Abstract: A system used to detect and assay genes by using a nucleic-acid probe substrate is disclosed, which can be used in highly general-purpose genetic chips usable for various purposes, and has a temperature control means enabling control of temperature of the whole genetic chip in a high reproducibility and uniformity, and further even satisfies low-cost performance. A method for detecting and assaying gene nucleic acids by using such a system is also disclosed. A heat-conductive material made up using a material having good thermal conductivity, having a shape having general-purpose properties, is used as the temperature control means, and is disposed in such a form that it covers substantially the whole substrate face or stands in contact therewith, on the back of the substrate, or on the side facing the surface to which the detecting single-stranded nucleic acid fragments have been immobilized. This makes it possible to improve the diffusion of heat in the in-plane direction of the whole substrate face.

Abstract: An air-conditioning system for a vehicle, including a refrigerant circuit and an engine, has a battery, a compressor, an electric motor and a load torque control mechanism. The battery supplies electric power. The compressor is operative to compress refrigerant gas for the air-conditioning system. The electric motor is electrically connected to the battery. The motor is driven due to the electric power, and is operatively coupled to drive the compressor when the motor is energized. The load torque control mechanism responsive to the operating condition of the engine to control the load torque of the compressor below a predetermined value during times when the motor is driving the compressor.

Abstract: A scroll type compressor has a fixed scroll, a movable scroll and a plurality of sealing members. The fixed scroll includes a fixed base plate and a fixed volute portion, which is formed on the fixed base plate. The fixed volute portion is tapered and the corners of the proximal end of the fixed volute portion are arched. The movable scroll is arranged to be engaged with the fixed scroll. The movable scroll includes a movable base plate and a movable volute portion, which is formed on the movable base plate. The movable volute portion is tapered and the corners of the proximal end of the movable volute portion are arched. One of the sealing members is located on the fixed base plate. The other of the sealing members is located on the movable base plate.

Abstract: A Roots pump rotates a plurality of rotors by a pair of rotary shafts to draw gas. Each rotary shaft extends through a rear housing member of the Roots pump. An annular shaft seal is fitted around each rotary shaft and is received in a recess formed in the rear housing member. A helical groove is formed in a circumferential side of each rotary shaft. Each helical groove urges oil between the circumferential side of the associated shaft seal and the circumferential wall of the recess to move from a side corresponding to pump chambers toward a gear accommodating chamber when the associated rotary shaft rotates. This preferably prevents oil from leaking to the pump chambers.

Abstract: A variable displacement compressor includes a cylinder block and a valve plate connected to the cylinder block. The cylinder block has cylinder bores and a central supporting hole. A piston is housed in each cylinder bore to compress gas. A swash plate is connected to the pistons to convert rotation of the drive shaft into reciprocation of the pistons. A cylindrical body is housed in the supporting hole. A coil spring located in the supporting hole presses the cylindrical body toward the swash plate. The cylindrical body moves axially as the swash plate is inclined. When the swash plate is minimally inclined, the valve plate receives force from the swash plate through the cylindrical body. Therefore, axial forces from the swash plate are not exerted on the drive shaft.

Abstract: A Roots pump rotates a plurality of rotors by a pair of rotary shafts to draw gas. Each rotary shaft extends through a rear housing member of the Roots pump. A plurality of stoppers are located on each rotary shaft to integrally rotate with the corresponding rotary shaft, and prevent oil from entering a fifth pump chamber of the Roots pump. Stoppers have a circumferential surface, respectively. Annular oil chambers collect oil. The oil chambers are located about an axis of the rotary shaft to surround the circumferential surface of the stopper. This effectively prevents oil from entering the pump chamber of the Roots pump.

Abstract: A Roots pump rotates a plurality of rotors by a pair of rotary shafts to draw gas. Each rotary shaft extends through a rear housing member of the Roots pump. An annular shaft seal is fitted around each rotary shaft and is received in a recess formed in the rear housing member. A labyrinth seal is located between an end surface of each shaft seal and the bottom of the associated recess. This enlarges the diameter of each labyrinth seal, thus preferably preventing oil from leaking to a pump chamber.

Abstract: A control apparatus that promptly increases the displacement of a compressor after the compressor is started while liquefied refrigerant is lingering in an external circuit. The control apparatus includes a restricting passage. The restricting passage is located in a first pressure introduction passage, through which the pressure of the first pressure monitoring point flows to the control valve. The restricting passage decreases the pressure of refrigerant that flows through the passage. When the compressor is started while liquefied refrigerant is lingering in the external circuit and the pressure of the first pressure monitoring point is abruptly increased, the restricting passage reduces the increase of the pressure that is detected by the control valve. Therefore, the displacement of the compressor is promptly increased.

Abstract: A vacuum pump having a rotary shaft that is rotated by a drive source has a main pump and a sub pump. The main pump includes a pump chamber and a gas transferring body that is located in the pump chamber. The main pump is driven by the drive source through the rotary shaft for transferring gas to an exhaust space. The sub pump is connected to the exhaust space for partially exhausting the gas from the exhaust space. The sub pump is driven by the same drive source. The displacement volume of the sub pump is smaller than that of the main pump.

Abstract: A disk system that conducts diagnoses of magnetic heads at regular or irregular interval to detect occurrence of unwritable failure. The history of regions on magnetic recording media where write operations took place is managed and a region where an unwritable failure occurred is specified. Data that corresponds to the unwritable failure is recovered by taking advantage of the redundancy of a RAID system. The disk system includes a unit that, upon reading data, checks whether the data to be read was written on the magnetic recording media through a normal write function. Through this, old data is prevented from being sent to host devices as a result of unwritable failure, and unwritable failures can be dealt with without increasing the processing time to detect unwritable failures.

Abstract: When an electric appliance unit functions as an electric motor, a rotary shaft is rotated by electric current supplied to the electric appliance unit. When the electric appliance unit functions as a generator, the generator generates electricity as the rotary shaft rotates. A first rotation permitting mechanism is located between the rotor and the rotary shaft to permit the rotor and the rotary shaft to rotate relative to each other. A one-way clutch is located between the rotor and the rotary shaft. The one-way clutch permits the rotary shaft to rotate in one direction relative to the rotor and prevents the rotary shaft from rotating in the other direction relative to the rotor. A second rotation permitting mechanism is located between the housing and the rotor. The second rotation permitting mechanism permits the rotor to rotate relative to the housing. Power transmitted from the external drive source to the rotor is transmitted to the rotary shaft via the one-way clutch.

Abstract: A method and an apparatus for purifying water including groundwater contaminated with a pollutant such as organohalogenated compounds are provided. The contaminated water is purified by aeration to expel the pollutant into gas phase, and the pollutant containing gas is then mixed with a chlorine-containing gas under light irradiation to decompose the pollutant, where the chlorine-containing gas may generated from functional water by aeration.

Abstract: A torque limiter is placed between a first rotary body and a second rotary body in a power transmission path. The torque limiter has a breaking portion, a flange connected to the first rotary body and a connecting portion protruding from the flange. The connecting portion is screwed to the second rotary body at a predetermined value of fastening torque. The torque is transmitted between the first rotary body and the second rotary body in a relative rotational direction of fastening the connecting portion to the second rotary body. A portion of the flange belongs to the first rotary body after the breaking portion of the flange is broken. The portion of the flange forms a regulating surface for fastening the connecting portion to the second rotary body. The fastening torque is regulated by a contact on the regulating surface between the flange and the second rotary body.

Abstract: A plated copper alloy material for connecting terminals is provided which comprises a parent material of copper or copper alloy, a nickel layer and a copper-tin alloy layer. The nickel layer has a thickness of 0.1-1.0 &mgr;m. The copper-tin alloy layer has a thickness of 0.1-1.0 &mgr;m and contains 35-75 at % of copper. The material may additionally have a tin layer no thicker than 0.5 &mgr;m for an engaging type terminal containing 0.001-0.1 mass % of carbon, or thicker than 0.5 &mgr;m for a non-engaging type connector. The material meets requirements for capability of insertion with a small force, good electric reliability (due to low contact resistance) in a high-temperature atmosphere, workability for sharp bending without cracking, good solder wettability and good corrosion resistance to sulfur dioxide gas.

Abstract: A control valve used for a variable displacement type compressor. The compressor has a crank chamber, a discharge pressure zone, and a supply passage. The supply passage connects the crank chamber to the discharge pressure zone. The control valve is located in the supply passage. The control valve has a valve body. The valve body adjusts the size of the opening of the supply passage in accordance with the discharge pressure. The valve body is exposed to the pressure of the supply passage. The valve body moves in accordance with the discharge pressure such that the displacement is varied to counter changes of the discharge pressure. The direction in which the valve body moves in response to an increase of the discharge is the same as the direction in which the valve body moves when the pressure of the supply passage increases.

Abstract: A vacuum pump has an alternating current motor, a rotary shaft and a gas transferring body. The alternating current motor runs at a certain speed based on frequency of alternating current and is sufficiently supplied with the alternating current. Gas is transferred from a certain space by the gas transferring body driven by the alternating current motor through the rotary shaft. A method for controlling a vacuum pump includes keeping a rotational speed of the alternating current motor at a second predetermined rotational speed, detecting a value of the alternating current to the alternating current motor, keeping the rotational speed at a first predetermined rotational speed that is higher than the second predetermined rotational speed when the detected alternating current value exceeds a first predetermined value, and keeping the rotational speed at the second predetermined rotational speed when the detected alternating current value becomes equal to a second predetermined value.

Abstract: A compressor performing a compression action and having a sliding location where one member slides with respect to another member, wherein the sliding portion is formed with sliding layers comprised of a binder comprised of polyetheretherketone and a solid lubricant dispersed in the binder.

Abstract: A swash plate compressor provided with a housing internally defining and forming cylinder bores, a crank chamber, a suction chamber, and a discharge chamber; pistons accommodated in the cylinder bores to be able to reciprocate in them; a drive shaft driven by an external drive source and supported by the housing; a swash plate synchronously rotatably supported with respect to the drive shaft; and shoes at the front and rear of the swash plate for driving the pistons; wherein the shoes are mainly comprised of a magnesium-based material.

Abstract: A single-headed piston type swash plate compressor able to prevent wear of a coating when using a swash plate having a coating on a swash plate substrate to improve the slidability and in turn able to exhibit greater durability, wherein the swash plate is comprised of a swash plate substrate made of a ferrous material and a coating formed on at least one compression chamber side for improving the slidability with the ferrous material and wherein at least one shoe is comprised of a shoe substrate made of an aluminum-based material having a specific gravity smaller than that of the ferrous metal and coatings formed on the surfaces of the shoe substrate for improving the slidability.

Abstract: A rotary valve is used as a suction valve mechanism of a compressor. The rotary valve rotates integrally with a drive shaft to selectively open or close a suction passage of refrigerant gas from a suction chamber to a compression chamber in accordance with relative positions of the suction communicating passage and the suction guiding groove. An outer surface of the rotary valve directly slides on an inner surface of a valve accommodating chamber formed in a cylinder block, thereby constituting a slide bearing surface. The slide bearing surface rotatably supports the rear end of the drive shaft on housings. Accordingly, a piston type compressor which is comfortably used, inexpensively manufactured, and has high compression efficiency is provided.