Abstract: Malfunction of an engine coolant thermostat is detected from the engine side coolant temperature by the subsequent behavior of the coolant temperature. When an open-malfunction occurs, the coolant temperature becomes considerably different from that normally expected for times at which the thermostat is expected to be closed. When a closure-malfunction occurs, the coolant temperature becomes considerably different from that normally expected for times at which the thermostat is expected to be opened. Alternatively, the malfunction may be detected from the difference between the engine side coolant temperature and the radiator side coolant temperature.

Abstract: A thermosensitive recording label including a substrate, a thermosensitive coloring layer formed on one side of the substrate, and a thermosensitive adhesive layer which is formed on the opposite side of the substrate and which includes a thermoplastic resin and a tack applying agent and which is usually non-adhesive and becomes adhesive when activated by heat, wherein the thermoplastic resin includes a natural rubber which is graft-copolymerized with a vinyl monomer.

Abstract: In continuous sign language recognition, reference sign language patterns of good quality are generated. Continuous sign language patterns and reference sign language patterns are efficiently compressed. The compressed continuous sign language patterns are sequentially and directly matched with the compressed reference sign language patterns to recognize the sign language at high speed and with high precision. A reference sign pattern generating unit generates a reference sign language pattern by normalizing sample patterns while taking into consideration of their nonlinear compression/expansion and by calculating an average of the sample patterns. A continuous sign language recognition unit recognizes a continuous sign language at high speed by sequentially matching the continuous sign language of time sequential patterns with reference sign language patterns while allowing nonlinear expansion and compression in the time domain.

Abstract: In a reflection type angle of view transforming optical apparatus for transforming an angle of view in an image apparatus and so forth, sufficient strength can be provided and process is facilitated by using reflecting mirrors in a wide angle optical system. The reflection type angle of view transforming optical apparatus includes a primary mirror 8 having a reflecting surface provided in an axisymmetric form to reflect incident light 12 as primary reflected light 13, a secondary mirror 10 having a reflecting surface provided in an axisymmetric form about the same axis of rotational symmetry 9 as that of the primary mirror 8, opposed to the primary mirror 8 so as to reflect the primary reflected light 13 and to get secondary reflected light 14 for focusing on a view point, and a transparent case 11 to support the primary mirror 8 and the secondary mirror 10, and transmit the incident light 12.

Abstract: A color selecting electrode assembly for color cathode ray tubes which includes an apertured grill composed of fine-strand grids, a frame over which the aperture grill is stretched and which provides a tensioning force to the apertured grill, and a supporting structure body which is mounted at one end to said frame and engages the other end with the panel side wall of a color cathode ray tube so as to support said frame, wherein the wall thickness of said apertured grill is not greater than 0.032 mm. To assure the characteristic frequency of the aperture grill, it becomes unnecessary to manufacture individually frames having rigidities corresponding to respective slit pitches of the apertured grill. The frame can be a general purpose one (i.e., one used in common with others), thereby allowing the manufacture to be simplified. Further, the suppoting member can be also used in common with others, thereby allowing the design to be simplified.

Abstract: In a misfire detecting apparatus of an internal combustion engine, a difference in rotational-speed variance from a rotation signal NE of a crankshaft and the difference in rotational-speed variance is compared with a predetermined misfire criterion value in order to make a determination as to whether a misfire has occurred in the internal combustion engine. The misfire detecting apparatus is applied to a six-cylinder internal combustion engine. An ECU employed in the misfire detecting apparatus is used for calculating differences in rotational-speed variance by using a 720.degree. CA, a 360.degree. CA, and a 120.degree. CA differential techniques. The differences in rotational-speed variance computed by using the differential techniques are each compared with a respective predetermined misfire criterion value. An outcome of the comparison is used for updating a misfire count.

Abstract: In a sign-language learning system, the data of sign-language desired by a learner can be outputted quickly and accurately and, moreover, in the display method matching the requirements of individual learners, and the individual learners can easily make additional registration. The sign-language data are stored in a sign-language dictionary, and desired sign-language data are searched on the basis of an entry word or contents by a dictionary search device. The searched sign-language data are displayed in a display output device in accordance with a requirement of a learner by image synthesis. The sign-language data are registered by a dictionary registration device.

Abstract: A misfiring detecting system for an internal combustion engine includes a first misfire determination unit for comparing an engine rotational speed variation amount computed by an engine rotational speed variation amount computing unit, which computes a variation amount of the engine rotational speed, with a misfire determination value set by a misfire determination value setting unit and determines the occurrence of misfiring in the internal combustion engine on the basis of a result of the comparison, and a second misfire determination unit for determining the occurrence of misfiring in the internal combustion engine on the basis of: a result of comparison of a value indicative of a variation between engine rotational speed variation amounts computed by the engine rotational speed variation amount computing unit in the current and immediately preceding cycles, respectively, with a first set value; and a result of comparison of a value indicative of a variation of variation between engine rotational speed va

Abstract: In a method of painting a graphic in accordance with an even-odd rule, a painting region is judged by calculating data such as an intersection point count, a direction value, and a horizontal flag of respective intersection points; calculating a sum of direction values and a sum of horizontal flags of each intersection point based on the above data; calculating a post-operation intersection point count based on the intersection point count, the sum of direction values, and the sum of horizontal flags; and sequentially adding the post-operation intersection point counts from the scanning start point, so that the added value, either an even number or an odd number, serves as a basis for the judgment. Since the inside region or outside region of a graphic can be judged by referencing the sum of direction values and the sum of horizontal flags, even graphic figures having overlapping horizontal paths can be painted correctly.

Abstract: An apparatus for detecting a misfire in an internal combustion engine includes a rotational signal outputting unit for outputting a rotational signal corresponding to a rotational position of the engine, an average rotational angular speed computing unit for computing an average rotational angular speed of the engine based on the rotational signal, a deviation computing unit for computing a deviation of a computation result of the average rotational angular speed computing unit at every predetermined rotational position, and a misfire determining unit for determining occurrence of a misfire based on a pattern of the relative magnitude of three consecutive values of the deviations obtained at every predetermined rotational position. Further, the misfire determining unit may use a difference of the deviation, which is computed separately, in place of the deviation itself.

Abstract: A vector quantizing apparatus having a general vector quantization circuit, and a storage means for storing at least one frame of data as the result of comparison by a matching circuit is provided. Further, provided are a speech analysis-synthesis system having a spectral envelope generator for generating a spectral envelope which is so smooth that excessive beating is avoided, a spectral envelope vector converter for sampling the spectral envelope at equal intervals on mel-scale, a vector quantizer for quantizing vectors, and a spectral envelope reconstructor for reconstructing the spectral envelope by interpolation on the basis of combined parabolas.

Abstract: An apparatus for detecting occurrence of misfire in a multicylinder internal combustion engine detects a rotational speed of the engine in each expansion stroke of each cylinder, calculates a change of the engine rotational speed fluctuation quantity in accordance with a value of the detected rotational speed, and sets a misfire determination value for each cylinder based upon a determination result of the engine operating condition. Misfire determination is made for each cylinder based upon the misfire determination value for each cylinder and the change of the rotational speed fluctuation quantity, thereby elevating the accuracy of detecting occurrence of misfire in each cylinder.

Abstract: A thermal vellum medium includes a wood pulp based substrate having a thermal layer, comprising a heat-sensitive, image-forming material disposed on one side thereof and a silicone layer impregnated into an opposite side of the substrate.

Abstract: A noise reduction system used for transmission and/or recognition of speech includes a speech analyzer for analyzing a noisy speech input signal thereby converting the speech signal into feature vectors such as autocorrelation coefficients, and a neural network for receiving the feature vectors of the noisy speech signal as its input. The neural network extracts from a codebook an index of prototype vectors corresponding to a noise-free equivalent to the noisy speech input signal. Feature vectors of speech are read out from the codebook on the basis of the index delivered as an output from the neural network, thereby causing the speech input to be reproduced on the basis of the feature vectors of speech read out from the codebook.

Abstract: A speech recognition apparatus has: a speech input unit for inputting a speech; a speech analysis unit for analyzing the inputted speech to output the time series of a feature vector; a candidates selection unit for inputting the time series of a feature vector from the speech analysis unit to select a plurality of candidates of recognition result from the speech categories; and a discrimination processing unit for discriminating the selected candidates to obtain a final recognition result. The discrimination processing unit includes three components in the form of a pair generation unit for generating all of the two combinations of the n-number of candidates selected by said candidate selection unit a pair discrimination unit for discriminating which of the candidates of the combinations is more certain for each of all .sub.n C.sub.

Abstract: A speech signal is analyzed for each frame so that it is separated into spectral envelope information and excitation information, and the excitation information is expressed by a plurality of pulses. Judgement is conducted as to whether the current frame is a voiced frame immediately after the transition from an unvoiced frame, a voiced frame continuative from a voiced frame or an unvoiced frame, and excitation pulses are generated in accordance with the judgement result. In case of a continuing voiced frame, the excitation pulse position of the current voiced frame is determined based on the pitch period with respect to the excitation pulse position of the immediately preceding voiced frame so that the excitation pulse train is generated at a position approximated to the determined position.

Abstract: A current location indicating apparatus for use in an automotive vehicle. The apparatus comprises a current travel distance detection unit adapted to detect a current cumulated travel distance of the vehicle. A bearing detection unit is adapted to detect a current bearing in accordance with current travel. A signal processing unit is adapted to obtain a current locational point in terms of two-dimensional coordinates of the moving vehicle in accordance with the outputs from each of the detection units. A path of travel store unit is adapted to sequentially store the locational data in terms of the two-dimensional coordinates varying from time to time as obtained by the signal processing unit and hold the contents thereof as current continuous locational information on the moving vehicle.

Abstract: A system for voice coding based on vector quantization has an apparatus in which a distribution area of parameters representative of a voice is divided into a plurality of domains so that one vector (code vector) may correspond to one domain, an apparatus for representing individual code vectors by codes specific thereto, an apparatus for converting an input voice into a vector and determining membership functions by numerically expressing the distance between the nearest code vector and each of the predetermined number of neighboring vectors, and an apparatus for transmitting, as fuzzy vector quantization information, a code of the nearest code vector and the membership functions.

Abstract: In a speech coding method and system in which a speech signal is analyzed in each frame so as to be separated into spectral envelope information and excitation information and both of the information are coded, each frame is divided into a plurality of sub-frames and a pulse of the maximum-amplitude is extracted from pulses within each sub-frame in order to provide large-amplitude pulses from each frame, thereby greatly reducing the number of pulse extracting processing steps.

Abstract: An ignition timing control apparatus for an engine which is capable of accurately estimating an engine speed immediately following the engine coming into an acceleration condition thereby enhancing the accuracy of ignition timing control, and a faulty cylinder detecting apparatus for a multi-cylinder engine using a crank angle sensor which generates a limited number of pulses. The apparatus generates a signal which divides each ignition cycle into a first rotation angular interval where an engine speed variation is large and a second rotation angular interval where an engine speed variation is small. Corresponding first and second rotation time intervals are detected in response to the signal. In accordance with these angular intervals and time intervals, an acceleration correction is effected to estimate a second rotation angular interval in a next ignition cycle.