Abstract: A method for producing a carbonitrided member comprising the steps of carburizing a steel part having a composition of, by mass percent, C: 0.10 to 0.35%, Si: 0.15 to 1.0%, Mn: 0.30 to 1.0%, Cr: 0.40 to 2.0%, S: 0.05% or less with the balance being Fe and impurities in a carburizing atmosphere of 900 to 950° C. The carburized steel part is carbonitrided in a carbonitriding atmosphere with the temperature of 800 to 900° C. and the nitrogen potential of 0.2 to 0.6%. The carbonitrided steel part is qhenched and then shot peened. The shot peening treatment may be further performed while heating to a temperature not higher than 350° C. or immediately after heating to a temperature not higher than 350° C. After quenching, the shot peening treatment may be further performed after tempering in the temperature range exceeding 250° C. and not higher than 350° C.

Abstract: A carbonitrided part, where a base steel contains, in mass percent, C: 0.10 to 0.35%, Si: 0.15 to 1.0%, Mn: 0.30 to 1.0%, Cr: 0.40 to 2.0%, S?0.05%, and according to need further Mo?0.50%, with the balance being Fe and impurities, and in the region to a position of effective hardening depth from the surface of a hardened layer of the carbonitrided part, iron nitride particles of ?-Fe3N and/or ?-Fe2N are dispersed, and retained austenite is decomposed into bainitic ferrite, Fe3C, and ??-Fe16N2 has excellent abrasion strength and high pitting strength, although the base steel is a low-cost one with less content of Mo of an expensive alloy element or without addition of Mo. This carbonitrided part can be produced, for example, by subjecting the base steel part to carburizing in which the base steel part is held in a carburizing atmosphere at 900 to 950° C. and successively to carbonitriding in which the base steel part is held in a carbonitriding atmosphere with a nitrogen potential of 0.2 to 0.

Abstract: If a failure is detected during operation of information recording in an optical disc apparatus, the optical disc apparatus stops the recording operation, changes the number of rotations of the optical disc to a low-speed value, seeks a selected recording region, performs OPC processing and trial write operation, measures a ? value as a result of the trial write operation, calculates optimal recording power based on the difference between the measured ? value and a target ? value and recording power set in the OPC processing, and starts the operation of information recording with the selected number of rotations for low-speed operation by use of the optimal recording power.

Abstract: To obtain optimum conditions for writing data on the disc. Provided is an optical disc drive for writing/reading data on/from a loaded optical disc medium comprising: a pickup for writing/reading data on/from the optical disc medium using laser light; and a controller for controlling an operation of the optical disc drive. The controller judges whether the loaded optical disc medium is unrecorded; records a first piece of data on a test area of the optical disc medium in a case where the loaded optical disc medium is judged to be unrecorded; determines optimum output power for recording the data by reproducing the first piece of data; records a second piece of data on the test write area using the determined optimum output power; and adjusts focus balance by reproducing the second piece of data.

Abstract: A cartridge, which is an attachment device, is mountable into an insertion slot 8 in a game apparatus. At a side surface inside the insertion slot 8, provided is a slide member 41 movable from a near side to a far side of the insertion slot 8. The attachment device includes a housing 11 and a hook 14. When the attachment device is inserted into the insertion slot 8, a predetermined portion of the housing 11 abuts against the slide member 41, and the slide member 41 is caused to move toward the far side of the insertion slot 8 when the predetermined portion is inserted further inside while abutting against the slide member 41. The hook 14 is protrusible from a side surface of the housing 11, and is inserted into a recessed portion (an air gap A1) generated at the side surface inside the insertion slot 8 when the slide member 41 moves toward the far side of the insertion slot 8, and then latches onto the inside wall.

Abstract: A hook 14 causes an attachment device (cartridge), which is mounted into an insertion slot arranged in an electronic apparatus such as a game apparatus, to be engaged with the insertion slot. The hook includes an arm 22, a ring portion 21 and a latch portion 23. The ring portion 21 is connected to one end of the arm 22. The latch portion 23 is connected to the other end of the arm 22, and is latchable onto a predetermined portion of the insertion slot. Further, the ring portion 21 is pivoted by a spindle 31 of the attachment device, and is shaped so as to be deformable when a force from the arm 22 is applied thereto, the force being caused by the attachment device moving so as to be ejected from the insertion slot.

Abstract: If a failure is detected during operation of information recording in an optical disc apparatus, the optical disc apparatus stops the recording operation, changes the number of rotations of the optical disc to a low-speed value, seeks a selected recording region, performs OPC processing and trial write operation, measures a ? value as a result of the trial write operation, calculates optimal recording power based on the difference between the measured ? value and a target ? value and recording power set in the OPC processing, and starts the operation of information recording with the selected number of rotations for low-speed operation by use of the optimal recording power.

Abstract: Soft-nitrided parts wherein a ferrite grain in the diffusion layer does not have a ?? nitride of more than 20 ?m in the longitudinal axis, which is made of a non-heat treated steel that has a chemical composition of, by mass %, C: 0.30 to 0.45%, Si: 0.1 to 0.5%, Mn: 0.6 to 1.0%, Ti: 0.005 to 0.1%, N: 0.010 to 0.030%, and the balance Fe and impurities, and that has a mixed microstructure of bainite and ferrite whose bainite fraction is 5 to 90% or a mixed microstructure of bainite, ferrite and pearlite whose bainite fraction is 5 to 90%. The non-heat treated steel may contain one or more elements of 0.001 to 0.1% of Nb, 0.01 to 1.0% of Mo:, 0.01 to 1.0% of Cu, 0.01 to 1.0% of Ni and 0.001 to 0.005% of B, 0.01 to 0.1% of S and 0.0001 to 0.005% of Ca. This invention provides machinery parts, based on this non-heat treated steel for soft-nitriding, which has further improved high fatigue strength and excellent bending straightening property after soft-nitrided even omitting thermal refining.

Abstract: A method of forming a powder metal fractured bearing component, such as a connecting rod, includes the step of forming a component blank having a bearing aperture for separation of the component blank into a main body and a bearing cap, wherein the component has a hardness in the range of about HRC 22 to about HRC 34. The method also includes the steps of forming a stress riser in the blank where the fracture is to occur, and fracturing the component blank of the connecting rod into a main body and a bearing cap by applying tensile force thereto, in order to form a surface area ratio of >113% on the mating surfaces of the main body and the bearing cap.

Abstract: A nitrocarburized microalloyed steel member consists of a microalloyed steel that includes a nitrocarburized layer on a surface, a cross-sectional structure of which steel except for the nitrocarburized layer includes a ferrite and pearlite structure. The microalloyed steel mainly consists of Fe and has a composition: C having a content of 0.30 mass % or more and 0.50 mass % or less; Si having a content of 0.05 mass % or more and 0.30 mass % or less; Mn having a content of 0.50 mass % or more and 1.00 mass % or less; S having a content of 0.03 mass % or more and 0.20 mass % or less; Cu having a content of 0.05 mass % or more and 0.60 mass % or less; Ni having a content of 0.02 mass % or more and 1.00 mass % or less; and Cr having a content of 0.05 mass % or more and 0.30 mass % or less. If the contents of the Cu, the Ni, and the Cr are represented by WCu, WNi, and WCr mass %, respectively, and composition parameters F1 and F2 are 185WCr+50WCu and 8+4WNi+1.

Abstract: A crankshaft is made of steel wherein straightening can be carried out with ease even though normalizing after hot forging is eliminated, and wherein cutting work can be carried out with ease even though lead (Pb) content of the steel is low. The steel is to be treated with ferritic nitrocarburizing after being machined to a crankshaft, and contains following chemical compositions: C: not less than 0.35 mass % (mass percentage) and not more than 0.45 mass %, Si: not less than 0.1 mass % and not more than 0.4 mass %, Mn: not less than 0.4 mass % and not more than 0.7 mass %, S: not less than 0.04 mass % and not more than 0.07 mass %, Ca: not less than 0.0005 mass % and not more than 0.0050 mass %, Ti: not less than 0.0050 mass % and not more than 0.0120 mass %, N: not less than 0.0042 mass % and not more than 0.0480 mass %, and balanced Fe and inevitable impurities, wherein Ti/N (the ratio of mass percentages of Ti and N) is controlled in the range of not less than 0.25 to not more than 1.

Abstract: A method of forming a powder metal fractured bearing component, such as a connecting rod, includes the step of forming a component blank having a bearing aperture for separation of the component blank into a main body and a bearing cap, wherein the component has a hardness in the range of about HRC 22 to about HRC 34. The method also includes the steps of forming a stress riser in the blank where the fracture is to occur, and fracturing the component blank of the connecting rod into a main body and a bearing cap by applying tensile force thereto, in order to form a surface area ratio of >113% on the mating surfaces of the main body and the bearing cap.

Abstract: A hub apparatus which has a plurality of ports for connecting a network portion including one or a plurality of communicating apparatuses and relays the transmission and reception of a communication packet between the communicating apparatuses through the ports. The hub apparatus has port information storing means for storing, every said port, port information regarding the network portion which includes at least information indicating whether the number of communicating apparatuses which the network portion connected to each port has is equal to 1 or a plural number, and means for determining communicating forms of transmission, non-transmission, and a state of the communication packet for transmitting on the basis of the port information corresponding to the port to which the communication packet is sent.