Abstract: Provided is a piezoelectric material having a high Curie temperature and satisfactory piezoelectric characteristics, the piezoelectric material being represented by the following general formula (1): A(ZnxTi(1-x))yM(1-y)O3??(1) where A represents a Bi element, M represents at least one element selected from Fe, Al, Sc, Mn, Y, Ga, and Yb; x represents a numerical value of 0.4?x?0.6; and y represents a numerical value of 0.17?y?0.60.

Abstract: A method for manufacturing a metamaterial including an electromagnetic wave resonator that resonates with an electromagnetic wave is provided. In the method, a support including a portion where the electromagnetic wave resonator is to be formed is formed, and the electromagnetic wave resonator is arranged in the support by depositing a material to form the electromagnetic wave resonator on the portion of the support. The support is formed by forming a column structure of a hydrophilic/hydrophobic phase-separated film including a hydrophilic liquid phase area penetrating through in a thickness direction, by packing a filler into the column structure of the hydrophilic/hydrophobic phase-separated film including the hydrophilic liquid phase area so as to form the filler as high as the column structure, and by obtaining the support including the filler by removing at least a part of the hydrophilic/hydrophobic phase-separated film.

Abstract: Provided is a millimeter wavelength range transceiver device which can improve phase noise characteristics and which can also independently calibrate each respective local oscillator of a transmission unit and a reception unit. This millimeter wavelength range transceiver device comprises a transmission unit (10), a reception unit (20), and a reference frequency signal generator (30). The transmission unit (10) comprises a transmission-use local oscillator (11) comprising an injection-locked oscillator, a transmission-use mixer (12) for mixing the signal from the transmission-use local oscillator and a transmission baseband signal, and a transmission-use amplifier (13) for amplifying the signal from the transmission-use mixer to a transmission-use antenna (15).

Abstract: The present invention provides a bilayer membrane produced using a microchannel capable of easily forming bilayer membranes such as planar lipid bilayer membranes in large quantities, and a production method thereof. A process for producing a bilayer membrane of the present invention comprises forming a state where two liquid phases or liquid and gaseous phases each containing amphipathic molecules are alternately arranged in a microchannel, discharging one of the two liquid phases or the gaseous phase of the liquid and gaseous phases through branch minichannels formed in the wall on one side or in the walls on both sides to contact the remaining liquid phases adjacent to each other, and thereby forming a side-by-side arrangement of bilayer membranes comprising the amphipathic molecules.

Abstract: An image processing method includes: a frame selection step for selecting a base frame and a reference frame; an image displacement amount calculation step for calculating an image displacement amount between the reference frame and the base frame; a weighting coefficient generation step for generating a weighting coefficient using at least one of an encoding type of the reference frame and the motion information of the encoded moving image data; and an image quality improvement step for improving an image quality of the base frame using the image displacement amount calculated in the image displacement amount calculation step and the weighting coefficient generated in the weighting coefficient generation step.

Abstract: The present invention provides a novel compound that is structurally similar to curcumin and has a suppressive effect on A? aggregation, a degradative effect on A? aggregates, an inhibitory effect on ?-secretase, and a protective effect on neurons. The novel compound is a compound represented by the following general formula (Ia) or a salt thereof: wherein R1 represents a 4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl group or the like, and R2 represents a 1H-indol-6-yl group or the like.

Abstract: The object is to seek a position for an insertion opening through which a treatment tool inserted inside a body cavity may reach an affected area while avoiding an obstacle. A first light emitting portion placed in an insertion portion applies light to an affected area inside a body cavity. A second light emitting portion placed in the insertion portion applies light to an inner wall of the body cavity toward the opposite side of the first light emitting portion. At this time, a light pathway on which the light from the first light emitting portion and the second light emitting portion will not strike the obstacle (e.g., an organ outside than the affected area, etc.) inside the body cavity is searched for. By making, in the position that the light from the second light emitting portion strikes, an insertion opening for inserting a treatment tool, the treatment tool can reach the affected area without interfering with the obstacle.

Abstract: A method for adhering a major substrate to which nano sized concave and convex structures are formed without damaging the concave and convex structures can be used in a production method of a microfluidic device including nano sized fluidic channels. The substrates may be adhered under heat free and adhesive agent free environment by exciting the substrate surface including hard silicone resin with atmospheric plasma or vacuum ultraviolet light, then juxtaposing and pressurizing the surface of the hard silicone resin substrate and glass substrate. The silicone rubber composition is applied on the contact face of the cover substrate and then the silicone rubber composition is cured to form the silicone rubber layer and then the ultraviolet light is exposed under the condition that the surface of the major substrate being formed with concave and convex structures is contacted closely to the silicone rubber layer of the cover substrate.

Abstract: A vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser diode includes: a first resonator that has a plurality of semiconductor layers comprising a first current narrowing structure having a first conductive region and a first non-conductor region; a first electrode that supplies electric power to drive the first resonator; a second resonator that has a plurality of semiconductor layers comprising a second current narrowing structure having a second conductive region and a second non-conductive region and that is formed side by side with the first resonator, the second current narrowing structure being formed in same current narrowing layer as the layer where the first current narrowing structure is formed; and a coupling portion as defined herein; and an equivalent refractive index of the coupling portion is smaller than an equivalent refractive index of each of the first resonator and the second resonator.

Abstract: An A-type converter circuit compares an input voltage with multiple threshold voltages, judges which segment it belongs to, and generates first and second voltages with the input voltage segment between them. The A-type converter circuit generates third and fourth voltages by amplifying the differences between the first and the input voltages and between the second and the input voltages. A B-type converter circuit divides the range between the third and fourth voltages into multiple segments, and judges which segment includes the common voltage. Subsequently, the B-type converter circuit generates fifth and sixth voltages with the common voltage segment between them. The B-type converter circuit generates a seventh (the next stage's third voltage) and an eighth voltage by amplifying the differences between the fifth and the common voltages and between the sixth and the common voltages.

Abstract: It is an object of this invention to provide a stress assessment device capable of assessing mental stress without requiring another previous knowledge or imposing a load on an observer or an employee. A stress assessment device (10) of this invention includes: a work behavior acquisition unit (101) for acquiring a work behavior time-series pattern serving as information indicating a work behavior of each employee in temporal units; an eigen-behavior time-series pattern calculation unit (102) for calculating an eigen-behavior time-series pattern serving as information indicating a standard work behavior of each employee by using the work behavior time-series pattern; and a stress state assessment unit (103) for calculating a reconstruction accuracy indicating a degree to which the work behavior time-series pattern of each employee and the eigen-behavior time-series pattern agree with each other and assessing a stress state of the employee based on the calculated reconstruction accuracy.

Abstract: A method of production of a radio frequency accelerator which has a tubular part 1 which forms an acceleration cavity, including a temporary assembly step of making a plurality of component members 11 to 14 which have shapes obtained by splitting the tubular part 1 mate with each other to temporarily assemble them into the shape of the tubular part 10 and a welding step of welding the plurality of component members 11 to 14 together. The temporary assembly step includes a step of placing, inside of the tubular part 1, support members 21 for contacting the inside surface of the tubular part 1 and supporting the tubular part 1 from the inside, and the welding step includes a step of welding the plurality of component members 11 to 14 along the butt lines 51 by friction stir welding.

Abstract: An aluminum or aluminum alloy-coated steel material includes base steel; and a coating layer formed on a surface of the base steel and containing by mass % Mg: 6% to 10%, Si: 3% to 7%, Fe: 0.2% to 2%, Mn: 0.02% to 2%, and the balance as Al and incidental impurities, where-in the coating layer has pseudoternary eutectic microstructures of ?Al—Mg2Si—(Al—Fe—Si—Mn) and an area ratio of the pseudoternary eutectic microstructures in the coating layer is at least 30%.

Abstract: This invention relates to an anode active material comprising at least one iron oxide selected from the group consisting of amorphous iron oxides, ferrihydrite, and lepidocrocite. The invention also relates to a lithium ion secondary battery anode material comprising the anode active material as a constituent component, a lithium ion secondary battery anode comprising the lithium ion secondary battery anode material, and a lithium ion secondary battery comprising the lithium ion secondary battery anode.

Abstract: A plasma light source includes a pair of coaxial electrodes 10 facing each other, a radiation environment sustaining device 20 that supplies a plasma medium into the insides of the coaxial electrodes and holds the coaxial electrodes at a temperature and a pressure suitable for plasma generation, and a voltage application device 30 that applies a discharge voltage of an inverted polarity to each of the coaxial electrodes. Tubular discharge 4 is formed between the pair of coaxial electrodes and plasma 3 is confined in an axial direction of the coaxial electrodes.

Abstract: An apparatus capable of improving the estimation accuracy of information on a subject including a distance up to the subject is provided. According to an environment recognition apparatus 1 of the present invention, a first cost function is defined as a decreasing function of an object point distance Z. Thus, the longer the object point distance Z is, the lower the first cost of a pixel concerned is evaluated. This reduces the contribution of the first cost of a pixel highly probable to have a large measurement or estimation error of the object point distance Z to the total cost C. Thereby, the estimation accuracy of a plane parameter ^q representing the surface position and posture of the subject is improved.

Abstract: A compact, lightweight manipulation system that excels in operability and has a force feedback capability is provided. When automatic operation of a slave manipulator 105 that follows manual operation of a master manipulator 101 is bilaterally controlled by means of communication, the force acting on the slave manipulator is fed back to the master manipulator by operating the master manipulator primarily under electrically-driven speed control and the slave manipulator primarily under pneumatically-driven force control. Therefore, in the master manipulator, it is not necessary to compensate for the dynamics and the self-weight of the master manipulator in the motion range of a user, allowing highly accurate, broadband positional control, which is specific to an electrically-driven system, and in the slave manipulator, nonlinearity characteristics specific to a pneumatically-driven system presents passive softness, provides a high mass-to-output ratio, and produces a large force.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing a surface-coated cutting tool includes: forming an aluminum oxide layer having a layer thickness of 0.05 to 5 ?m and an ?-alumina structure with a corundum type crystal structure on a cutting tool body using a sol-gel method. The step of forming includes adding an alcohol to aluminum alkoxide; adding an acid; stirring the mixture at 10° C. or lower to form a sol; applying the sol on a surface of the cutting tool body or an outer-most surface of a hard-coating layer formed on the surface of the cutting tool body; performing a drying process at least once, the applied sol being dried at 100 to 400° C. in the drying process; and annealing the cutting tool body with a dried sol layer at 500 to 1000° C.

Abstract: A perovskite oxide film is formed on a substrate, in which the perovskite oxide film has an average film thickness of not less than 5 ?m and includes a perovskite oxide represented by a general formula (P) given below: (K1-w-x,Aw,Bx)(Nb1-y-z,Cy,Dz)O3??(P), where: 0<w<1.0, 0?x?0.2, 0?y<1.0, 0?z?0.2, 0<w+x<1.0, A is an A-site element having an ionic valence of 1 other than K, B is an A-site element, C is a B-site element having an ionic valence of 5, D is a B-site element, each of A to D is one kind or a plurality of kinds of metal elements.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus comprises a processing unit for computing displacement amounts between a basis image and each reference image, a processing unit for generating multiple deformed images based on the displacement amounts, the basis image and multiple reference images, a processing unit for setting a threshold of a parameter, a processing unit for selecting image information from the reference image by the threshold, a processing unit for generating composed images and weighted images based on the basis image, the displacement amounts and the image information, a processing unit for generating high-resolution grid images by dividing the composed image by the weighted image, a processing unit for generating simplified interpolation images based on high-resolution grid images, a processing unit for generating assistance images, a display unit for displaying the assistance images and a control unit that controls the necessary processing as necessary.