Abstract: A hydrogen tank is mounted on a roof so that a valve unit mounted to one end in a longitudinal direction of the hydrogen tank is separated as far apart as possible from a front platform and a middle platform of a fuel cell equipped bus and so that the longitudinal direction of the hydrogen tank is in a lateral direction of a vehicle. Thus, even if hydrogen leaks from the valve unit or a fusible plug valve of the valve unit is fused to discharge hydrogen from the tank, the influence of the leaking or discharged hydrogen on the front platform and the middle platform can be reduced.

Abstract: A crankshaft mechanism is disclosed that takes advantage of component makeup and orientation to cancel out inertial force. A crankshaft of the crankshaft mechanism includes at least one counterweight that is arranged in combination with the rest of the mechanism to cancel out the inertial force particularly at a timing in front of a bottom dead center of a piston where the inertial force becomes a maximum.

Abstract: In a reciprocating piston engine employing a variable compression ratio mechanism configured to be linked to a reciprocating piston for variably adjusting a geometrical compression ratio by varying at least a top dead center position of the piston responsively to a controlled variable, a controller is configured to control the variable compression ratio mechanism depending on an engine operating condition. A part of a wall surface of a combustion chamber is formed of a non-metallic material having a higher heat-insulating and heat-reserving property as compared to a base structural material of each of the combustion chamber and the piston.

Abstract: A piston crank mechanism has an upper link coupled to a piston by a piston pin, a lower link having a crankpin journal, wherein the crankpin journal is coupled to a crankpin of a crankshaft and is coupled to the upper link by an upper pin, and a control link is coupled to an eccentric cam of a control shaft that is supported by an engine block and coupled to a control pin boss by a control pin. The crankpin journal of the lower link is arranged and dimensioned relative to the upper pin such that a projection area defined by projecting the width of the upper pin along a direction line passing through a center of the piston pin and a center of the upper pin does not obscure an area defined by the crankpin during operation of the crankshaft as viewed in an axial direction of the crankpin.

Abstract: It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel chromoprotein and a novel fluorescent protein. The present invention provides chromoproteins derived from Anthopleura inornata, which have certain property, and fluorescent proteins from Trachyphyllia geoffroyi and Scolymia vitiensis, which have certain fluorescent property.

Abstract: A lower link for an engine piston crank mechanism includes first and second half members joined by bolts to form a crankpin bearing portion. The first half member includes a first pin boss portion to connect the lower link with a first link which is one of an upper link connected with a piston and a control link having one end mounted swingably on the engine. The second half member includes a second pin boss portion to connect the lower link with a second link which is the other of the upper link and the control link, and an internally threaded portion into which one bolt is screwed. The second half member further includes a load transfer portion which is made greater in rigidity than the internally threaded portion.

Abstract: A lower link for a piston crank mechanism of an internal combustion engine includes an upper section, a lower section, and a crank pin bearing section disposed between the upper section and the lower section, and mounted on a crank pin of a crank shaft. One of the upper section and the lower section is formed with a bolt inserting hole. The other of the upper section and the lower section is formed with an internal thread portion including an open end. One of the bolts passes through the bolt inserting hole, is screwed into the internal thread portion, and includes an end bared from the open end which is formed in a surface perpendicular to a bolt center axis. The other of the upper section and the lower section includes a recessed portion formed in the surface to divert a stress transmitting path.

Abstract: A piston crank mechanism has an upper link coupled to a piston by a piston pin, a lower link having a crankpin journal, wherein the crankpin journal is coupled to a crankpin of a crankshaft and is coupled to the upper link by an upper pin, and a control link is coupled to an eccentric cam of a control shaft that is supported by an engine block and coupled to a control pin boss by a control pin. The crankpin journal of the lower link is arranged and dimensioned relative to the upper pin such that a projection area defined by projecting the width of the upper pin along a direction line passing through a center of the piston pin and a center of the upper pin does not obscure an area defined by the crankpin during operation of the crankshaft as viewed in an axial direction of the crankpin.

Abstract: A crankshaft mechanism is disclosed that takes advantage of component makeup and orientation to cancel out inertial force. A crankshaft of the crankshaft mechanism includes at least one counterweight that is arranged in combination with the rest of the mechanism to cancel out the inertial force particularly at a timing in front of a bottom dead center of a piston where the inertial force becomes a maximum.

Abstract: An output limitation warning lamp is turned on when a possible output Qf of the fuel cell is less than a predetermined value L2. The output limitation warning lamp is provided at a combination meter in an instrument panel. The output limitation warning lamp is also turned on when a possible output Qb of the secondary battery is less than a predetermined value L3. Furthermore, the output limitation warning lamp is also turned on when an allowable drive output Qh, which is the sum of the possible output Qf of the fuel cell and the possible output Qb of the secondary battery, has been less than a required output Ed* calculated at a step before carrying out output limitation to more than a certain extent for longer than a predetermined length of time.

Abstract: A piston-crank mechanism links crankpins of a crankshaft with piston pins of pistons by using a plurality of links. The piston-crank mechanism allows an upward inertia force produced near a top dead center of each piston to be smaller than a downward inertia force produced near a bottom dead center of the piston in order to reduce secondary vibration occurring during operation. In a four-cycle inline four-cylinder internal combustion engine, a total force of inertia forces exerted from adjacent cylinders to each of second and fourth crankshaft bearings becomes a downward force, which reinforces a downward force produced in response to combustion pressure. These second and fourth crankshaft bearings have a rigidity higher than the remaining crankshaft bearings.

Abstract: A lower link for a piston crank mechanism of an internal combustion engine includes an upper section, a lower section, and a crank pin bearing section disposed between the upper section and the lower section, and mounted on a crank pin of a crank shaft. One of the upper section and the lower section is formed with a bolt inserting hole. The other of the upper section and the lower section is formed with an internal thread portion including an open end. One of the bolts passes through the bolt inserting hole, is screwed into the internal thread portion, and includes an end bared from the open end which is formed in a surface perpendicular to a bolt center axis. The other of the upper section and the lower section includes a recessed portion formed in the surface to divert a stress transmitting path.

Abstract: An image processing system is provided that is capable of performing copying processes by connecting devices which specifications for processing image data are mutually different. In an image processing system comprised of an image reading device for optically reading original documents and converting these into electronic image data and a printing device for printing image data that have been received from the image reading device onto recording media, image processing circuits for processing image data in accordance with specified specifications are respectively incorporated into the scanning device and the printing device, and a device that may be set in accordance with specifications for processing image data based on given circuit arrangement information is used to comprise at least a part of either one of the image processing circuits of these devices.

Abstract: An image processing system is provided that is capable of performing copying processes by connecting devices which specifications for processing image data are mutually different. In an image processing system comprised of an image reading device for optically reading original documents and converting these into electronic image data and a printing device for printing image data that have been received from the image reading device onto recording media, image processing circuits for processing image data in accordance with specified specifications are respectively incorporated into the scanning device and the printing device, and a device that may be set in accordance with specifications for processing image data based on given circuit arrangement information is used to comprise at least a part of either one of the image processing circuits of these devices.

Abstract: In an image processing apparatus which performs first and second operations, a first processor processes image data in correspondence to the first operation, while a second processor which processes image data in correspondence to the second operation. Further, a memory is shared by the first and second processors. A controller connects the first processor to the memory in the first operation and to connect the second processor to the memory in the second operation. For example, the above-mentioned first and second processors are constructed by a common device such as a field gate programmable array wherein a function thereof can be rewritten.

Abstract: In an image processing apparatus for processing image data in either operation mode of a full color mode or a monochromatic mode having processing speed higher than the full color mode, at least a part of an image processing circuit comprises a rewritable device such as a field gate programmable array. A controller rewrites an internal circuit in the rewritable device according as the operation mode is the full color mode or the monochromatic mode. The internal circuit in the rewritable device rewritten in the monochromatic mode performs processing based on pixel clock faster than in the full color mode.

Abstract: It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel chromoprotein and a novel fluorescent protein. The present invention provides chromoproteins derived from Anthopleura inornata, which have certain property, and fluorescent proteins from Trachyphyllia geoffroyi and Scolymia vitiensis, which have certain fluorescent property.

Abstract: A lower link for an engine piston crank mechanism includes first and second half members joined by bolts to form a crankpin bearing portion. The first half member includes a first pin boss portion to connect the lower link with a first link which is one of an upper link connected with a piston and a control link having one end mounted swingably on the engine. The second half member includes a second pin boss portion to connect the lower link with a second link which is the other of the upper link and the control link, and an internally threaded portion into which one bolt is screwed. The second half member further includes a load transfer portion which is made greater in rigidity than the internally threaded portion.

Abstract: In an image processing circuit, an area determination section comprises a device having a rewritable circuit configuration such as a field programmable gate array (FPGA). Consequently, the circuit configuration of the area determination section is rewritten, so that the image processing algorithm is changed. Specifically, in the area determination section, a filtering circuit and line memories (for example, FIFO memories) for forming a pixel matrix are formed by using the FPGA, and the configuration of the line memories (the lateral size and the number of lines) and the configuration of the filtering circuit are changed in accordance with a set image processing condition such as the output size or the mode.

Abstract: An automatic groove-tracing welding system is capable of carrying out a welding operation, particularly, a welding operation involving weaving, without requiring monitoring even if conditions of a groove is different from design conditions of the groove. An image processor 3 receives an image signal representing an image of a weld zone 52 including the tip of a welding wire from a camera head 2 provided with a CCD camera, processes the image of the weld zone 52 to determine the position of a groove, calculates the positional relation of the groove with a welding torch 1, and sends a position correction for correcting the position of the welding torch 1 so that the welding path of the tip of the welding torch 1 may coincide with a predetermined middle part in the groove to a robot controller 43 for controlling a welding robot.