Abstract: Provided is a medical treatment device capable of eliminating inconvenience of manipulation in actual clinical use, and ensuring a visual field by introducing a curve in the vicinity of an electrode portion of an outer cylindrical tube.

Abstract: A fuel cell includes a main body which is formed by stacking a cathode layer, an electrolyte layer, and an anode layer, in which the surface of one of the cathode and anode layers serves as a first main surface, and the surface of the other layer serves as a second main surface; a first current collector in contact with the first main surface; and a second current collector in contact with the second main surface. As viewed in a thickness direction, at least a portion of the boundary of a second region of the second current collector corresponding to the second main surface is located within a first region of the first current collector corresponding to the first main surface, and the remaining portion is located within the first region or on the boundary of the first region.

Abstract: The fuel cell includes a fuel cell stack in which a plurality of planar power generation cells are stacked in a thickness direction thereof. The fuel cell also includes a heat exchanger provided between the two adjacent power generation cells in the stacking direction and in contact with the power generation cells, and including an internal first flow path that passes the oxidant gas or fuel gas supplied from outside. The fuel cell also includes a second flow path connected to an outlet side of the first flow path of the heat exchanger and to the cathode side or the anode side of each of the power generation cells, and supplying the oxidant gas or fuel gas that has passed through the first flow path to the cathode side or anode side of each of the power generation cells on both sides in the stacking direction of the heat exchanger.

Abstract: An optical disc drive apparatus includes: a first optical pickup and a second optical pickup which record data on an optical disc and reproduce data recorded on the optical disc; a slide mechanism which has the first and second optical pickups mounted thereon to slide the first and second optical pickups in a radial direction of the optical disc; a seek command receiver which receives a seek command; a first optical pickup controller which causes the first optical pickup to perform a search on the basis of the seek command received by the seek command receiver; a slide mechanism controller which controls the slide mechanism on the basis of the seek command received by the seek command receiver; and a second optical pickup controller which turns off a tracking servo of the second optical pickup when the first and second optical pickups are slid by the slide mechanism.

Abstract: Provided is a medical treatment device capable of eliminating inconvenience of manipulation in actual clinical use, and ensuring a visual field by introducing a curve in the vicinity of an electrode portion of an outer cylindrical tube.

Abstract: A driving device includes an optical pickup unit that irradiates a disc having a plurality of recording surfaces with a laser beam used for recording or reproducing information, and a generating unit that generates a focus control signal used for controlling a focus state of the laser beam emitted from the optical pickup unit on the basis of a focus error signal. The generating unit includes level detector that detects a level of the focus error signal, an offset generator that generates an offset signal used for performing focus jumping from one of the plurality of recording surfaces to another one of the plurality of recording surfaces in accordance with the focus error signal, and a switcher that switches a polarity of the focus control signal by comparing the level of the focus error signal of the level detector with a threshold value.

Abstract: An optical disc drive apparatus includes: a first optical pickup and a second optical pickup which record data on an optical disc and reproduce data recorded on the optical disc; a slide mechanism which has the first and second optical pickups mounted thereon to slide the first and second optical pickups in a radial direction of the optical disc; a seek command receiver which receives a seek command; a first optical pickup controller which causes the first optical pickup to perform a search on the basis of the seek command received by the seek command receiver; a slide mechanism controller which controls the slide mechanism on the basis of the seek command received by the seek command receiver; and a second optical pickup controller which turns off a tracking servo of the second optical pickup when the first and second optical pickups are slid by the slide mechanism.

Abstract: A driving device includes an optical pickup unit that irradiates a disc having a plurality of recording surfaces with a laser beam used for recording or reproducing information, and a generating unit that generates a focus control signal used for controlling a focus state of the laser beam emitted from the optical pickup unit on the basis of a focus error signal. The generating unit includes level detector that detects a level of the focus error signal, an offset generator that generates an offset signal used for performing focus jumping from one of the plurality of recording surfaces to another one of the plurality of recording surfaces in accordance with the focus error signal, and a switcher that switches a polarity of the focus control signal by comparing the level of the focus error signal of the level detector with a threshold value.

Abstract: Since dispersion of height dimension is reduced in a spacer, it is possible to increase a yield in manufacturing processes and reduce a lord for inspecting products. There is provided a method of manufacturing a plate glass member to be used in an electronic device, the manufacturing method comprising: introducing a glass base material analogous to the glass member into a furnace body of which the temperature has been held equal to or higher than a softening temperature of the glass base material; heat-drawing the glass base material within the furnace body; and extracting the heat-drawn glass base material outside the furnace body, wherein the glass base material is introduced into the furnace body as a gap between the glass base material and an inner wall of the furnace body is shielded at a slot of the furnace body for the glass base material.

Abstract: A multilayer piezoelectric element includes at least one piezoelectric layer unit having sintered piezoelectric ceramic and electrode layers alternately stacked together in a first direction and a positioning member that, when the at least one piezoelectric layer unit is placed in an enclosing member in such a manner that the enclosing member encloses therewith a periphery of the at least one piezoelectric layer unit along a second direction perpendicular to the first direction, controls the position of the at least one piezoelectric layer unit within the enclosing member along the second direction.

Abstract: There is provided a gas sensor for measuring the concentration of a specific gas component in a gas under measurement, including a gas diffusion rate limiting portion, a measurement chamber communicating with an atmosphere of the gas under measurement through the gas diffusion rate limiting portion, a sensor element having an ion-conductive layer with first and second surfaces, a first electrode disposed in contact with the first surface of the ion-conductive layer within the measurement chamber and a second electrode disposed in contact with the second surface of the ion-conductive layer and communicating exclusively with the atmosphere of the gas under measurement and a cylindrical support member installing therein the sensor element with the first and second surfaces of the ion-conductive layer directed toward front and base end sides of the support member, respectively.

Abstract: In a configuration in which side beams scan in positions that are offset with respect to a main beam by approximately (¼+n)P or (¾+n)P in the radial direction of an optical disk, a differential signal is generated from push-pull signals of the return lights of the side beams to generate a track-cross signal. In a configuration in which side beams scan in positions that are offset with respect to a main beam by approximately (¼+n)P or (¾+n)P in the radial direction of an optical disk, far-side or near-side light detection results of the return lights of the side beams are processed and computed with respect to a push-pull signal of the return light of the main beam.

Abstract: A multilayer piezoelectric element includes at least one piezoelectric layer unit having sintered piezoelectric ceramic and electrode layers alternately stacked together in a first direction and a positioning member that, when the at least one piezoelectric layer unit is placed in an enclosing member in such a manner that the enclosing member encloses therewith a periphery of the at least one piezoelectric layer unit along a second direction perpendicular to the first direction, controls the position of the at least one piezoelectric layer unit within the enclosing member along the second direction.

Abstract: A glass spacer having no swell at the end portions and no constriction at the middle portion and designed grooves is manufactured by a heating and drawing method. The heat flux output of a line heater for heating a glass base material in a wide area opposed to the glass base material is 95 to 105% of the heat flux output of the center portion in the longitudinal direction of the heater, and the glass base material is heated and drawn with the line heater at a viscosity of 107.0 P or more and less than 108.0 P.

Abstract: A gas sensor (10) including a measurement chamber (28) into which a gas GS is flown and a detection element main body (40) facing the measurement chamber (28). The detection element main body (40) includes an element case 42, and a protective film (48) is adhered to a bottom surface thereof. An acoustic matching plate (50) and a piezoelectric element (51) of a substantially columnar shape and a tube body (52) provided in a position surrounding the acoustic matching plate 50 and the piezoelectric element 51 are housed in the element case (42). A filler is then introduced into the element case (42), whereby the acoustic matching plate (50), the piezoelectric element (51), and the tube body (52) are sealed by a filled layer (99).

Abstract: A detecting-element assembly (40) is configured such that a piezoelectric element (51) is housed in a casing body portion (43) of a casing (42), and is attached to a housing portion (22) of a flow path formation member (20) via a flange portion (41). Therefore, the path between the piezoelectric element (51) and the position of attachment of the detecting-element assembly (40) is elongated, whereby ultrasonic waves which leak into the interior of the detecting-element assembly (40) from the piezoelectric element (51) become unlikely to reflectively return from a joint. Thus, the influence of, for example, noise stemming from reflected waves is reduced, thereby enhancing the accuracy of detection. An average clearance of 1 millimeter or more is provided along the outer circumferential surface of the casing body portion (43) of the detecting-element assembly (40), whereby a problem of collected foreign matter is unlikely to occur.

Abstract: A gas concentration sensor includes a measurement chamber for measuring a concentration of a specific gas component in a gas under measurement; an inflow path for allowing inflow of the gas under measurement thereinto and an outflow path for allowing outflow of the gas under measurement therefrom; a reflection wall for reflecting an acoustic wave; and an acoustic wave transmitting-receiving element having a transmitting-receiving surface adapted to transmit an acoustic wave toward the reflection wall and receive an acoustic wave reflected from the reflection wall. The concentration of the specific gas in the gas under measurement is detected on the basis of a propagation time between transmission of the acoustic wave and reception of the reflected acoustic wave. When a predetermined member having the sensor attached thereto is placed in a horizontal plane, the transmitting-receiving surface faces downward. A recess is formed in a peripheral portion of the reflection wall.

Abstract: A gas sensor includes an element case 42 with an internal peripheral surface formed as a taper surface 100. A portion of a housing section 43 surrounded by the taper surface 100 and a protective film 48 is filled with a filler 49. When the filler 49 thermally expands at high temperature, the filler 49 is subjected to a component of force in an upward direction by the taper surface 100. Therefore, projection of an element portion 44 involving deformation of the protective film 48 is suppressed, a change ?L of a propagation distance L to a reflecting section 33 is also suppressed, and a detection accuracy never decreases. In addition, reverberation is reduced.

Abstract: An ultrasonic-wave propagation-time measuring method and gas concentration sensor are disclosed in which a reception wave which has been transmitted and received by an ultrasonic element 5 is subjected to full-wave rectification in order to obtain a full-wave-rectified wave, which is then integrated by an integration circuit 37 to obtain an integral value. A peak value of the integral value is held by a peak-hold circuit 39. As to detection of gas concentration, a threshold-level calculation section 21e sets a reference value on the basis of the peak value, and a point in time when the amplitude of a reception wave having undergone full-wave rectification is judged by a comparator 43 to have reached the reference value is regarded as an arrival time. Subsequently, a gas concentration is determined on the basis of a period between the emission time and the arrival time.

Abstract: There is provided a gas sensor for measuring the concentration of a specific gas component in a gas under measurement, including a gas diffusion rate limiting portion, a measurement chamber communicating with an atmosphere of the gas under measurement through the gas diffusion rate limiting portion, a sensor element having an ion-conductive layer with first and second surfaces, a first electrode disposed in contact with the first surface of the ion-conductive layer within the measurement chamber and a second electrode disposed in contact with the second surface of the ion-conductive layer and communicating exclusively with the atmosphere of the gas under measurement and a cylindrical support member installing therein the sensor element with the first and second surfaces of the ion-conductive layer directed toward front and base end sides of the support member, respectively.