Abstract: A composite plating apparatus is disclosed in which an insertion electrode is loosely inserted into a hollow cylinder having a space, air bubbles are mixed into a composite plating solution fed from a liquid feeding pipe toward the space in the cylinder, and the hollow cylinder is connected to a base electrode so as to perform a composite plating on the inner surface of the hollow cylinder. An air bubble dispersing member having at least one passage hole with a diameter the same as or larger than a length of a gap defined between the insertion electrode and the inner surface of the cylinder is arranged upstream of a plating solution inlet portion of the hollow cylinder as an apparatus for dispersing air bubbles within the composite plating solution. The air bubble dispersing member can also be used as an electrode engaging member for engaging a tip end portion of the electrode inserted into the hollow cylinder.

Abstract: A hollow member whose internal surface is to be applied with composite plating is held in a condition in which a generatrix of the internal surface extends vertically. An electrode is inserted into the hollow member with a predetermined clearance to the internal surface of the hollow member. A composite plating liquid supply passage has a discharge opening which is in communication with an opening at a lower end of the hollow member. A gas is entrained in a form of bubbles into a composite plating liquid which is supplied into the clearance through the supply passage.

Abstract: A system and method for automatically controlling a vehicle speed to a desired cruise speed are disclosed in which in addition to a control unit and a throttle actuator through which an opening angle of an engine throttle valve is adjusted so that the vehicle speed detected by a vehicle speed sensor coincides with a target cruise speed set by a vehicle driver through a set switch, a vehicle speed determining circuit is provided for determining whether the vehicle speed detected by the vehicle speed sensor exceeds a lowest speed limit above which the cruse control by the control unit and throttle actuator becomes effective. When the vehicle speed is below the lowest speed limit, the power supply to the throttle actuator is interrupted so that the cruise control by means of the throttle actuator is cancelled.

Abstract: A system and method for automatically controlling a vehicle speed to a desired cruise speed includes an inhibit switch connected in parallel to a line between a power supply and a main self hold power supply switch (self-hold type) of an automatic cruise controlling system. When the vehicle speed is below a predetermined value, the inhibit switch is open so that the automatic cruise speed controlling system cannot receive power via the main, switch. Thus, wasteful comsumption of power is reduced.

Abstract: A cruise control system for an automotive vehicle with a manual or automatic transmission, includes an inhibition circuit. The inhibiting circuit blocks communication between a power supply and an actuator and/or a controller when the manual transmission is set in a predetermined gear or when the automatic transmission is set in a driving range other than the drive range, so as to inhibit the controller from operating in the cruise control mode. When the vehicle is provided with an automatic transmission which is selectively set in first, second, third or fourth gear while the shift lever is set in the drive range position, the cruise control system includes a first inhibiting circuit which blocks the communication when the shift lever is set in a position other than the drive range position, and a second inhibiting circuit which blocks the communication when the automatic transmission is set in either the first or second range while the shift lever is set in the drive range position.

Abstract: A system and method for automatically controlling a vehicle speed to a desired cruise speed are disclosed in which a vehicle speed sensor which output an analog quantity corresponding to a current vehicle speed is provided, a vehicle speed determining circuit which derives the current vehicle speed on the basis of the analog quantity derived from the vehicle speed sensor and determines whether the derived current vehicle speed is below a predetermined speed above which the cruise speed control run is appropriate is furthermore provided independently of a control unit of the system. When the vehicle speed determining circuit outputs a determination signal indicating that the current vehicle speed is below the predetermined speed and the control unit outputs a predetermined control command signal, a power supply line connected to a throttle valve actuator is, at first, interrupted. Then, the power supply to the control unit is interrupted.

Abstract: A system and method for automatically controlling a vehicle speed to a desired cruise speed are disclosed in which whether a microcomputer of a control unit is enabled to perform a cruise speed control is determined on the basis of a plurality of determining factors and a power supply of a throttle actuator for actuating an engine throttle valve so as to adjust an opening angle of the throttle valve is enabled only when all of the determining factors satisfy a condition of enabling the cruise speed control via the actuator and is disabled when at least one of the determining factors does not satisfy the condition.

Abstract: A system and method for automatically controlling a vehicle speed to a desired cruise speed are disclosed in which whether after any one of command and release signals is outputted from the corresponding set/cruise, acceleration, resume, brake, clutch, and cancel switches, a control unit outputs a corresponding receipt signal via a corresponding output port is determined, whether the contents of the control command signals presently outputting through the respective control valves are equal to inverted levels at the respective control valve is determined, and a power supply to control valves for adjusting an operating variable of an engine driving force adjusting mechanism and the control unit is interrupted when at least one of the results of determinations indicates a negative result.

Abstract: A flexible printed circuit substrate is bent in a flattened rectangular C-shape and electronic parts generating heat are mounted on the inner surface of a central portion of the C-shaped substrate. Then a radiating heat-sink plate is adhered on the outer surface of that central portion. Temperature-sensitive electronic parts are mounted on one end portion of the C-shaped substrate and parts consisting of a power supply circuit are mounted on the other end portion. Then the entire assembly is accommodated in a housing having a connector.

Abstract: To avoid pinched fingers, a verbal "Stop Window" command causes a stop and momentary reversal of window motion. A spoken-instruction controlled system for an automotive vehicle which can stop a moving device such as a door window closing device after having driven it reversely for a fixed period when a spoken instruction is inputted thereto through a microphone. In the system according to the present invention, even if there exists a time delay from when the driver utters the spoken instruction to when the device stops perfectly, it is possible to stop the device at or before a position at which the driver utters the spoken instruction. The system according to the present invention comprises at least one motor reversing controller and a timer unit, in addition to the conventional spoken-instruction controller including at least one switch, at least one motor stop controller and a speech recognizer.

Abstract: A device is disclosed for intermittent connection of a wiper drive motor to a power source. The device comprises first means for providing a control signal with its magnitude increased with increasing vehicle running speed, and second means for providing a first signal for a predetermined period of time and a second signal for a period of time variable according to the magnitude of the control signal. Means is provided for connecting the wiper drive motor to the power source in response to the first signal and for disconnecting the wiper drive motor from the power source in response to the second signal.

Abstract: A navigation instrument comprises a first counter for counting travelling distance from a start point, a second counter for counting travelling time from starting, a means for setting a scheduled average vehicle speed, an arithmetic means for calculating average vehicle speed, the deviation of travelling distance from the scheduled distance and the deviation of travelling time from the scheduled time, and a display means for displaying the result of calculation. The first counter is capable of subtractively counting travelling distance in response to switching operation of a switching means which is incorporated to the first counter. The first counter is also incorporated with a means for stopping navigating operation which is operative when the first counter counts down the travelling distance until a given value.

Abstract: A device senses changes in a frequency or speed to be displayed. A display control circuit controls the time interval for updating the display, according to the magnitude of a sensed change in the frequency or speed, thereby avoiding flickering of the display, as well as improving the accuracy and up-to-dateness of the frequency or speed displayed.

Abstract: The digital display device of a vehicle is provided with a control facility for controlling other vehicle mounted electric equipment such as a warning device, an auto-door lock mechanism, or the like. The control is effected by using a control signal intended for turning on a particular segment of an indicating portion of the digital display indicator.

Abstract: A navigation instrument for use with a roadway vehicle comprises an arithmetic means producing three data signals showing the average speed of the vehicle, the deviation of the travelling distance from a scheduled one, and the deviation of the travelling time from a scheduled one, and a display means for displaying the three data sequentially fed from the arithmetic means through a signal selector means. The arithmetic means includes travelling distance/time deviation accumulating means for adding the deviation of the travelling distance/time with respect to the average speed initially set to the deviations of the travelling distance/time whenever the average speed is altered. Thus, the navigation instrument of the present invention makes it possible to calculate and display the travelling distance/time deviation accumulated value when the average speed of the vehicle is altered on the way of vehicle travelling.

Abstract: A multifunction electronic meter for a vehicle can display selectively plural measured informations of fuel amount, cooling water temperature, oil pressure, battery voltage and the like of a vehicle on a single display section, the displayed informations being accompanied respectively with combinations of symbolmarks and surrounding frames thereof for identifying and warning those informations.The principal information of, for instance, fuel amount is ordinarily displayed, while the remaining informations are displayed selectively as occasion demands, for instance, in response to the occurrence of an emergency. When plural emergencies are simultaneously caused, the information corresponding to the lastly caused emergency is displayed intermittently together with the symbolmark, while only the symbolmarks and the frames of the informations corresponding to the previously caused emergencies are displayed continuously.

Abstract: A digital display type tachometer for an automobile for numerically displaying a rotation speed of the engine comprises a numeric character display device having display sections for 1000's, 100's, 10's and 1's digits, the 1's digit display section being constructed to display always "0", a counter for counting pulses generated in synchronism with the rotations of the engine to produce a BCD signal depending on the rotation speed, and decoding/driver means for decoding the BCD signal into decimal numeric character signals for 1000's, 100's and 10's digits and driving the 1000's, 100's, and 10's digit display sections by these character signals, respectively.

Abstract: During starter motor operation, an electronic meter is not supplied with electric power so that the meter does not operate whereby fluctuating and flickering indications of the electronic meter are prevented. When other meters are illuminated, the electronic meter is also illuminated, thereby avoiding the incongruity that the electronic meter is dark whereas other meters are illuminated.

Abstract: A navigation information announcing system for a motor vehicle comprises a tape player, circuitry for measuring the distance actually travelled by the vehicle, circuitry for reproducing distance information pre-recorded on a magnetic tape, and a comparator. A distance indicated by a reproduced datum from a magnetic tape is compared with the distance actually travelled so that the tape player performs a pause operation until the two distances equal each other. When these distances equal each other, the normal playback operation is reestablished so as to reproduce oral information pre-recorded on the magnetic tape, supplying the vehicle driver with directional information.

Abstract: An apparatus for adjusting the position and/or angle of each movable equipment of a motor vehicle comprises sensors to produce electrical signals indicative of the position and/or angle of each movable equipment, memory circuit including a plurality of memory units for respectively storing sensed information indicative of the optimal positions and/or angles of the equipment for each driver, comparators responsive to the sensed information and the stored information, and driving circuitry responsive to output signals of the comparators to adjust the positions and/or angles of the equipment. When the drivers are changed, the sensed information is compared with the stored information and then the position and/or angle of each equipment is adjusted until the sensed information equals the stored information to provide the driver with the optimal position and/or angle.