Abstract: Methods, devices, and systems for ultrashort pulse laser processing of optically transparent materials are disclosed, with example applications in scribing, marking, welding, and joining. For example, ultrashort laser pulses create scribe features with one pass of the laser beam across the material, with at least one of the scribe features being formed below the surface of the material. Slightly modifying the ultrashort pulse laser processing conditions produces sub-surface marks. When properly arranged, these marks are clearly visible with correctly aligned illumination. Reflective marks may also be formed with control of laser parameters. A transparent material other than glass may be utilized. A method for welding transparent materials uses ultrashort laser pulses to create a bond through localized heating.

Abstract: A method of fabricating an optical fiber preform, capable of depositing glass particles with high deposition rate without reducing deposition efficiency and fabricating an optical fiber preform having little bubbles using a burner having a simple structure, is provided. In the invention, a mixed gas of a glass raw material gas with a combustion assisting gas is ejected from an annular nozzle of a burner having a coaxially multiple tube structure, and a burnable gas is ejected from an inner nozzle located inside the annular nozzle. Alternatively, a mixed gas of a glass raw material gas with a burnable gas may be ejected from an annular nozzle, and a combustion assisting gas is ejected from an inner nozzle located inside the annular nozzle. In each case of the above, the burnable gas and the combustion assisting gas, respectively, are ejected from outer nozzles located outside the annular nozzle.

Abstract: A method of fabricating an optical fiber preform that can give stable and high deposition efficiency from the start to the end of the deposition when synthesizing a large size preform. When fabricating a preform by hydrolyzing a glass raw material gas in flame to generate glass particles and depositing the glass particles on a rotating starting material in the radial direction using a burner with a concentric multiple-tube structure having at least a plurality of small diameter combustion assisting gas-ejecting ports having the same focal length. L1 is made greater than L2 (L1>L2) during an early stage of deposition and L2 is increased in the course of the deposition so that L2 is greater than L1 (L1<L2), where the focal length is denoted by L1 and the distance from the tip of the burner to a deposition plane on the starting material is denoted by L2.

Abstract: A wireless communication system includes a transmission device, a relay device, and a reception device and is configured to execute direct communication of directly transmitting a wireless signal from the transmission device to the reception device without routing through the relay device and indirect communication of indirectly transmitting a wireless signal from the transmission device to the reception device through the relay device. The wireless communication system includes a controller configured to estimate a disconnection continuation time that is a time during which the direct communication is not executable in a case where the direct communication is not executable while the direct communication is repeatedly executed, continue to execute the direct communication when the disconnection continuation time is shorter than a threshold time, and execute the indirect communication when the disconnection continuation time is longer than the threshold time.

Abstract: A porous glass base material manufacturing burner comprising a combustible gas emission nozzle having one or more rows of small-diameter combustion assisting gas emission nozzles arranged around a central glass raw material gas emission nozzle. When a cross section of the burner formed by cleaving in a direction perpendicular to a central axis of the burner is divided into four equal regions by two orthogonal straight lines intersecting at a center of the cross section, total flow path surface area of the small-diameter combustion assisting gas emission nozzles included in two of the four regions through which passes a straight line running along the starting member and through the center of the cross section is less than the total flow path surface area of the small-diameter combustion assisting gas emission nozzles included in the other two of the four regions.

Abstract: A high-frequency transmission line in which the alternating-current resistance is low and that is hard to disconnect is provided. A high-frequency transmission line 2 is a high-frequency transmission line 2 to transmit an alternating-current electric signal, and contains metal and carbon nanotube, and the carbon nanotube is unevenly distributed at a central part 6 of a cross-section that is of the high-frequency transmission line 2 and that is perpendicular to a transmission direction of the alternating-current electric signal.

Abstract: A high-frequency transmission line in which the alternating-current resistance is low is provided. A high-frequency transmission line 2 is a high-frequency transmission line 2 to transmit an alternating-current electric signal, and contains metal and carbon nanotube, and the carbon nanotube is unevenly distributed at a peripheral part 8 of a cross-section that is of the high-frequency transmission line 2 and that is perpendicular to a transmission direction of the alternating-current electric signal.

Abstract: A golf club in a golf club set has a shaft and a golf club head which includes a crown portion, a face portion, a sole portion, and a hosel portion to which the shaft is attached. Among the golf clubs included in the golf club set, in at least a pair of golf clubs having adjacent club numbers, the length of the face portion, in the face-back direction in a plan view, of the golf club having a higher club number is larger than that of the golf club having a lower club number. The difference between the lengths is ?A mm. In the golf clubs, the face progression of the golf club having the higher club number is larger than the face progression of the golf club having the lower club number, and the difference between the face progressions is ?B mm. ?A and ?B satisfy (?)×?A??B?(?)×?A.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes a storage unit that stores therein a type of surface effect and predetermined glossiness in association with each other, a determining unit that determines, as first glossiness, the glossiness associated with the surface effect specified by the gloss control plane data, a measurement control unit that performs control to measure second glossiness indicating actual glossiness of a printed matter that is a recording medium on which printing has been performed by a printing apparatus, a generation unit that produces, from the gloss control plane data, gloss plane data for additional printing in which a density value is set in accordance with an amount of a transparent color material necessary for achieving the first glossiness on the basis of a difference in value between the first glossiness and the second glossiness, and an output unit that outputs the gloss plane data for additional printing.

Abstract: A radio station includes a weighting factor determining unit that outputs a value larger than one as a weighting factor when a traffic amount of an adjacent radio station positioned in a communicable range of the radio station exceeds a certain threshold, and a cost calculating unit that calculates a radio quality cost based on radio quality for each link between the radio station and each adjacent radio station, regards a multiplication result of the obtained radio quality cost and the weighting factor as a link cost when there is an input of the weighting factor from the weighting factor determining unit, and regards the obtained radio quality cost as a link cost when there is no input of a weighting factor from the weighting factor determining unit.

Abstract: A golf club set includes golf clubs with different club numbers and loft angles. Each golf club head of golf clubs includes a crown portion, a face portion, and a sole portion. The sole portion includes a front region and a rear region, the front region being arranged on the face side, and the rear region being arranged on the back side. The front region has a flat front surface, and the rear region has a curved rear surface continuous with the front region. Among the golf clubs included in the golf club set, out of at least a pair of golf clubs having adjacent club numbers, the radius of curvature of the rear surface of the golf club having the higher club number is smaller than the radius of curvature of the rear surface of the golf club having the lower club number.

Abstract: Provided is an optical fiber base material manufacturing method that includes, while rotating a starting member formed by fusing both ends of a core rod to dummy rods on an axis of the starting member, moving the starting member and burners back and forth relative to each other and depositing glass microparticles on a surface of the starting member. This method also includes setting two or more axes as back and forth movement axes allowing for back and forth movement relative to the starting member; providing a burner facing the starting member on each of the axes; causing each burner to traverse the starting member to an end of the starting member; and changing a position where at least two burners pass by each other during the traversing movement, in a longitudinal direction of the starting member.

Abstract: A wireless communication method includes starting, at a first wireless communication apparatus and a second wireless communication apparatus respectively, transmission of a wireless signal, when received power of a wireless signal transmitted from another wireless communication apparatus is smaller than or equal to a carrier sense threshold value, transmitting, from the first wireless communication apparatus, a wireless signal, and determining, at the second wireless communication apparatus, whether or not to receive a data signal following a first signal included in the wireless signal received from the first wireless communication apparatus, based on at least one of received power of the first signal and a transmission destination included in the wireless signal.

Abstract: An apparatus estimates an influence rate at which transmission of data to a first wireless communication device is influenced by a second wireless communication device that is undetectable by means of carrier sense. The apparatus determines transmission quantity based on the estimated influence rate, and detects a congestion state of the first wireless communication device. The apparatus transmits data to the first wireless communication device according to the determined transmission quantity when congestion for the first wireless communication device is detected.

Abstract: A valve opening-closing timing control device includes a solenoid valve having a solenoid mechanism provided with a spool having an oil path groove formed in an outer face thereof, and a sleeve for housing the spool to reciprocate and slide. A wall surface of the sleeve has a first port communicating with a first hydraulic oil supply section, a second port communicating with a second hydraulic oil supply section, and a third port communicating with the side of a hydraulic oil supply source. The spool is driven and set to a first position for supplying hydraulic oil from the hydraulic oil supply source to the first port, a second position for supplying the hydraulic oil from the hydraulic oil supply source to the second port, and a third position outside an area between the first and second positions to prevent supply of hydraulic oil from the first and second ports.

Abstract: A cylindrical rotor core 10 for a rotating electrical machine having magnetic steel plates integrally connected by laminating in an axial direction, and having magnet insertion holes 24, 26 formed for inserting permanent magnets inside, wherein the magnet insertion holes 24, 26 are formed extending in the axial direction in a core inner section in the vicinity of an outer peripheral surface 11c of the rotor core 10, and with openings formed in axial direction end sections of the rotor core 10, and a plurality of magnetic steel plates, including magnetic steel plates at outermost sides in the axial direction in which the openings are formed, are fixed by welding at inner wall surfaces 42 of the magnet insertion holes 24, 26.

Abstract: Methods, devices, and systems for ultrashort pulse laser processing of optically transparent materials are presented, with example applications in scribing, marking, welding, and joining. For example, ultrashort laser pulses create multiple scribe features with one pass of the laser beam across the material, with at least one of the scribe features being formed below the surface of the material. Slightly modifying the ultrashort pulse laser processing conditions produces different types of sub-surface marks. When properly arranged, these marks are clearly visible with correctly aligned illumination through either light scattering or light reflection and nearly invisible without illumination. Transparent material other than glass may be utilized. A method for welding transparent materials uses ultrashort laser pulses to create a bond through localized heating.

Abstract: A shifting device for a vehicle includes a rotary operating member and a base member. The rotary operating member includes a rotary shaft. The base member has a bearing surface around a bearing hole. The rotary shaft is fitted in the bearing hole, and the bearing surface receives an outer circumferential surface of the rotary shaft. A pair of flat surfaces are provided on the outer circumferential surface of the rotary shaft. The pair of flat surfaces are configured such that one flat surface of the pair of flat surfaces is located between a pair of circumferential end edges of the bearing surface, within a predetermined rotating angle range of the rotary operating member.

Abstract: In a shifting device for a vehicle, inner walls of a guide groove of a main body which are opposed to each other with a guide protrusion interposed therebetween are parallel to each other. The guide protrusion is formed with a width dimension that is reduced from a given position toward a proximal end thereof, so that an angle formed between a line that is parallel to a center axis of the guide protrusion and is extended from the given position toward the proximal end of the guide protrusion as an extension of a line on a side face of a distal end portion of the guide protrusion, and a line on a side face of the proximal end portion of the guide protrusion extending from the given position, becomes equal to a given angle. Thus, the side face of the proximal end portion of the guide protrusion is prevented from strongly contacting with the inner wall of the guide groove which is opposed to the side face, and stress is prevented from being concentrated in the guide protrusion.

Abstract: A display control device for a vehicle, which is applied to a vehicle provided with an outside camera to image scenery in front of the vehicle and a display portion visible and operable for a driver, comprises an optical-flow presumption portion which presumes an optical flow based on the front scenery imaged by the outside camera, an additive-display-line setting portion to set an additive-display line to be applied to the display portion according to the optical flow presumed by the optical-flow presumption portion, and a display control portion to conduct a display control for the display portion based on the additive-display line set by the additive-display-line setting portion.