then a receiving buffer controller discards the oldest packet and subtracts one from the counter's value.

Abstract: A keyboard with a numbers of keys disposed on the base is capable of showing the three-dimensional characters. Each key includes a shell and a three-dimensional character embedded in the shell. Combined with an illuminant module positioned between the base and keys for providing the light source, the three-dimensional characters can be shown clearly and distinguishably by utilizing the color contrast relation with light between the light-colored transparent three-dimensional characters and dark-colored or opaque shells.

Abstract: A gap 11 between a flange 4A of a bail support member 4 and the inner circumferential surface of a sleeve member 7 functions as an orifice for restricting an oil flow downstream of a seat hole (6B). The movement of the ball support member 4 is stabilized, pressure is generated in a chamber 9 downstream of a seat hole 6B, and the override characteristics of the relief valve 1 are improved.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for use in inkjet printing. The apparatus includes a memory, a heat accumulation calculation device, and an image separating device. The memory is used to store a heat weighting look-up table. When data representative of the image is fed into the heat accumulation calculation device, a heat weighting for the image can be calculated according to the heat weighting look-up table, which can be used to determine the degree of heat accumulation during printing. The image separating device then outputs pieces of image data representing sub-images according to the heat weighting for the image. Finally, the image is formed by printing the sub-images successively according to the pieces of image data. In addition, for some regions where serious heat accumulation is predicted, the densities of the pixels to be printed within the regions can be adjusted to reduce the degrading effect on the printing quality due to the heat accumulation during printing.