Abstract: A driving force control apparatus is provided to optimize the acceleration performance and improve the energy efficiency of a vehicle. Preferably, the front wheels are driven by the internal combustion engine, while the rear wheels are driven by the electric motor. The electric motor is driven by electrical power generated by the generator. The generator is driven by the engine. When acceleration slippage occurs in the front wheels, the generator is controlled so as to produce a generation load torque corresponding to the acceleration slippage magnitude.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a reflow furnace for heating a carried circuit module to perform reflow soldering. The reflow furnace has a nozzle 60 for performing an operation of spraying the inert gas on a soldering portion for the circuit module carried into the furnace while the nozzle is moved, maintaining high mounting reliability and high productivity, even if apertures of the carrying inlet and the carrying outlet are large.

Abstract: An upstream catalyst and a downstream catalyst are disposed in series in an exhaust pipe, and first through third sensors for detecting the air-fuel ratio or an adsorption amount of hazardous components on the rich/lean side of exhaust gases are disposed on the upstream and downstream sides of the upstream catalyst and the downstream side of the downstream catalyst, respectively. An ECU for controlling an engine controls the air-fuel ratio so that when the adsorption amount of the hazardous components on the rich side of the downstream catalyst is large, that of the hazardous components on the lean side of the upstream catalyst is large. Similarly, the ECU controls the air-fuel ratio so that when the adsorption amount of the hazardous components on the lean side of the downstream catalyst is large, that of the hazardous components on the rich side of the upstream catalyst is large.

Abstract: A process for producing a stable photovoltaic element having an electrode structure comprising a collecting electrode and a metal bus bar which are connected to have an improved connection between them. Said electrode structure is formed by dotting an electrically conductive paste onto a metal wire as the collecting electrode such that a dotted electrically conductive paste has an elliptical form whose major axis and minor axis are respectively perpendicular to and parallel to a lengthwise direction of said metal wire, arranging the metal bus bar on said dotted electrically conductive paste, and heating the resultant while pressing it to cure the electrically conductive paste to form connection between the metal wire as the collecting electrode and the metal bus bar.

Abstract: A variable valve drive mechanism of an internal combustion engine is provided which includes a camshaft that is operatively connected to a crankshaft of the engine such that the camshaft is rotated by the crankshaft, a rotating cam provided on the camshaft, and an intermediate drive mechanism disposed between the camshaft and an intake or exhaust valve of the engine. The intermediate drive mechanism is supported rockably on a shaft that is different from the camshaft, and includes an input portion operable to be driven by the rotating cam of the camshaft, and an output portion operable to drive the valve when the input portion is driven by the rotating cam. The variable valve drive mechanism further includes an intermediate phase-difference varying device for varying a relative phase difference between the input portion and the output portion of the intermediate drive mechanism.

Abstract: A vehicle velocity detecting device is provided for detecting vehicle velocity of a vehicle. In the device, an average of driving wheels' speeds Vw.sub.Dave and an acceleration/deceleration V'w.sub.i of each wheel are calculated. When the average Vw.sub.Dave is less than a designated high wheel speed Vw.sub.Hi of 20 km/h or so and at least one of driving wheels' acceleration/deceleration V'w.sub.DL and V'w.sub.DR is more than a designated low-frequency noise value V'w.sub.LO of 1G or so, the third wheel speed Vw.sub.3rd from the largest wheel speed is set as the vehicle velocity V.sub.SP. When three or more acceleration/deceleration V'w.sub.i are together more than a designated high-frequency noise value V'w.sub.Hi of 5G or so, the wheel speed detected in the past is set as the vehicle velocity V.sub.SP. In either case, the vehicle velocity detecting method by the device is not withdrawn unless the wheel speed Vw.sub.i is less than a designated high wheel speed Vw.sub.LO or unless the average Vw.sub.

Abstract: A vehicle velocity detecting device is provided for a vehicle. In the device, velocity range in which a difference among respective wheel speeds is caused due to brake noise is defined as a range of speed smaller than a designated velocity V.sub.0. When an average of driving wheels' speeds Vw.sub.Dave is smaller than the designated velocity V.sub.0 and the vehicle is under a great turning condition containing the straight traveling condition, then the smallest wheel speed Vw.sub.MIN is set to a vehicle velocity V.sub.sp in order to exclude the wheel speed being influenced by noise. While, when the vehicle is under a small turning condition where the wheel speed of turning inside wheel is smaller in spite of the same velocity range, the third wheel speed from the largest one is set to the vehicle velocity V.sub.sp to exclude the turning wheel speed. In the velocity range besides both turning conditions, the average of driving wheels' speeds Vw.sub.Dave is set to the vehicle velocity V.sub.

Abstract: An anti-lock brake control system for an automotive vehicle, comprises a wheel-brake cylinder adapted to provide a braking action, a hydraulic pressure actuating unit adapted to be fluidly connected to the wheel-brake cylinder to feed and exhaust brake fluid to and from the wheel-brake cylinder, and having at least one reservoir tank provided for temporarily storing brake fluid exhausted from the wheel-brake cylinder via a return line and a return pump driven by an electric motor and provided for exhausting the brake fluid within the reservoir tank toward a main brake-fluid line, sensors provided for detecting wheel speeds, a controller for executing a skid control of the hydraulic pressure actuating unit in response to signals from the sensors, a diagnostic system for making a diagnosis on a trouble of said electric motor, and a monitoring device for monitoring an amount of brake fluid stored in said reservoir tank when said diagnostic system determines that said electric motor is in trouble.

Abstract: There is disclosed a valve performance controller for an internal combustion engine. A camshaft is provided with a plurality of cams having different cam profiles. Changeover of the cams is performed through operation of a valve lift control mechanism. Also, a valve timing control mechanism is provided on the camshaft. The valve timing mechanism has a pulley, which is connected to a crankshaft of the engine via a timing belt. The pulley is connected to the camshaft via a ring gear. Through movement of the ring gear along the axis of the camshaft, the relative rotational phase between the pulley and the camshaft is changed. At least during cam changeover operation, oil is charged and retained within the hydraulic chamber located on both sides of the ring gear in the moving direction thereof. This structure reduces an impact which acts on the timing belt upon changeover of the cams.

Abstract: This invention provides a ferrite carrier for an electrophotographic developer characterized in that a core material is ferrite particle composed of 17.0 to 29.0 mol % of Li.sub.2 O and 71.0 to 83.0 mol % of Fe.sub.2 O.sub.3, exhibits a resistance of 2.5.times.10.sup.8 to 2.5.times.10.sup.9 .OMEGA. when a voltage of 250 V is applied, satisfies the relationship: a.sub.1 -a.sub.2 .ltoreq.1.5 when the resistance (R.sub.1) of the ferrite particle exhibited when a voltage of 250 V is applied thereto is taken as a.sub.1 .times.10.sup.b .OMEGA. and the resistance (R.sub.2) thereof exhibited when a voltage of 1000 V is applied thereto is taken as a.sub.2 .times.10.sup.b .OMEGA. (with the proviso that 1.0.ltoreq.a.sub.1 <10, 0.1.ltoreq.a.sub.2, and b is an integer of 6 to 9), and the carrier prepared by coating the ferrite particle with a resin exhibits a resistance of 1.0.times.10.sup.9 to 1.0.times.10.sup.15 .OMEGA. when a voltage 250 V is applied thereto, and has a true specific gravity of 4.70 or below.

Abstract: An automobile anti-skid brake control system, comprises wheel-speed sensors, a pseudo vehicle speed generator, an arithmetic circuit for calculating a slip ratio of each road wheel, and a controller for controlling a wheel-brake cylinder pressure of each road wheel. The controller includes a compensation circuit for compensating a different-diameter wheel speed of a different-diameter road wheel with a small-sized emergency tire, utilizing an error rate of the different-diameter wheel speed with respect to the detected wheel speed of the other road wheel with a usual tire. The error rate is derived on the basis of a ratio of diameter-difference between the different-diameter road wheel and the other road wheel. The ratio of diameter-difference is derived on the basis of a maximum wheel speed corresponding to the different-diameter wheel speed and a second highest wheel speed of the detected wheel speeds.

Abstract: A ferrite carrier for electrophotographic developers which comprises a lithium-based ferrite having the general formula(Li.sub.2 O).sub.x (Fe.sub.2 O.sub.3).sub.100-xwherein x is not more than 16.7 mole % and a part of Li.sub.2 O and/or Fe.sub.2 O.sub.3 is substituted with at least one member selected from the group consisting of alkaline earth metal oxides.

Abstract: In a magnetic disk device having a composite head with an induction type of recording head adjacent a magneto-resistance effect type of reproducing head, a read error relief is provided to relieve read errors caused by Barkhausen Noise or Base Line Shift phenomenon inherent to the magneto-resistance effect type of reproducing head. Upon occurrence of a read error, a re-try function is first executed, and a track offset function is executed for relief of the read error. However, if the read error is not relieved after the offset operation and the re-try operation have been performed a predetermined number of times, then a pseudo write-in and/or read current control operation is performed together with the offset operation and/or re-try operation for a predetermined number of times. The control operation varies the magnetic domain structure in the head magnetic film (MR film).

Abstract: In a misfire detecting apparatus for a multicylinder internal combustion engine, a rotational signal outputting unit outputs a rotary signal at every predetermined rotary angle, and a tentative misfire decision unit tentatively decides, on the basis of the rotary signal, whether or not misfire has occurred in each cylinders of the engine. A tentative misfire number counting unit counts the number of tentative misfires decided for respective cylinders, and a counting result storage unit stores the counting results. After a given number of tentative misfire decisions have been made, it is decided that misfire has actually occurred, only if the counting result, for a part of the cylinders, among the counting results for respective cylinders stored in the counting result storage unit is larger than a predetermined number.

Abstract: An apparatus for detecting a misfire in an internal combustion engine for a vehicle includes a rotational speed change quantity computing unit which detects a rotational speed of the engine and computes a change quantity of the rotational speed of the engine, a misfire determination value correction coefficient setting unit which detects a load on the engine and sets a correction coefficient of a misfire determination value based on a result of detection of the engine load, a misfire determination value setting unit for setting a misfire determination value based on the set misfire determination value correction coefficient, and a misfire determining unit for determining whether a misfire has occurred in the engine by comparing the change quantity of the rotational speed of the engine from the rotational speed change quantity computing unit with the misfire determination value from the misfire determination value setting unit.

Abstract: According to the invention a powder of lead-containing oxides and a process for preparing the same for the production of an element for electrical and other applications are provided. The powder is prepared by mixing and calcining a powder of oxides of metals other than lead, lead-containing oxides, metal substances forming the oxides upon calcination or mixtures thereof, adding and mixing a powder of a lead substance to obtain a mixture and then calcining the mixture. The powder includes a Perovskite type lead-containing oxides of the formula of ABO.sub.3 wherein A is a metal element coordinated with 12 oxygen atoms and containing at least lead, and B is a metal element coordinated with 6 oxygen atoms. A phase containing the lead forms a skin layer of the powder.

Abstract: A method and an apparatus in which an engine is controlled by a microcomputer on the basis of a basic ignition advanced angle, an ignition advanced angle unit-correction value and a supplied air quantity unit-correction value stored in maps for providing a best fuel consumption corresponding to each of various running conditions such as an intake air quantity, engine revolution number, and the like, as well as on the basis of correction factors corresponding to running conditions such as stable running and unstable running. In order to obtain a best fuel consumption in a stable running state, the ignition advanced angle and the supplied air quantity are parallelly corrected by the ignition advanced angle unit-correction value and the supplied air quantity unit-correction value respectively while discriminating increment of torque so that this correction is successively repeated until a best fuel consumption is reached.