Abstract: The present invention provides a DNA coding for a protein defined in the following (A) or (B) is obtained from Brevibacterium flavum chromosomal DNA library by cloning a DNA fragment that complicates serB deficiency of Escherichia coli as a open reading frame in the DNA fragment. (A) A protein which comprises an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID: 2 in Sequence Listing; or (B) A protein which comprises an amino acid sequence including substitution, deletion, insertion, addition or inversion of one or several amino acids in the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 2 in Sequence Listing, and which has phosphoserine phosphatase activity.

Abstract: A system using an in-vehicle camera mounted on a vehicle for an image pickup object of the face of the driver, for: continuously taking an image of the image pickup object; performing manipulation, such as enlargement of an area including the image pickup object with a reference point being the center, for a second image based on image pickup after a first image, on the basis of the range of the image pickup object detected from the first image, the width of the facial contour of the driver, for example, and also a reference point such as the center of the face to be decided based on the location of the eyes and nose of the driver; and performing image processing, such as detection of the range of the image pickup object and decision of the reference point, for the manipulated second image.

Abstract: Provided are an image processing method, an image processing system, an image processing device and a computer program for detecting a detection object such as nares of the driver with a high degree of accuracy in, for example, a system using an in-vehicle camera which is mounted on a vehicle and takes an image of the face of the driver. A detection object is diversified by a variety of detection methods such as a method for detecting a plurality of locations in the vertical direction as candidates during image pickup of an image, detecting a range to be a candidate of a detection object on the basis of the brightness of a pixel for each of rows of pixels lined up in the horizontal direction corresponding to each detected location and specifying a detection object from candidates of a detection object on the basis of the length of the detected range.

Abstract: For example, a plurality of elliptical candidate areas that become candidate areas of detecting objects are set in an image, characteristic values such as average values of luminance of the pixels inside and outside the set candidate areas are compared, and a candidate area whose difference of the characteristic values is determined to be the maximum is detected as the area of the detecting object. In addition, central moment of the detecting object is calculated, and the inclination of the detecting object in the image is detected based on the calculated central moment. Further, two specific points such as eyes of the driver included in the detecting object are detected, and the inclination of the detecting object in the image determined by the detected two points is detected.

Abstract: Using an on-vehicle camera mounted on a vehicle to view the face of a driver as an imaging object, an image processing system judges the presence/absence of the imaging object in the image. An average luminance of an image when light of a particular wavelength is irradiated in an imaging direction is compared to an average luminance of an image imaged when no light is irradiated. When the difference between the average luminance values is equal to a reference value or less, it is judged that the imaging object is absent in the image by imaging.

Abstract: There are provided an image processing method, and an image processing system, an image processor, and a computer program in which the fringe position of a detection object, e.g. the width of outline of the face of a driver, can be detected with high precision even when illuminance varies locally in a system employing a on-vehicle camera for imaging the face of the driver. Luminance of pixels arranged in the first direction of an image, e.g. the horizontal direction, is subjected to quadric differential, data based on the results of quadratic differential is integrated in the second direction, e.g. the vertical direction, and the position in the first direction of the detection object in the image is detected based on the integration results.

Abstract: An L-amino acid-producing strain of Escherichia coli is bred by modifying an Escherichia coli K12 strain or a derivative thereof so as to become resistant to L-valine and have an ability to produce one or more L-amino acids selected from the group consisting of L-tryptophan, L-phenylalanine, L-lysine, L-tyrosine, L-glutamic acid, L-histidine, L-cysteine, and L-proline.

Abstract: A DNA fragment which encodes a polypeptide defined in the following (a) or (b), and a polypeptide defined in the following (c) or (d): (a) a polypeptide which has at least the amino acid sequence of the amino acid numbers 50 to 393 in SEQ ID NO: 2 shown in Sequence Listing, (b) a polypeptide which has at least the amino acid sequence of the amino acid numbers 50 to 393 in SEQ ID NO: 2 shown in Sequence Listing including substitution, deletion, insertion, addition, or inversion of one or several amino acids, and can constitute a protein having a carbamoyl-phosphate synthetase activity with a large subunit of carbamoyl-phosphate synthetase having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 3, (c) a polypeptide which has the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 3 shown in Sequence Listing, (d) a polypeptide which has the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 3 shown in Sequence Listing including substitution, deletion, insertion, addition, or inversion of one or several amino acids, and can constitute a protein having a car

Abstract: L-Arginine is produced by culturing a microorganism which has L-arginine producing ability and has been modified so that expression of lysE gene should be enhanced, such a microorganism further modified so that an arginine repressor should not function normally, or such a microorganism further modified so that intracellular activity of an enzyme in L-arginine biosynthetic pathway should be enhanced in a medium to produce and accumulate L-arginine in the medium and collecting the L-arginine from the medium.

Abstract: A coryneform bacterium which has an L-glutamic acid-producing ability and grows at least at the same growth rate as a non-mutated strain or a wild-type strain and has intracellular ?-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase activity which is less than half that of the non-mutated or wild-type strain, and is obtained by introducing a mutation into a coding region or an expression control region of the chromosomal odhA gene encoding the E1o subunit of the ?-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase complex.

Abstract: L-glutamic acid is produced by culturing in a medium a microorganism belonging to enterobacteria and having L-glutamic acid productivity, into which a citrate synthase gene derived from a coryneform bacterium is introduced to produce and accumulate L-glutamic acid in the medium and collecting the L-glutamic acid from the medium.

Abstract: A microorganism which can metabolize a carbon source at a specific pH in a liquid medium containing L-glutamic acid at a saturation concentration and the carbon source, and has ability to accumulate L-glutamic acid in an amount exceeding the amount corresponding to the saturation concentration in the liquid medium at the pH; and a method for producing L-glutamic acid by fermentation, which comprises culturing the microorganism in a liquid medium of which pH is adjusted to a pH at which L-glutamic acid is precipitated, to produce and accumulate L-glutamic acid and precipitate L-glutamic acid in the medium.

Abstract: An alarm system includes a miniature camera (10), a loudspeaker (20), a vehicle speed sensor (30), a longitudinal G sensor (40), a lateral G sensor (50) and an on-vehicle unit (60). A CPU (60a) of the on-vehicle unit (60) executes respective programs (61)–(64) in a ROM (60h), thereby outputting, if a traveling distance during a period for which a driver D continues to take an abnormal behavior exceeds a predetermined value when a traveling state of an automobile is kept stable, an alarm corresponding to a magnitude of the excess over the predetermined value from the loudspeaker (20). The alarm system is thus configured and is therefore capable of exactly outputting the alarm when a danger actually rises.

Abstract: Obtaining an image frame picked up by a camera 2 through a cable C, a CPU 10 of a computer 1 identifies an eye area in the image frame and stores a template indicating the identified area as a tracking template. Moreover, the CPU 10 identifies an eye area in an image frame to be obtained subsequently on the basis of the tracking template, and calculates a correlation value between the template of the identified area and the tracking template. Furthermore, when the calculated correlation value is larger than a threshold stored in an HD 11 in advance, the CPU 10 stores the template indicating the identified area in the RAM 12 as a tracking template, so as to update an eye area in a series of two image frames in chronological order.

Abstract: A microorganism is provided which can metabolize a carbon source at a specific pH in a liquid medium containing L-glutamic acid at a saturation concentration and the carbon source, and which has ability to accumulate L-glutamic acid in an amount exceeding the amount corresponding to the saturation concentration in the liquid medium at the pH. Also provided is a method for producing L-glutamic acid by fermentation, which comprises culturing the microorganism in a liquid medium of which pH is adjusted to a pH at which L-glutamic acid is precipitated, to produce and accumulate L-glutamic acid and precipitate L-glutamic acid in the medium.

Abstract: A coryneform bacterium which has an L-glutamic acid-producing ability and grows at least at the same growth rate as a non-mutated strain or a wild-type strain and has intracellular ?-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase activity which is less than half that of the non-mutated or wild-type strain, and is obtained by introducing a mutation into a coding region or an expression control region of the chromosomal odhA gene encoding the E1o subunit of the ?-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase complex.

Abstract: L-Arginine is produced by culturing a coryneform bacterium in which an arginine repressor involved in L-arginine biosynthesis is deleted by disrupting a gene coding for the repressor, and which has L-arginine producing ability in a medium to produce and accumulate L-arginine in the medium, and collecting the L-arginine from the medium.

Abstract: L-Arginine is produced by culturing a coryneform bacterium in which an arginine repressor involved in L-arginine biosynthesis is deleted by disrupting a gene coding for the repressor, and which has L-arginine producing ability in a medium to produce and accumulate L-arginine in the medium, and collecting the L-arginine from the medium.

Abstract: The present invention provides a DNA coding for a protein defined in the following (A) or (B) is obtained from Brevibacterium flavum chromosomal DNA library by cloning a DNA fragment that complicates serB deficiency of Escherichia coli as a open reading frame in the DNA fragment. (A) A protein which comprises an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID: 2 in Sequence Listing; or (B) A protein which comprises an amino acid sequence including substitution, deletion, insertion, addition or inversion of one or several amino acids in the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 2 in Sequence Listing, and which has phosphoserine phosphatase activity.

Abstract: A method for producing a target substance by utilizing a microorganism by culturing the microorganism in a medium to produce and accumulate the target substance in the medium and collecting the target substance from the culture is described. The microorganism is a mutant recombinant strain in which maltose assimilation is controlled by reducing or eliminating the interaction between IIAGlc protein of the glucose PTS and a protein involved in non-PTS uptake of maltose.