Abstract: Provided is a free-piston Stirling engine that can be easily manufactured by reducing manufacturing processes. A free-piston Stirling refrigerator comprises: a piston capable of reciprocating inside a first cylinder; a first leaf spring for controlling the reciprocating motion of the piston; a connection body for connecting the piston to the movable portion of the first leaf spring; a support arm portion for supporting the fixation portion of the first leaf spring in a state where the positional relation with the first cylinder is fixed; a washer for adjusting the movable mass mp of a piston assembly; and an attachment portion that is disposed on the connection body 13 and to which the washer is attached, and the attachment portion is disposed in such position as to enable the washer to be attached while the piston assembly is assembled, thereby reducing disassembly and reassembly processes and allowing easy manufacturing.

Abstract: Provided is a plug lock mechanism allowing a locking member to be retained at any position with a simple structure. The plug lock mechanism has a plug that can be plugged into and pulled out of a power receiving connector as a female connector; and a locking member that is swingably and axially supported by a pair of shaft receiving portions that are provided across the power receiving connector. This locking member coaxially has a pair of shaft portions that are located at both ends thereof, and central axes X1L and X1R of shaft receiving holes of the shaft receiving portions are slanted with respect to a central axis of the shaft portions. Thus, the locking member can be retained at any position via a friction caused by allowing the shaft portions to be pressed against part of the inner walls of the shaft receiving holes.

Abstract: Provided is a Stirling engine whose characteristics can be easily adjusted. In a Stirling refrigerator as a Stirling engine including a piston as a reciprocating body that is configured to be able to reciprocate inside a cylinder having a central axis line X, and a mover of a linear motor and a connector as moving bodies that are coupled to and move together with this piston, since there is provided spacer(s) as an adjustment mechanism capable of adjusting the static position of a tip end of the piston inside the cylinder by adjusting the positional relation between the mover and the piston, the characteristics of the Stirling refrigerator can be easily adjusted.

Abstract: A Stirling refrigerator serves as a reciprocating motion engine and has: a casing; a cylinder arranged within the casing; a piston capable of being reciprocated within the cylinder in a reciprocating direction as being uniaxial; a control circuit electrically controlling movement of the piston; a damping unit provided at one end side of the casing in the reciprocating direction via a first connection part and a second connection part serving as connection parts; and a vibration detection board arranged via an attachment body on the second connection part, said vibration detection board serving as a vibration detector to detect a vibration in the reciprocating direction, caused by the reciprocating movement of the piston, to transmit it to the control circuit.

Abstract: A Stirling refrigerator serves as a reciprocating motion engine and has: a casing; a cylinder arranged within the casing; a piston capable of being reciprocated within the cylinder in a reciprocating direction as being uniaxial; a control circuit electrically controlling movement of the piston; a damping unit provided at one end side of the casing in the reciprocating direction via a first connection part and a second connection part serving as connection parts; and a vibration detection board arranged via an attachment body on the second connection part, said vibration detection board serving as a vibration detector to detect a vibration in the reciprocating direction, caused by the reciprocating movement of the piston, to transmit it to the control circuit.

Abstract: A free piston Stirling refrigerator of the present invention has a cylinder provided inside a casing; a piston and a displacer that are provided in a way such that they are capable of reciprocating inside the cylinder; a linear motor for reciprocating the piston; and a control unit for controlling the operation of the linear motor. Particularly, the control unit has an inverter circuit for generating an alternating current with a given frequency and then supplying the alternating current to the linear motor; a current detection circuit for detecting the current outputted from the inverter circuit; and a control circuit for controlling the output from the inverter circuit based on a turbulence in the current detected by the current detection circuit. Thus, collisions between the piston and the displacer (i.e. hitting) can be restricted through an inexpensive configuration and a simple control.

Abstract: A free piston Stirling refrigerator of the present invention has a cylinder provided inside a casing; a piston and a displacer that are provided in a way such that they are capable of reciprocating inside the cylinder; a linear motor for reciprocating the piston; and a control unit for controlling the operation of the linear motor. Particularly, the control unit has an inverter circuit for generating an alternating current with a given frequency and then supplying the alternating current to the linear motor; a current detection circuit for detecting the current outputted from the inverter circuit; and a control circuit for controlling the output from the inverter circuit based on a turbulence in the current detected by the current detection circuit. Thus, collisions between the piston and the displacer (i.e. hitting) can be restricted through an inexpensive configuration and a simple control.

Abstract: Provided is a thermally efficient Stirling cycle engine including: a casing; a cylinder housed within the casing; a piston reciprocatable inside said cylinder; a displacer reciprocatable with a phase difference relative to the piston; a compression chamber defined between the piston and the displacer; an expansion chamber arranged on a first side of the displacer with a second side thereof opposite to the compression chamber; a heat exhausting unit arranged in the neighborhood of the compression chamber; a heat absorbing unit arranged in the neighborhood of the expansion chamber; a regenerator arranged between the heat exhausting unit and the heat absorbing unit; and a heat exhausting chamber defined between an outer surface of the casing and an inner surface of the heat exhausting unit, said heat exhausting chamber in communication with the compression chamber and the regenerator respectively through a first passage and a second passage provided in the casing.

Abstract: Provided is a Stirling refrigerator having enhanced cooling capacity through improving exhaust-heat efficiency of the electromagnetic reciprocating drive mechanism. The Stirling refrigerator includes: a casing having a cylindrical portion and a body portion; a cylinder provided with a mount housed within the casing, the mount formed of a metal exhibiting high thermal conductivity; a piston and a displacer housed in the cylinder in a reciprocable manner; a stator of an electromagnetic reciprocating drive mechanism, the stator held on the mount and arranged within the body portion; and a mover of the electromagnetic reciprocating drive mechanism, the mover connected to the piston. The casing is partially formed with a heat-conduction block formed of a metal exhibiting favorable thermal conductivity thermally in contact with the mount. A heat generated at a compression chamber and an electromagnetic reciprocating drive mechanism can be efficiently released to the outside of the casing.

Abstract: Disclosed are devices capable of performing a massage and wash on a scalp or massage on an affected area gently and effectively by a brush section or a treating section thereof. A plurality of projections are integrally formed on a surface of a flexible body plate of brush section, so that the projections are symmetrical with respect to an axis line A and an axis line D of the projection is perpendicular with the surface of the body plate. An edge of the body plate is fixed on a frame. A motor serving as a drive section is activated allowing a reciprocating drive means to repeatedly deform the body plate coupled thereto between an upwardly-deflected curved concave position and a downwardly-deflected curved convex position along the axis line A, thereby allowing each distance among a plurality of the projections to open and close-repeatedly to provide an repetitive action of kneading and pushing/stretching the scalp. Accordingly, the scalp massage and the scalp and hair wash are achieved.

Abstract: To provide a less expensive and high-efficient free-piston Stirling cycle machine with an outer diameter of entire machine being relatively small. In a Stirling cycle cooler as a free-piston Stirling cycle machine including a cylinder 7, a piston 18 which is reciprocable inside said cylinder 7 and an electromagnetic driving mechanism 19 for reciprocating said piston 18, said electromagnetic driving mechanism 19 is comprised of a mover 20 and a stator 35, said piston 18 and said mover 20 formed by disposing a permanent magnets 24 outside an inner yoke 23 made of magnetic flux conducting material are disposed in an axial alignment, and said stator 35 and said cylinder 7 are disposed in an axial alignment.

Abstract: In a massaging device, a treating section 3 has a body plate 4 formed of a flexible material and a plurality of protrusions intersecting the surface of the body plate and protruding downwardly. A massaging device main body has a reciprocal drive mechanism that deflects the body plate up and down. The small wall-like protrusions smaller than the third protrusions are provided on the surface of the body plate, and communicating portions communicating the interior with the exterior are provided inside the small wall-like protrusions. A containing portion for shampoo that is communicated with the communicating portions is provided between the massaging device main body and the body plate. A shampoo is applied inside the small wall-like protrusions with the surface of the body plate facing upwardly, and is supplied to the containing portion. The shampoo is whipped correspondingly to the deflection of the body plate while supplied from the communicating portions to perform hair washing and scalp massaging.

Abstract: A massaging device enabling hair wash and massage of a scalp to be readily performed effectively and reliably. The massaging device 1 includes a massaging device main body 2 acting as a drive section and a treating section 3. The treating section 3 includes a base portion 4 made of a flexible material and a plurality of first protrusions 5 protruding in a downward direction that is the direction of intersecting with a surface of the base portion 4. The massaging device main body 2 includes a reciprocating drive means 12. A reciprocating drive means 12 is provided to allow the base portion 4 to defect in an up-and-down direction that intersects with a surface of the base portion 4. Each of the first protrusions 5 includes a communicating slit 25 which allows an interior and an exterior to communicate with each other. A container 26 for a shampoo L is provided inside the base portion 4. The container 26 communicates with the communicating slit 25, and moves in response to the deflection of the base portion 4.

Abstract: A fin structure for heat-exchanging, the fin structure being mounted on a heat-dissipating portion of a Stirling cycle cooler, wherein the fin structure is configured by coupling a plurality of unit structures, the plurality of unit structures being split by a plurality of surfaces extending from a inner circumference of the fin structure toward an outer circumference thereof. The fin structure is configured thus way, whereby it can be mounted on the heat-dissipating portion so as to sandwich the heat-dissipating portion from the outer circumference thereof by the plurality of unit structures coupled one another. Accordingly, when mounting the fin structure, large force is not required, no adhesive filler is applied to an unneeded portion of the Stirling cycle cooler, and generating a scratch or a distortion on the casing of the Stirling cycle cooler can be prevented.

Abstract: A refrigerant-filled thermosiphon comprising: a condensing member for condensing the refrigerant, the condensing member being provided on a heat-absorbing section of a Stirling cycle cooler; and a pipe formed in an annular shape and connected to the condensing member, the pipe being arranged around a container so as to absorb a heat of the container, wherein the pipe comprises two paths, each path being arranged so as to extend downwardly along a half-periphery of the container. By employing this structure, the inclination angle of each path can be increased, and thus the flow of the liquefied refrigerant in the pipe can not be easily prevented even if a cooling box equipping the thermosiphon tilts in some degree.

Abstract: An electric vacuum cleaner comprises a vertical type cleaner body provided with a dust collection chamber a handle protrusively provided on an upper portion of the cleaner body, a suction nozzle provided on an lower portion of the cleaner body in such a manner as to communicate with the dust collection chamber being rotatable back and forth with respect to the cleaner body, and being contactable with a surface to be cleaned, an electric fan provided in the suction nozzle, and a rotary brush which is rotated by the electric fan and is built in the suction nozzle. A clutch mechanism which transmits and interrupts power to the rotary brush is provided between the rotary brush and the electric fan. The suction nozzle is rotatably provided on the cleaner body via a hinge mechanism. The clutch mechanism is coupled to the hinge mechanism by a link mechanism.

Abstract: An electric vacuum cleaner includes a nozzle assembly 5 including: a base member 6; a movable member 7 inversely rotatably attached to the base member 6 and having one surface formed with a suction opening 20; and a covering member 8 movably attached to the base member 6. Holding members 22 for holding a cleaning sheet 21 are formed on the other surface of the movable member 7. When the one surface of the movable member 7 faces a floor surface and the other surface thereof is covered by the covering member 8, the electric vacuum cleaner can pick up filth through the suction opening 20. When the movable member 7 is rotated inversely so that the cleaning sheet 21 faces the floor surface, the electric vacuum cleaner can catch the filth by the cleaning sheet 21 and pick up the relatively large filth via a communicating path 34 formed in between the movable member 7 and the covering member 8, and the suction opening 20 connected to the communicating path 34.

Abstract: A ring-shaped permanent magnet comprising a Nd—Fe—B magnetic material is integrally insert-molded within a distal part of an inner periphery of a cylindrical supporting member. By employing this structure, a coaxial alignment accuracy of the permanent magnet relative to the supporting member depends on only an accuracy of a die for insert-molding. Accordingly, the coaxial alignment accuracy improves, Moreover, the ring-shaped permanent magnet comprising the Nd—Fe—B magnetic material expands in its radial direction when cooled down, while the supporting member comprising a resin contracts, thus the permanent magnet is firmly held by the supporting member. Indeed, a pore space is not created between a bonded surface of the supporting member and that of the permanent magnet. Therefore, the coaxial alignment accuracy will not go wrong.