Abstract: A palm mechanism for a high-speed robot hand has a fixed-side articulated finger unit that projects forward from an upper side of a vertically positioned palm plate, and moveable-side articulated finger units disposed on both sides thereof. The left and right articulated finger units are capable of turning along two short sides of the rectangular palm plate from upper end positions on the palm mechanism. The articulated finger units are capable of bending up and down about joint portions thereof. A variety of operations, including gripping, picking, and throwing, can be performed rapidly and reliably by controlling relative positions of the three articulated finger units and controlling bending operations of the articulated finger units.

Abstract: An articulated finger unit has a two-jointed structure comprising a joint portion on a finger base side, a finger base portion, a joint portion on a fingertip side, and a fingertip portion; the joint portion on the finger base side has a drive-side bevel gear fixed to a rotational output shaft of an actuator, a driven-side bevel gear coaxially fixed to a joint portion that is perpendicular to the rotational output shaft, and a connecting member wherein an annular boss is fixed to the driven-side bevel gear and wherein a tip portion extends in a fork shape; and a cover on the finger base side is connected to the connecting member. A rotation of the rotational output shaft is converted to rotational movement of the joint shaft by way of a pair of bevel gears, and the connecting member fixed to the joint shaft turns right and left at an angle of 900 or more about the joint shaft. The finger unit suitable for use in a robot hand that moves at high speed and with precision can be realized.

Abstract: An auxiliary magnetic layer of a perpendicular magnetic recording head has inclined faces that connect a front end face and side faces so that the width in the track width direction of the auxiliary magnetic layer gradually increases in the height direction from the front end face. Since the angular portions are thereby made obtuse, a magnetic flux returning from a recording medium can be diffused over a wide area without being overconcentrated. For this reason, even when a magnetomotive force is increased by increasing a recording current applied to a coil layer, the auxiliary magnetic layer can be restrained from performing unnecessary recording and erasing on and from the recording medium, and the intensity of a magnetic flux supplied from a main magnetic layer to the recording medium can be increased. As a result, the recording performance can be appropriately enhanced.

Abstract: An absolute sensor 1 has a high speed side encoder 13 mounted on a high speed rotational shaft 6, a low speed rotational shaft 11 arranged coaxially with the high speed rotational shaft 6, a planetary gear mechanism 10 for reducing the speed of rotation of the high speed rotational shaft 6 and delivering the rotation of reduced speed to the low speed rotational shaft 11. The planetary gear mechanism 10 has a fixed sun internal gear a, a front stage planetary gear b, a rear stage planetary gear c, and an output sun internal gear d connected to the rear stage planetary gear c and low speed rotational shaft 11, wherein the planetary gears b and c are rotatably supported by an eccentric shaft portion 23 of the shaft 6. The planetary gear mechanism 10 can be constituted so that the input and output shafts are arranged coaxially, and can be made small with having a large reduction ratio in comparison with the conventional reduction mechanism comprised by spur gears.

Abstract: An absolute sensor 1 has a high speed side encoder 13 mounted on a high speed rotational shaft 6, a low speed rotational shaft 11 arranged coaxially with the high speed rotational shaft 6, a planetary gear mechanism 10 for reducing the speed of rotation of the high speed rotational shaft 6 and delivering the rotation of reduced speed to the low speed rotational shaft 11. The planetary gear mechanism 10 has a fixed sun internal gear a, a front stage planetary gear b, a rear stage planetary gear c, and an output sun internal gear d connected to the rear stage planetary gear c and low speed rotational shaft 11, wherein the planetary gears b and c are rotatably supported by an eccentric shaft portion 23 of the shaft 6. The planetary gear mechanism 10 can be constituted so that the input and output shafts are arranged coaxially, and can be made small with having a large reduction ratio in comparison with the conventional reduction mechanism comprised by spur gears.

Abstract: A planetary gear device (20) comprises a front-stage side planetary gear mechanism (21) and a rear-stage side planetary gear mechanism (23). The rear-stage side planetary gear mechanism (23) comprises an internal gear (25), a carrier (29) rotatably supported by a pair of main guide bearings (26,27) disposed on both sides of the internal gear (25), a plurality of planetary gears (31) rotatably supported on a plurality of planetary shafts (30) extending between a pair of carrier parts (28A,28B) of the carrier (29), a sun gear (33) formed on an outer circumferential surface of a pinion shaft extending in a direction of a device axial line (20a) to pass through the carrier (29), and an output shaft (34) connected to the carrier (29) and extending in the direction of the device axial line (20a).

Abstract: A practically non-aqueous dental cement composition is disclosed and the dental cement composition comprises a polymer or co-polymer having an .alpha.,.beta.-unsaturated carboxylic acid as an essential component of a main monomer; and an inorganic powder capable of forming a metal chelate in the presence of water characterized in that the polymer or co-polymer exists as a solution in a polymerizable monomer that can dissolve the polymer or co-polymer. This provides a dental composition which has not only the advantages of the conventional glass ionomer cement but also a higher setting rate and more desirable physical properties of the setting product and is excellent also in durability, by eliminating the disadvantages in the setting rate and physical properties of the set cement.

Abstract: An obstacle avoidance apparatus including a target data generator for outputting observation values of a target, a static obstacle driver for expressing a static obstacle by a turning acceleration of the target, a characteristic amount extractor for outputting characteristic amounts for representing first control amounts of a destination direction and a static obstacle avoidance by the turning acceleration, and a control amount determiner for outputting a second control amount of the target based on the first control amounts. A three-dimensional obstacle is expressed by the turning acceleration looked at from the target and the control amount for avoiding the obstacle until the target reaches a destination is determined.

Abstract: A film packaging apparatus comprising a tube former for forming a continuous length of a heat-meltable, heat-shrinkable film into a tube of such film with its longitudinal margins overlapping each other and extending downward through a bottom longitudinal outlet of the former, a longitudinal sealer disposed below the former for longitudinally heat-sealing and cutting the overlapping film margins, a transverse sealer disposed behind the former for transversely heat-sealing and cutting the film tube, wherein the longitudinal sealer comprises a cutter disc having a rounded circumferential edge and a counter disc having a flat circumferential surface in contact with the rounded edge at a position slightly deviating toward the cutter disc from a center line of the longitudinal outlet, and a longitudinal guide plate disposed immediately under the position of contact between the two discs.