Abstract: The support stiffness of a suspension supporting portion can be improved to reduce floor vibration. Arm front-end supporting portions, each supporting a front end portion of a trailing of a rear suspension, are formed on lower portions of rear frames extending in a vehicle longitudinal direction, and each include a squared U-shape portion including outer, inner and front wall portions, with a rear side being open when viewed from the bottom, and an extending outer wall portion extending from the outer wall portion to in front of the front wall portion. The outer wall portion and extending outer wall portion are formed by a side sill inner portion joined to each rear side frame. Also, each arm front-end supporting portion includes an extending inner wall portion extending from the inner wall portion to in front of the front wall portion and joined to each of the rear side frames.

Abstract: The support stiffness of a suspension supporting portion can be improved to reduce floor vibration. Arm front-end supporting portions, each supporting a front end portion of a trailing of a rear suspension, are formed on lower portions of rear frames extending in a vehicle longitudinal direction, and each include a squared U-shape portion including outer, inner and front wall portions, with a rear side being open when viewed from the bottom, and an extending outer wall portion extending from the outer wall portion to in front of the front wall portion. The outer wall portion and extending outer wall portion are formed by a side sill inner portion joined to each rear side frame. Also, each arm front-end supporting portion includes an extending inner wall portion extending from the inner wall portion to in front of the front wall portion and joined to each of the rear side frames.

Abstract: The waterproof structure of an electrical junction box herein prevents water from entering into the electrical junction box. The electrical junction box includes a main body having a groove formed on an outer wall thereof and a tubular wire cover composed of front and rear split covers. Electric wires are passed downward through the wire cover and fixed to a lower portion of the wire cover using a tape. The wire cover is slidably engaged with the groove of the junction box main body. The waterproof structure includes a step portion as a water stop formed on a rear wall of the wire cover. The rear wall is arranged in contact with or adjacent to a back wall of the groove so that the step portion prevents water from entering into the electrical junction box from bottom along the back wall of the groove through the electric wire.

Abstract: The waterproof structure of an electrical junction box herein prevents water from entering into the electrical junction box. The electrical junction box includes a main body having a groove formed on an outer wall thereof and a tubular wire cover composed of front and rear split covers. Electric wires are passed downward through the wire cover and fixed to a lower portion of the wire cover using a tape. The wire cover is slidably engaged with the groove of the junction box main body. The waterproof structure includes a step portion as a water stop formed on a rear wall of the wire cover. The rear wall is arranged in contact with or adjacent to a back wall of the groove so that the step portion prevents water from entering into the electrical junction box from bottom along the back wall of the groove through the electric wire.

Abstract: There are provided a power supply device for an optical functional component that supplies power to the optical functional component with reliability for a long term and enables easy exchange of the optical functional component, and an optical functional module having such a power supply device, where the power supply device is provided with a reception electrode 104, a power supply electrode 107-1 that supplies power to the reception electrode 104 while holding tight the reception electrode 104 on its side faces and thereby holding an optical functional component 105-1 detachably, and a protecting member 108 that is made of an insulating material and surrounds the power supply electrode 107-1 to prevent current leaks, and the power supply electrode 107-1 is comprised of two bent metallic members (107-1a and 107-1B) which are in intimate contact with the reception electrode 104 by elasticity.

Abstract: There are provided a power supply device for an optical functional component that supplies power to the optical functional component with reliability for a long term and enables easy exchange of the optical functional component, and an optical functional module having such a power supply device, where the power supply device is provided with a reception electrode 104, a power supply electrode 107-1 that supplies power to the reception electrode 104 while holding tight the reception electrode 104 on its side faces and thereby holding an optical functional component 105-1 detachably, and a protecting member 108 that is made of an insulating material and surrounds the power supply electrode 107-1 to prevent current leaks, and the power supply electrode 107-1 is comprised of two bent metallic members (107-1a and 107-1B) which are in intimate contact with the reception electrode 104 by elasticity.

Abstract: A wavelength converter using difference frequency generation (DFG) is disclosed. In one embodiment, the wavelength converter comprises (a) a first optical filter configured to filter out one or more lightwaves requiring wavelength conversion from wavelength-division multiplexed (WDM) lightwaves, and (b) a broadband multi-channel simultaneous wavelength conversion portion comprising a pump source that generates pump light for use in the process of the DFG, a first optical combiner for combining said pump light with said filtered lightwaves, a high non-linear medium configured to generate wavelength converted lightwaves from said filtered lightwaves using the DFG, and a second optical filter for filtering said wavelength converted from said filtered lightwaves.

Abstract: The invention comprises three parts: The first parts provides a miniaturized functional optical module, which is provided with a lens-exchange type collimator enabling rapid and easy exchange of an optical functional component and/or lenses and being compact in size and excellent in durability. The second part provides a power supply device for an optical functional component that supplies power to the optical functional component with reliability for a long term and enables easy exchange of the optical functional component, and an optical functional module having such a power supply device. The third part provides an optical switch compact in size and greatly easy in handling, which is provided with a connector module having a plurality of optical fibers for light-beam input, a plurality of optical fibers for light-beam output corresponding to the plurality of optical fibers and a light-beam reflecting member.

Abstract: First and second optical fibers are opposed to each other, between which first and second lenses constituting a lens system having an optical axis coincident with those of the optical fibers are arranged with a gap therebetween in the direction of the optical axis. The actuators, ect are used to move the first and second lenses with electrostatic forces, in opposite directions along the optical axes of the optical fibers by the same amount at the same time. Thereby, the spot size of the light incident on the optical fiber on the reception side is changed while maintaining the light propagating between the first optical fiber and the second optical fiber point-symmetric in mode field shape. This changes the coupling efficiency between the first optical fiber and the second optical fiber, allowing an adjustment in light power.

Abstract: First and second optical fibers are opposed to each other, between which first and second lenses constituting a lens system having an optical axis coincident with those of the optical fibers are arranged with a gap therebetween in the direction of the optical axis. The actuators, ect are used to move the first and second lenses with electrostatic forces, in opposite directions along the optical axes of the optical fibers by the same amount at the same time. Thereby, the spot size of the light incident on the optical fiber on the reception side is changed while maintaining the light propagating between the first optical fiber and the second optical fiber point-symmetric in mode field shape. This changes the coupling efficiency between the first optical fiber and the second optical fiber, allowing an adjustment in light power.

Abstract: An optical waveguide device and a manufacturing method thereof are disclosed. The optical waveguide device includes an end surface having a substrate, a clad layer on the substrate and a waveguide in the clad layer. The end surface is connected to an optical fiber array having at least one optical fiber via adhesive. An end surface of the waveguide is sloped by a slope angle ? in a direction orthogonal to an optical axis of the waveguide. A notch part is formed on an end surface of the substrate. According to the present invention, it is possible to improve productivity thereof by shortening processing time required to process the end surface of the waveguide and strengthen bonding intensity between the optical waveguide device and the optical fiber array.

Abstract: An optical attenuator has first and second lenses provided individually on the respective end faces of first and second optical fibers that are opposed to each other across a space, and a shutter plate interposed between the lenses. The distance between the shutter plate and the second lens and a mode-field radius of propagating light on the second-lens-side surface of the shutter plate are set so that the respective signs of the real and imaginary parts of an evaluation function, representing a diffraction pattern of the propagating light that propagates from the first optical fiber to the second optical fiber, are inverted 60 times or more when a variable of the evaluation function is changed within an evaluation range.

Abstract: A sheet post-processing apparatus includes a pair of folding rollers for folding a transported sheet stack by rotation while nipping the sheet stack, a pushing plate for pushing the transported sheet stack into the folding rollers by advancing and retreating relative to the folding rollers, a stack transport upper roller and a stack transport lower roller (first load device) for applying a load to the pushing plate in pushing the sheet stack by contacting the sheet stack at an upstream side of the folding rollers, and sheet holding mechanism (second load device) having a lever for applying a load to the pushing plate in pushing the sheet stack by contacting the sheet stack at the downstream side of the folding rollers. An image forming apparatus is equipped with the sheet post-processing apparatus.

Abstract: A wavelength converter configured to filter out solely lightwaves required to be wavelength converted from the input broadband of wavelength division multiplexed (WDM) lightwaves, which are wavelength converted by use of four-wave mixing (FWM). Frequency interval of the input WDM lightwaves is broadened or reduced in comparison of the frequency interval of the WDM lightwaves inputted to the wavelength converted. The frequency interval variation techniques using the wavelength converter, it can be realized to transfer from transmission lines less influenced by inter-channel crosstalk due to FWM to the different transmission lines strongly influenced by inter-channel crosstalk due to FWM, and vice versa. In one embodiment, the invention employs difference frequency generation (DFG) instead of FWM.

Abstract: An optical attenuator (8) has a substrate (glass substrate) (1) and an optical attenuation film (2) that attenuates an input light with a predetermined optical attenuation factor, and the optical attenuation film (2) is disposed on a light input face (3) of the substrate (1). An angle defined by the light input face (3) and the light output face (4) of the substrate (1) is set to 0.15° to 0.5°. A protective film (5) for preventing the deterioration of the optical attenuation film (2) is formed on a surface of the optical attenuation film (2).

Abstract: A sheet post-processing apparatus includes a head portion for driving a staple into a sheet bundle, an anvil portion opposingly arranged to the head portion for receiving and bending the staple driven from the head portion, a feeding device for feeding the sheet bundle between the head portion and the anvil portion, a fixed guide member extending laterally and immovably positioned between the head portion and the anvil portion for guiding the sheet bundle, and an auxiliary guide member disposed on an upstream side of the fixed guide member in a sheet bundle feed direction of the sheet bundle fed by the feeding device. The auxiliary guide member projects from the fixed guide member to lead the sheet bundle to the fixed guide member without touching a leading edge of the sheet bundle fed by the feeding device on an upstream edge of the fixed guide member in the sheet bundle feed direction.

Abstract: A sheet post-processing apparatus includes a pair of folding rollers for folding a transported sheet stack by rotation while nipping the sheet stack, a pushing plate for pushing the transported sheet stack into the folding rollers by advancing and retreating relative to the folding rollers, a stack transport upper roller and a stack transport lower roller (first load device) for applying a load to the pushing plate in pushing the sheet stack by contacting the sheet stack at an upstream side of the folding rollers, and sheet holding mechanism (second load device) having a lever for applying a load to the pushing plate in pushing the sheet stack by contacting the sheet stack at the downstream side of the folding rollers. An image forming apparatus is equipped with the sheet post-processing apparatus.

Abstract: A sheet post-processing apparatus includes a head portion for driving a staple into a sheet bundle, an anvil portion opposingly arranged to the head portion for receiving and bending the staple driven from the head portion, a feeding device for feeding the sheet bundle between the head portion and the anvil portion, a fixed guide member extending laterally and immovably positioned between the head portion and the anvil portion for guiding the sheet bundle, and an auxiliary guide member disposed on an upstream side of the fixed guide member in a sheet bundle feed direction of the sheet bundle fed by the feeding device. The auxiliary guide member projects from the guide member to lead the sheet bundle to the fixed guide member without touching a leading edge of the sheet bundle fed by the feeding device on an upstream edge of the fixed guide member in the sheet bundle feed direction.

Abstract: The silicon substrate is masked on one surface of the silicon substrate where structures like combs and beams of comb drive are not to be formed on the other surface. The unmasked areas are then etched followed by masking areas on the other surface corresponding to the structures. Finally, the unmasked areas on the other surface are again etched by anisotropic reactive ion etching to form the structures.

Abstract: A sheet post-processing apparatus includes a head portion for driving a staple into a sheet bundle; an anvil portion opposingly arranged to the head portion for receiving and bending the staple driven from the head portion; a feeding device for feeding the sheet bundle between the head portion and the anvil portion; a guide member positioned between the head portion and the anvil portion for guiding the sheet bundle; and an auxiliary guide member disposed on an upstream side of the guide member in a sheet bundle feed direction of the sheet bundle fed by the feeding device. The auxiliary guide member leads the sheet bundle to the guide member without touching a leading edge of the sheet bundle fed by the feeding device on an upstream edge of the guide member in a sheet bundle feed direction.