Abstract: A steering characteristic control apparatus and method for a vehicle is disclosed which can carry out behavior control of the vehicle regarding a steering characteristic and so forth appropriately in accordance with the type of turning and the road surface situation. To this end, if the steering characteristic of the vehicle is placed into an oversteer or understeer state exceeding a reference level, then the control end condition when the steering characteristic is controlled to the neutral steer side by control of a braking mechanism is set in accordance with an estimated road surface ? state and the type of turning (steady turning or non-steady turning) of the vehicle. Upon steady turning, during traveling on a low ? road, it is set as the control end condition that the stability of the vehicle behavior is restored sufficiently, but during traveling on a high ? road, it is set as the condition that the stability of the vehicle behavior is restored to some degree so that the control can be ended rapidly.

Abstract: There is provided an apparatus that estimates the NOx adsorption amount, comprising a NOx trap catalyst that is disposed in an exhaust passage of an engine, for adsorbing NOx in exhaust gases during lean operation and releasing and reducing the adsorbed NOx during rich operation, an operation unit that computes an amount of emission from the catalyst during rich operation by using a map or a polynomial equation that reflects emissions from the catalyst based on the exhaust gas temperature and the exhaust gas flow rate of the exhaust passage and the excess-air factor upstream of the catalyst, and an estimating unit that estimates an amount of adsorption in the NOx trap catalyst from the computed emission amount.

Abstract: In regenerating a filter there are performed a first additional fuel injection involving additional injection of fuel into a cylinder after a main fuel injection in an engine to raise the temperature of an oxidation catalyst and a second additional fuel injection involving fuel injection after the first additional fuel injection to supply the oxidation catalyst with the fuel, a second additional fuel injection quantity is set in accordance with an engine speed and an engine load and is changed in accordance with an outlet temperature of the oxidation catalyst.

Abstract: A booster unit is provided in an injector of a fuel injection system. The booster unit includes a booster piston accommodated in a pressure chamber, and a discharge valve capable of discharging fuel in a backpressure chamber. A controller includes an indication-value setting step which sets an indication value of a target pressure in a common rail in correspondence to an engine operation state, a determination step which determines whether or not the indication value of the pressure in the common rail is in a direction of reduction to be lower in comparison to a previously set indication value, and a booster piston pseudo-operation step which opens the discharge valve at timing other than injection operation of the injector when the determination step has determined that the indication value is in the direction of reduction.

Abstract: Provided are a transmission control method for a mechanical transmission, capable of shortening a gear shift time without undergoing a shock attributed to gear disengagement, and an apparatus therefor. The transmission control apparatus comprises engine torque control means (S10) for controlling an engine torque generated by an internal combustion engine so that the value of a transfer torque of a friction clutch is 0 or near 0 when a gear shift of the mechanical transmission is required, gear shift allowing means (S12) for aloowing the gear shift of the mechanical transmission when the engine torque is controlled by the engine torque control means so that the value of the transfer torque is 0 or near 0, and gear shift executing means (S16) for disengaging and engaging gears with the clutch kept connected when the gear shift is allowed by the gear shift allowing means.

Abstract: An exhaust emission control device comprises a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of exhaust gas directly on the upper-stream side of a diesel particulate filter. An ECU adjusts a compulsive regeneration interval in accordance with a cumulative history of cases in which the exhaust gas temperature detected by means of the temperature sensor continues to be not lower than a value equivalent to a continuous regeneration temperature. The compulsive regeneration interval is adjusted by means of the ECU in accordance with a history of circumstances in which a state for continuous regeneration is realized.

Abstract: To protect a drive unit in a fluid valve assembly from impurities over a long term by preventing entrance of such impurities to the drive unit, a seal structure the sealing performance of which is hardly reduced is adopted around a moving part of the fluid valve assembly. The fluid valve assembly is provided with a valve member displaceably arranged in a flow passage through which a fluid is allowed to pass, a drive unit arranged outside the flow passage, a connecting member extending through a bore formed in a wall of the flow passage and connected at its end thereof to the valve member and at its opposite end to the drive unit, and a seal member arranged in gas- or water-tight relations with the wall of the flow passage and the connecting member and made of a flexible material such that the seal member does not interfere with a displacement of the valve member when the valve member is driven by the drive unit.

Abstract: The invention includes a first arm which opens and closes a valve, a second arm which is driven by a cam, a third arm which drives the first arm upon receiving a displacement of the second arm, and a variable mechanism which varies a supporting point of the second arm. The second arm includes a driving surface. The third arm includes an axis member in which a driven surface coming into surface contact with the driving surface is formed. The displacement of the second arm is transferred to the third arm with slippage occurring between the driven surface and the driving surface.

Abstract: A variable valve unit for an internal combustion engine includes a first arm opening and closing a valve, a second arm driven by a cam, a third arm receiving a displacement of the second arm to drive the first arm, and a variable mechanism displacing the fulcrum of the second arm. The second arm has a drive plane. The third arm has a shaft member formed with a driven surface contacting with the drive plane. The displacement of the second arm is transmitted to the third arm with sliding between the driven surface and the drive plane.

Abstract: An oxidation catalyst apparatus and a particulate collecting filter are provided sequentially from an upstream side in an exhaust gas passage of a diesel engine. A ratio of the weight of Pd to a sum of the weights of Pt and Pd carried on the oxidation catalyst apparatus is satisfactory with the following inequality: 0.05?Pd/(Pt+Pd)?0.75. When the rise of the temperature of the particulate collecting filter is needed, fuel is supplied into the oxidation catalyst apparatus.

Abstract: The present invention provides zigzag state detecting section which is comprised of white line determining section for determining parts of the road surface which are similar to white lines, white line position detecting section for detecting positions, approximating section for approximating the positions, left-hand zigzag amount determining means for calculating a zigzag amount of a left-hand boundary, right-hand zigzag amount determining section for calculating a zigzag amount of a right-hand boundary, and calculating section for calculating an average zigzag amount of the vehicle on the basis of results of the calculations by the left-hand zigzag amount calculating section and the right-hand zigzag amount calculating section.

Abstract: In a blade shape creation program and method, a camber line defining equation for defining a camber line to be defined on a cross section of a blade shape is constructed by a cubic function as a first function defining a leading edge camber line on a leading edge side of a maximum camber point on the camber line, and a cubic function as a second function defining a trailing edge camber line on a trailing edge side of the maximum camber point on the camber line; is defined, with a chord length, a position of maximum camber, a maximum camber value, an inflow angle, and a discharge angle of the camber line being taken as design factors; and has the boundary condition that the first function and the second function have tangents continuous with each other at the maximum camber point.

Abstract: A failure detection apparatus for an internal combustion engine includes failure detecting means (S22-S30) for detecting abnormality of fresh air quantity detecting means (air flow sensor) based on the result of comparison between a fresh air quantity detected by the fresh air quantity detecting means (air flow sensor) and a fresh air quantity reference value set by fresh air quantity reference value setting means (S20), and exhaust flow rate adjusting means. The fresh air quantity reference value setting means sets the reference value (S16) in accordance with not only the operating state (engine speed Ne, fuel injection quantity Qf, etc.) of the engine but also a target adjustment amount (target throttle valve opening) set for the exhaust flow rate adjusting means by target adjustment setting means (S12, S14).

Abstract: A hydraulic booster brake system includes a flow priority valve connected to a discharge portion of a hydraulic pump. To the flow priority valve are connected a brake booster and a power steering booster in parallel. The flow priority valve supplies a stipulated flow quantity of a hydraulic fluid in a total flow quantity of the hydraulic fluid discharged by the hydraulic pump to the brake booster by priority. A relief valve is provided between a brake port and a drain port. A valve body of the relief valve can adjust a relief pressure by turning a screw shaft for relief pressure adjustment.

Abstract: A camera for taking an image of movement of a hand, and a hand pattern switching apparatus which operates an object equipment based on the result of the image taken by the camera, having a storage unit for saving the image taken in the state that a hand does not exist in the image pickup area of the camera, as an initial image data, a differentiation unit for obtaining a difference image data between an original image data that is the image taken in the state that a hand exists in the image pickup area of the camera, and the initial image data, a luminance detection unit for obtaining an average luminance in a place close to a hand based on the image data of a place close to a hand obtained by the differentiation unit, and a processing unit for performing binary processing of the original image data by a threshold value based on the average luminance calculated by the luminance detection unit.

Abstract: In a blade shape creation program and method, a blade thickness function defining equation is constructed by a cubic function as a first function defining a leading edge blade thickness function on a leading edge side of a maximum blade thickness point of the blade thickness function, and a cubic function as a second function defining a trailing edge blade thickness function on a trailing edge side of the maximum blade thickness point; is defined, with a camber line length, a position of maximum blade thickness, a maximum blade thickness value, a leading edge blade thickness change rate, a trailing edge blade thickness change rate, a leading edge blade thickness value, and a trailing edge blade thickness value being taken as design factors, and has a boundary condition that the first function and the second function have tangents continuous with each other at the maximum blade thickness point.

Abstract: An exhaust gas purifying device for an engine according to the present invention includes a NOx absorbing catalytic converter provided in an exhaust path of the engine, an exhaust light oil adding injector which supplies a reducing agent component into the exhaust path, a control unit which executes the rich spike operation that controls an air-fuel ratio to the rich side per predetermined time, which adds the HC component to the NOx absorbing catalytic converter, and which heats to an S purge temperature or higher so as to eliminate a sulfur component absorbed by the NOx absorbing catalytic converter, and a catalyst temperature measuring sensor which measures the temperature of the NOx absorbing catalytic converter, wherein the control unit controls an operation cycle of the rich spike operation based on the deviation of the S purge temperature with respect to the temperature measured by the catalyst temperature measuring sensor.

Abstract: A vehicle running state judging apparatus calculates the edge detecting position of the first pixel group detected by the first gray value detection section, the edge detecting position of the second pixel group based on the gray value at that position, and the gray value at that position and judges meandering of a vehicle by comparing the edge detecting position of the second pixel group detected by the second gray value detection section and the gray value at that position, with the edge detecting position of the second pixel group calculated by the calculation section and the gray value at that position.

Abstract: An exhaust cleaning device includes a NOx storage reduction catalyst storing NOx when an air-fuel ratio of an inflowing exhaust gas is lean and releasing the stored NOx when the air-fuel ratio of the inflowing exhaust gas is rich; an air-fuel ratio changing unit; a reducing agent supplying unit which adds a reducing agent to the NOx storage reduction catalyst; a temperature detection unit which detects a temperature of the NOx storage reduction catalyst; a poisoning recovery timing judging unit which judges a timing for executing a SOx poisoning recovery process of releasing SOx from the NOx storage reduction catalyst; and a control unit.

Abstract: A variable valve apparatus comprises a rocker shaft having an eccentric shaft rendered eccentric, a cam provided below the rocker shaft and rotationally driven, a support shaft disposed at a height equal to the rocker shaft, a first arm rockingly supported by the rocker shaft and capable of driving a valve, a second arm rockingly supported by the eccentric shaft and driven by the cam, and a third arm rockingly supported by the support shaft and displaced by rocking of the second arm for driving the first arm, and turns the rocker shaft in the direction of R2 to continuously change the valve opening timing and lift amount of the valve.