Abstract: A delta-sigma modulator for use in power amplification of audio signals is configured by an integration circuit, a 1-bit quantizer, an output inversion inhibitor circuit, a delay circuit, and an adder. An analog signal is supplied to the integration circuit by way of the adder, wherein it is subjected to integration. An integration result is subjected to quantization by the 1-bit quantizer to produce 1-bit digital signals. The output inversion inhibitor circuit inhibits an output signal of the 1-bit quantizer from being re-inverted during a re-inversion inhibiting period corresponding to a preset number ‘N’ (where N≧2) of clock pulses counted after the timing when the output signal of the 1-bit quantizer is inverted. The output of the output inversion inhibitor circuit is delayed by one sample and is fed back to the adder by way of the delay circuit.

Abstract: In a self-igniting possible range, both intake and exhaust valves are placed in a closure condition for a period from the end of an exhaust stroke and the beginning of an intake stroke for establishing a negative overlap period in which a residual gas is pressurized to increase its temperature, thus raising the air fuel mixture temperature in a combustion chamber up to a self-igniting possible temperature. In addition, when a crank angle reaches a predetermined crank angle in the first half of an intake stroke, a fuel is injected from an in-cylinder injector into the combustion chamber. This fuel injected becomes a premixed air fuel because of being evaporated by the gas temperature in the combustion chamber, and on shifting to a compression stroke afterwards, the temperature in the combustion chamber reaches the self-igniting possible temperature.

Abstract: In a self-igniting possible range, both intake and exhaust valves are placed in a closure condition for a period from the end of an exhaust stroke and the beginning of an intake stroke for establishing a negative overlap period in which a residual gas is pressurized to increase its temperature, thus raising the air fuel mixture temperature in a combustion chamber up to a self-igniting possible temperature. In addition, when a crank angle reaches a predetermined crank angle in the first half of an intake stroke, a fuel is injected from an in-cylinder injector into the combustion chamber. This fuel injected becomes a premixed air fuel because of being evaporated by the gas temperature in the combustion chamber, and on shifting to a compression stroke afterwards, the temperature in the combustion chamber reaches the self-igniting possible temperature.

Abstract: A delta-sigma modulator for use in power amplification of audio signals is configured by an integration circuit, a 1-bit quantizer, an output inversion inhibitor circuit, a delay circuit, and an adder. An analog signal is supplied to the integration circuit by way of the adder, wherein it is subjected to integration. An integration result is subjected to quantization by the 1-bit quantizer to produce 1-bit digital signals. The output inversion inhibitor circuit inhibits an output signal of the 1-bit quantizer from being re-inverted during a re-inversion inhibiting period corresponding to a preset number ‘N’ (where N≧2) of clock pulses counted after the timing when the output signal of the 1-bit quantizer is inverted. The output of the output inversion inhibitor circuit is delayed by one sample and is fed back to the adder by way of the delay circuit.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a method of producing [S,S]-ethylenediamine-N,N′-disuccinate wherein a microorganism having malate isomerase activity or matter processed therefrom and a microorganism having ethylenediamine-N,N′-disuccinate ethylenediamine lyase activity or matter processed therefrom are allowed to act on a substrate solution containing maleic acid, maleic anhydride, or a maleic acid salt, and ethylenediamine, in the presence of at least one metal ion selected from the group consisting of alkaline earth metals, iron, zinc, copper, nickel, aluminum, titanium and manganese. The present invention enables to accumulate [S,S]-ethylenediamine-N,N′-disuccinate in a higher yield and at a high concentration within a reaction system using maleic acid as a raw material.

Abstract: A VCO has n inverters connected to each other in a ring, wherein the inverters have a depletion-mode FET. A selector control circuit produces a select signal based upon a threshold voltage of a selector depletion-mode FET to select one of an output derived from a (n−i)-th inverter, or another output signal derived from the n-th inverter. Because the selector FET and the inverter FETs are made using the same process steps and thus have the same device parameters, the selector FET has the same threshold voltage variation as the inverter FETs. Based upon the variation in the FET threshold voltage, the selected output is provided to an input of a first inverter. The VCO operates at a constant frequency by changing the total number of inverters in the ring to compensate for the variation in the threshold voltage of the depletion-mode FETs in the inverters, as determined by the depletion-mode FET in the selector circuit.

Abstract: A process for producing an [S,S]-ethylenediamine-N,N'-disuccinic acid alkali metal salt which comprises reacting fumaric acid with ethylenediamine in an aqueous medium in the presence of an ion of at least one metal selected from the group consisting of alkaline earth metals and transition metals by the action of ethylenediamine-disuccinic acid ethylenediamine lyase of microorganism origin, adding an alkali hydroxide to a reaction product mixture thereby to separate and recover the metal ion as an insoluble precipitate, and obtaining an [S,S]-ethylenediamine-N,N'-disuccinic acid alkali metal salt.

Abstract: This invention relates to a method for removing fumarase activity from a microorganism or processed product thereof having ethylenediamine-N,N'-disuccinic acid ethylenediamine lyase activity, which includes treating the microorganism or processed product thereof with an aqueous alkaline solution at a pH of 8.0 to 10.5 in the presence of at least one salt with a concentration of 5 mM to 1000 mM. The salt is preferably selected from the group consisting of sodium, potassium, ammonium and C.sub.2-6 alkanediamine salts of boric acid, phosphoric acid, hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid, acetic acid, oxalic acid, fumaric acid, maleic acid and ethylenediamine-N,N'-disuccinic acid, and mixtures thereof.

Abstract: A process for producing an optically active aminopolycarboxylic acid, such as S,S-ethylenediamine-N,N'-disuccinic acid, from a mixture of a diamine, such as ethylenediamine, with fumaric acid using a microorganism having a lyase activity, wherein at least one metal ion selected from the group consisting of an alkaline earth metal, iron, zinc, copper, nickel, aluminum, titanium and manganese is added to the reaction system. According to this process, aminopolycarboxylic acids, such as S,S-ethylenediamine-N,N'-disuccinic acid, or metal complexes thereof, can be appropriately and efficiently produced while improving the reaction yield.

Abstract: A voltage controlled oscillator is implemented by odd inverters forming a loop, and a depletion type load transistor, a depletion type frequency control transistor and a depletion type compensating transistor supply driving current to an enhancement type driving transistor in each inverter; the compensating transistor is controlled by a reference voltage generator implemented by a series of resistor and a depletion type load transistor, and fluctuation in a fabrication process equally affects the depletion type transistors; when the depletion transistors increases the driving current, the resistor decreases the reference voltage supplied to the gate electrode of the depletion type compensating transistor, and the depletion type compensating transistor cancels the increment of the driving current so as to make the voltage controlled oscillator less sensitive to the fluctuation of the threshold.

Abstract: A roulette-like ball game machine has a rotary disk with a plurality of pockets arranged in a peripheral direction and assigned a number respectively, and a guide circle provided around the rotary disk at a somewhat higher position and joining to the rotary disk through an inclined surface. While the rotary disk is turned, a ball rolled along the guide circle falls inside and enters one of the pockets to decide a prize number. In such a ball game machine, a plurality of operation stands are arranged around the guide circle, the rotary disk is formed in an annular shape having a large inner diameter, a large-sized picture surface is provided within the central space of the rotary disk and various pictures are projected on the picture surface by an image projector.

Abstract: An output of a TV camera for picking up an X-ray fluoroscopic image is supplied to an image memory. An output of an electrocardiograph is supplied to a cardiograph memory. The output from the image memory is subjected to subtraction processing to obtain an angiogram and the angiogram data is supplied to an image synthesizing circuit. The image synthesizing circuit reads out data of the latest several seconds from the cardiograph memory, and produces a cardiogram on the basis of the read-out data. A synthesis image, in which the cardiogram is superimposed on part of the angiogram, is displayed on a display. The outputs from the image memory and the cardiograph memory are supplied to a recording/reproducing processor. The image data is compressed, and both the compressed image data of one field and the cardiograph output data representing the cardiogram superimposed on the field image are recorded on a recording area of one filed image of a video tape.

Abstract: A key position computing apparatus for a player piano is presented which includes the following components (a) sensing device provided on each key and adapted for measuring a distance between a reference plane and a key surface for each key, (b) memory device for storing computer programs to compute the relationship between the output from the sensing device and the distance between the reference plane and the key surface, (c) programmable memory device for storing the characteristic operating data of the sensing device for each key, (d) computing device for computing the relationship between the output from the sensing device and the distance from the reference plane to the surface of each key, (e) gain adjusting device for adjusting the gain of the output from the sensing device to a constant value, and (f) linearizing device for approximating the output of the sensing device by a linearized signal.

Abstract: A recursive filter for reducing image noise, in which a subtracter calculates a subtraction between first and second images to obtain a subtraction result, and a factor table determines an addition ratio between the first and second images on the basis of the subtraction result, and in which an adder adds the first and second images at the addition ratio to obtain a third image. An image display apparatus including the recursive filter is also disclosed.

Abstract: A torque sensor for a pulley-belt driving system has a belt passed round a drive pulley and a driven pulley. The torque sensor has a frame having opposite ends respectively in contact with first and second parts of the belt, a beam secured to a stationary body and supporting the frame and strain detection means for detecting the strain of the beam.

Abstract: A display controller can display a cursor having sufficient contour irrespective of the background color. The display controller has two cursor pattern memories from which first and second cursor patterns are read in such a timing that the first cursor pattern is displayed at a selected position on the screen and that the second cursor pattern is superimposed on the first cursor pattern. The display controller also has two registers storing therein first and second color codes corresponding respectively to the first and second cursor patterns. The color of the first cursor pattern is determined by a color code obtained by subjecting the first color code and a background color code read from a video memory to a logical multiplication, and the color of the second cursor pattern is determined by a color code obtained by subjecting the color code of the first cursor pattern and the second color code to an exclusive-OR operation.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes an image memory for storing digital image data obtained by A/D-converting a video signal, an arithmetic circuit for performing an arithmetic operation of the image data so as to emphasize an edge, a first plane memory for storing the edge image data, and a second plane memory for storing binary data of all "1"s or "0"s. The first and second plane memories are addressed in response to address data from an address generator. The readout edge image data and the binary data are processed to paint the edge image. That is, the area surrounded by the edge line is painted with the binary data.

Abstract: A display control system can implement a gray-scale display of an image composed of a plurality of display dots on a display screen. A plurality of luminance data each representing an intensity level of a corresponding one of the plurality of display dots are first generated. Each luminance data is then converted into a pulse signal whose pulse number corresponds to an intensity level of the corresponding display dot represented by the luminance data. And, each display dot on the display screen is activated in accordance with a corresponding one of the thus produced pulse signals. To eliminate flicker of the display dots, the display dots on the display screen are grouped into a plurality of display sections each composed of a predetermined number of adjacent display dots, and if the display dots in one display section are equal in intensity level, these display dots are activated by the pulse signals which are equal in pulse-number but different in phase.

Abstract: A display controller displays an image on either of a CRT display unit and a liquid crystal display unit (LCD) having upper and lower screens in accordance with image data stored in a memory. When a CRT display unit is driven, an address generating circuit calculates at the beginning of each horizontal scanning an address of the memory corresponding to the leftmost display position on the current horizontal scanning line in accordance with the vertical position of the horizontal scanning line and the number of display positions on a horizontal scanning line, and stores data representing the address in a first register. The data in the first register is incremented in accordance with the horizontal scanning and fed to the memory to read the image data.

Abstract: A variable compliance manipulator comprising a five linkage structure in which one stationary segment and at least four moving segments are connected with one another through joints each having one degree of freedom, and actuators disposed on two or three of the joints and having a variable-stiffness property, wherein the stiffness of motion of the manipulator in working can be adjusted by detecting and delivering the change in angle of the moving segments to a servo system for controlling the actuators.