Abstract: A thermal treatment apparatus includes a treatment tank including a treatment chamber to perform thermal treatment on toner particles; a toner particle supply unit configured to supply toner particles into the treatment chamber; and a hot air supply unit including a supply port to supply hot air into the treatment chamber. The supply port of the hot air supply unit is disposed on a ceiling of the treatment chamber. The treatment tank further includes: a columnar member that is vertically disposed at the center inside of the treatment chamber; and a protruded member that is disposed at an upper end of the columnar member and has an approximately conical shape protruding toward the ceiling. The columnar member has a cylindrical shape and a radius of curvature RCP (mm) of an upper end edge in a vertical cross-section thereof is 5<RCP<75.

Abstract: A solder alloy includes 45 mass % or more and 63 mass % or less of Bi, 0.1 mass % or more and less than 0.7 mass % of Sb, 0.05 mass % or more and 1 mass % or less of In, and a balance including Sn.

Abstract: Provided is a composition for lowering blood pressure and/or reducing neutral fat, which composition has few side effects and high safety. The composition for lowering blood pressure and/or reducing neutral fat includes a casein hydrolysate and an indigestible dextrin. Preferably, the casein hydrolysate includes a peptide composed of Met-Lys-Pro. Preferably, the casein hydrolysate includes a peptide composed of Met-Lys-Pro, and a content of the indigestible dextrin is at 5,000 to 100,000 parts by mass with respect to 1 part by mass of the peptide.

Abstract: A lens apparatus includes a first barrel including a first connection portion, a second barrel holding a lens, movable in an optical axis direction of the lens relative to the first barrel, and including a second connection portion, a flexible printed circuit board electrically connecting the first connection portion and the second connection portion, and a restricting portion provided in either one of the first barrel and the second barrel in the radial direction and restricting a portion of the flexible printed circuit board between the first and second connection portions from moving in the radial direction.

Abstract: A lens apparatus includes a first barrel including a first connection portion, a second barrel holding a lens, movable in an optical axis direction of the lens relative to the first barrel, and including a second connection portion, a flexible printed circuit board electrically connecting the first connection portion and the second connection portion, and a restricting portion provided in either one of the first barrel and the second barrel in the radial direction and restricting a portion of the flexible printed circuit board between the first and second connection portions from moving in the radial direction.

Abstract: The lens barrel includes a lens housing barrel including a first barrel portion and a second barrel portion having a diameter smaller than that of the first barrel portion, an external barrel disposed at an outer circumference of the lens housing barrel and extending from an object side further than the first barrel portion to the second barrel portion, and a first elastic member disposed between the external barrel and the second barrel portion and elastically deformable with a movement of the external barrel with respect to the lens housing barrel due to an external force from the object side. The lens barrel further includes a second elastic member disposed between the external barrel and the first barrel portion and elastically deformable with a movement of the external barrel with respect to the lens housing barrel due to an external force from a radially outer side.

Abstract: The lens barrel includes a main aperture stop, a first sub aperture stop including a first stop blade and a first driving member rotatable about an optical axis to drive the first stop blade in its open and close direction, a second sub aperture stop including a second stop blade and a second driving member rotatable about the optical axis to drive the second stop blade in its open and close direction, and a cam barrel including a first cam portion engaging with a first engagement portion provided to the first driving member and a second cam portion engaging with a second engagement portion provided to the second driving member. The cam barrel is rotatable about the optical axis to rotate the first and second driving members.

Abstract: An excellent peptidyl peptidase-IV inhibitor and the like are provided. A peptide consisting of Val-Pro-X wherein X represents an amino acid residue (except for L-proline residue); the aforementioned X is preferably one selected from a basic amino acid residue, an aliphatic neutral amino acid residue, an amide group-carrying neutral amino acid residue, or an aromatic group-carrying neutral amino acid residue; the aforementioned X is preferably one selected from an alanine residue, a glutamine residue, a methionine residue, an asparagine residue, a glycine residue, a valine residue, a tyrosine residue, a serine residue, and a lysine residue; a dipeptidyl peptidase-IV inhibitor, a blood sugar rise suppressing agent, a vascular endothelial disorder suppressing agent, and an angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor containing the aforementioned peptide as an active ingredient.

Abstract: An optical apparatus includes an image sensor that includes a focus detecting pixel and an image pickup pixel, a first focus detector configured to provide a focus detection based upon a phase difference between the pair of image signals detected by the focus detecting pixel of the image sensor, a second focus detector configured to provide a focus detection based upon a contrast value based upon an output of the image pickup pixel of the image sensor, and a controller configured to provide autofocus utilizing the first focus detector when a focus detection precision of the first focus detector is equal to or higher than a first value and an image magnification variation amount calculated from a wobbling amount of the image pickup optical system used for the second focus detector is equal to or higher than a second value.

Abstract: The lens barrel includes a lens housing barrel including a first barrel portion and a second barrel portion having a diameter smaller than that of the first barrel portion, an external barrel disposed at an outer circumference of the lens housing barrel and extending from an object side further than the first barrel portion to the second barrel portion, and a first elastic member disposed between the external barrel and the second barrel portion and elastically deformable with a movement of the external barrel with respect to the lens housing barrel due to an external force from the object side. The lens barrel further includes a second elastic member disposed between the external barrel and the first barrel portion and elastically deformable with a movement of the external barrel with respect to the lens housing barrel due to an external force from a radially outer side.

Abstract: The lens barrel includes a main aperture stop, a first sub aperture stop including a first stop blade and a first driving member rotatable about an optical axis to drive the first stop blade in its open and close direction, a second sub aperture stop including a second stop blade and a second driving member rotatable about the optical axis to drive the second stop blade in its open and close direction, and a cam barrel including a first cam portion engaging with a first engagement portion provided to the first driving member and a second cam portion engaging with a second engagement portion provided to the second driving member. The cam barrel is rotatable about the optical axis to rotate the first and second driving members.

Abstract: The present invention provides lactic acid bacteria having oxalic acid-degrading activity several times higher than those of conventionally known lactic acid bacteria having an oxalic acid-degrading activity, and uses thereof. Lactic acid bacteria capable of degrading a large amount of oxalic acid were screened from 132 strains of Lactobacillus lactic acid bacteria that have been independently isolated from feces and gastric juices of human adults. As a result, lactic acid bacteria having an oxalic acid degradation rate of 50% or more when cultured at 37° C. for 72 hours in a culture medium containing 10 mM oxalic acid at pH 6.5 at the start of culture were discovered.

Abstract: An excellent peptidyl peptidase-IV inhibitor and the like are provided. A peptide consisting of Val-Pro-X wherein X represents an amino acid residue (except for L-proline residue); the aforementioned X is preferably one selected from a basic amino acid residue, an aliphatic neutral amino acid residue, an amide group-carrying neutral amino acid residue, or an aromatic group-carrying neutral amino acid residue; the aforementioned X is preferably one selected from an alanine residue, a glutamine residue, a methionine residue, an asparagine residue, a glycine residue, a valine residue, a tyrosine residue, a serine residue, and a lysine residue; a dipeptidyl peptidase-IV inhibitor, a blood sugar rise suppressing agent, a vascular endothelial disorder suppressing agent, and an angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor containing the aforementioned peptide as an active ingredient.

Abstract: An optical apparatus is configured to execute a manual focus mode in which focusing is performed by an operation of a manual operating unit by moving an image pickup optical system configured to form an optical image of an object. The optical apparatus includes a diaphragm configured to adjust a light quantity, and a controller configured to control a movement of the image pickup optical system in accordance with an operating amount of the manual operating unit so that a unit moving amount that is a moving amount of an in-focus position of the image pickup optical system per unit operation of the manual operating unit corresponds to a product between a diameter of a minimum confusion circle of the image pickup optical system, a diaphragm value of the diaphragm in the manual focus mode, and a coefficient that is a natural number or a reciprocal of the natural number.

Abstract: A mobile station, a communication system, and a communication method that are capable of efficiently collecting location information of any user. A communicating module receives a positioning request including attribute specifying information from a management center, a determining module determines whether measurements of the location are necessary or not based on the attribute specifying information in the received positioning request and the attribute information stored in advance. Then, when the determining module determines that measurements of the location are necessary, a positioning module performs measurements of the location and sends location information thus measured to the management center. Accordingly, it is possible to collect the location information of the mobile station that agrees with an attribute that the management center desires and therefore, it is possible to provide an attentive service and the like based on the location information.

Abstract: A communication system aimed at easily and quickly collecting data regarding macroscopic population distribution, and easily and quickly obtaining survey results. An RNC of a communication system includes a signal-counting module that counts the number of signals indicating a quantity of signals transmitted and received between a mobile station and a BTS. An information analysis device includes a population distribution calculation module that calculates population distribution based on the number of the signals that the signal-counting module counts, and an output module that outputs the population distribution that the population distribution calculation module calculates.

Abstract: Provided is a mesh data creation method allowing appropriate expression of population densities while making a balance between accuracy and granularity. In the mesh data creation method, when the number of samples in a region of reference mesh data with a predetermined size is not less than a threshold, divided mesh data is created by dividing the region of the reference mesh data. Namely, each portion with a high population density can be expressed by a fine region of mesh data and each portion with a low population density by a coarse region of mesh data. The above makes it feasible to prevent meshes from becoming too fine to ensure accuracy or, conversely, from becoming too coarse to maintain granularity, thereby resulting in failing to achieve a detailed grasp of population densities, and thus to achieve appropriate expression of population densities while making a balance between accuracy and granularity.

Abstract: For easily and quickly collecting data regarding macroscopic population distribution, and easily and quickly obtaining the survey results, an RNC includes: a location registration signal receiver that receives location registration signals, and a signal number counting module that counts the number of the location registration signals for each sector, and an information analyzing apparatus includes: a population distribution calculation module that calculates population distribution information based on the number of the location registration signals; and an output module that outputs the population distribution information.

Abstract: An optical apparatus is configured to execute a manual focus mode in which focusing is performed by an operation of a manual operating unit by moving an image pickup optical system configured to form an optical image of an object. The optical apparatus includes a diaphragm configured to adjust a light quantity, and a controller configured to control a movement of the image pickup optical system in accordance with an operating amount of the manual operating unit so that a unit moving amount that is a moving amount of an in-focus position of the image pickup optical system per unit operation of the manual operating unit corresponds to a product between a diameter of a minimum confusion circle of the image pickup optical system, a diaphragm value of the diaphragm in the manual focus mode, and a coefficient that is a natural number or a reciprocal of the natural number.

Abstract: An optical apparatus includes a zoom optical system including a focus lens unit, an operation portion configured to manually and mechanically change a focal length of the zoom optical system, and a controller configured to control the focus lens unit so as to move along a track depending on an object distance in an operation of the operation portion. The controller moves the focus lens unit to a second position that is different from a first position that is a position of the focus lens unit in disconnecting a power when a first focal length that is a focal length of the zoom optical system in disconnecting the power is different from a second focal length that is a focal length of the zoom optical system in reconnecting the power.