Abstract: There is provided an acoustic apparatus whose front-side exterior appearance construction can be freely changed and which can be easily added with a new function. A freely detachable control panel 2 is provided to an acoustic apparatus body 1 mounted on a vehicle 101, and audio units Au-1, Au-2, Au-3 which are connected to the acoustic apparatus body 1 through the control panel 2 are freely detachably provided to the control panel 2.

Abstract: A lane mark recognition apparatus includes an image capturing means (30) which captures a color image (IM—0) of a road via a color video camera (10), a specific-color-extracted image generating means (31) which generates a luminance-extracted image (IM—1) obtained by extracting white-color data from the color image (IM—0) and a yellow-color-extracted image (IM—2) obtained by extracting yellow-color data from the color image (IM—0), and a lane mark detection means (50a) which detects a white line and a yellow line from a composite image (IM_C) formed from the luminance-extracted image (IM—1) and the yellow-color-extracted image (IM—2) and outputs position data (Pd1) of the white line and position data (Pd2) of the yellow line.

Abstract: A lane recognizing device comprises: an image processing means which performs a process of estimating a lane of a road by processing an image of the road and outputs a result of the process as first lane information; a lane estimating means which performs a process of estimating the lane using a map data of the road and the current position information of a vehicle and outputs a result of the process as second lane information; and an actual lane recognizing means which recognizes an actual lane of the road on the basis of the first lane information and the second lane information. Thereby, even if there is an unpredictable skid mark or road repaired part, it is possible to detect the lane accurately while increasing the opportunities for detecting the lane as much as possible by processing the road image and obtaining the road information and the map data.

Abstract: There is provided an image acquisition means (2) for acquiring a color image of a road via an imaging means (9) mounted on a vehicle (8), a lane mark detection means (3, 4) for performing processing of detecting lane marks of a plurality of predetermined colors different from each other on the road based on color information of the color image, and outputting a result of the processing as lane mark candidate data, and a selection means (6) for selecting lane mark candidate data corresponding to a lane mark defining an actual lane on which the vehicle (8) is traveling from among at least the lane mark candidate data for the respective predetermined colors output from the lane mark detection means (3, 4), and determining and outputting lane data indicating information of the actual lane based on the selected lane mark candidate data.

Abstract: An image processing system and the like capable of accurately recognizing lane edges defined by dotted lane marks are provided. According to an image processing system (100) of the present invention, a first processing unit (110) searches a road surface image captured by a vehicle-mounted camera for a “small area,” which is composed of high- or low-luminance pixels and satisfies “eligibility conditions” on the “size,” “shape,” and “arrangement” in the road surface image. Additionally, a second processing unit (120) recognizes “lane edges” of the lane along which the vehicle travels on the basis of the “small area.” Furthermore, a third processing unit (130) sets a “search range” of the small area searched by the first processing unit (110) on the basis of a result of the foregoing recognition of the lane edges by the second processing unit (120).

Abstract: To provide an optical disc device 1, and similar, equipped with a new mechanism to reduce laser light noise due to optical feedback. In an optical disc device 1 in which a laser diode is driven by a high frequency modulation method, optical feedback is returned to the laser diode at a timing at which the phase of the injected carrier density is within one of the following ranges: (1) equal to or greater than the peak phase of the injected carrier density of the laser diode, and equal to or less than the peak phase of the injected carrier density of the laser diode plus 3?/8 (radians); or (2) equal to or greater than the peak phase of the injected carrier density of the laser diode plus 9?/8 (radians), and equal to or less than the peak phase of the injected carrier density of the laser diode plus 2? (radians).

Abstract: An image processing system and the like capable of improving recognition accuracy of a lane mark are provided. According to the image processing system of the present invention, a first processing unit (110) recognizes a lane mark candidate on the basis of the luminance of each pixel in a road image. Moreover, there are evaluated a first index which represents continuity of an edge of the lane mark candidate, a second index which represents conformance between the width of the lane mark candidate and a lane mark standard width, and a third index which represents uniformity of the luminance of pixels contained in the lane mark candidate. According to the first, second, and third indices, a second processing unit (120) recognizes a lane mark candidate most likely to be a true lane mark as a lane mark.

Abstract: A vehicle capable of preventing detection of stud-type lane marks from being impossible and a vehicle having a lane mark recognizer are provided. The vehicle includes installation interval recognizing means (21) which recognizes an interval (L) between Botts Dots, vehicle speed recognizing means (22) which recognizes a traveling speed (v) of the vehicle, image synthesizing means (13) which generates synthesized image data (M3) by combining image data (M1) stored in an image memory (11) through an image input circuit (10) and image data (M2) stored in an image memory (12) through the same, imaging timing determining means (20) which determines the timing of imaging by a camera (2) on the basis of the interval (L) and the traveling speed (v) when acquiring the image data (M1, M2) in such a way that the positions of the Botts Dots in the image data (M1, M2) are different therebetween, and Botts Dots detecting means (14) which detects the Botts Dots from the synthesized image data (M3).

Abstract: A receiver apparatus capable of retaining the quality of video images received through complexity-reduced small-load processing without having to depend upon its associated transmitter device. In cases where an instruction is made for receiving streaming data in the process of performing the processing of download data, when the loss of such streaming data is predicted to increase in such a way as to go beyond a predetermined degree if both the processing of download data and the processing of streaming data are performed at a time, the receiver performs the processing of the streaming data by giving thereto a higher level of priority.

Abstract: A fuel shut-off valve includes a casing, an ascendable and descendible float, and an upper valve element, which is actuated by the float to open and close connector passage that communicates the inside of fuel tank with the outside, and which includes a valve body and a ring-shaped seat member. The ring-shaped seat member makes a connector bore, which communicates with the connector passage, therein, and includes a base, a holding portion, a seating portion, a lip-shaped portion, and a thin-film-shaped portion. The seating portion opens and closes the connector passage, and defines an opening of the connector bore. The lip-shaped portion seats on and separates away from the float, and defines the other opening of the connector bore. The thin-film-shaped portion is disposed between the base and the lip-shaped portion, and is deformable elastically upon being pressed by the float when the float seats on the lip-shaped portion.

Abstract: In the QoS control system of the wireless LAN network including the wireless LAN access points, and the wireless LAN terminals to be connected thereto, the wireless LAN access point authenticates the user on the basis of the recorded user's authentication information when the user carries out the authentication request from the wireless LAN terminal. The wireless LAN access point is connected to the servers to notify the wireless LAN access point of the information for identifying the wireless LAN terminal and the recorded user's QoS service content through the communication network. The wireless LAN access point and the wireless LAN terminal carry out the priority control in accordance with the priority information of the QoS service from the server. Even when the terminal to be used is changed, if the same user logs onto the certificate server by using the same authentication information, the same QoS service can be offered consistently.

Abstract: A therapeutic agent comprising fucoxanthin or fucoxanthinol as an active component is disclosed. The therapeutic agent is effective and high clinical utility for medical treatment and prevention of virus-associated malignancy such as adult T-cell leukemia and Burkitt lymphoma.

Abstract: A packet relaying apparatus comprises a payload type discrimination unit for discriminating the type of payload in each received packet, a payload reconstruction unit for dividing the payload in predetermined block size units and for reconstructing the payload in the predetermined block size units, and a controller for overall controlling the apparatus.

Abstract: A mobile communication terminal device which includes a plurality of different communication interfaces that are automatically switched for making a communication. The stable connection is ensured whether the terminal device remains at rest or is moving by monitoring positional information on the terminal device for a moving situation thereof to control a selection from a plurality of physical interfaces. This selection control involves selecting a connection to a narrow range communication such as wireless LAN which is inexpensive and stable when the terminal device remains at rest, and selecting a connection for a communication through a portable telephone which provides a connection over a wider range when the terminal device is moving. Also, a connection for a communication is automatically selected from the positional information, thereby permitting an automatic selection of a connection intended by the user.

Abstract: A portable terminal device suppresses increase in power consumption of a plurality of CPU while keeping favorable usability for the user of the device. The device includes a communication CPU to execute communication processing, an application CPU to execute application processing, a display to display an image according to a signal outputted from the communication CPU and/or application CPU, and a power supply to increase/decrease supply of power to the application CPU according to a periodical update interval of an image displayed on the display.

Abstract: A method of cleaning air, including a humidifying operation for humidifying the air containing chemical contaminants by a humidifier and taking a part of the gaseous contaminants in the air into excessive moisture to remove the contaminants from the air, and a dehumidifying operation for dehumidifying the humidified air by a condenser and taking the gaseous chemical contaminants remaining, without being removed, in the humidifying operation into condensed water for removal. By using an oblique honeycomb having both front and rear faces and both upper and lower faces disposed in open state, air is led from the front opening part of the oblique honeycomb and water is fed from the upper opening part thereof to one or both of the humidifier and condenser.

Abstract: A corrugated tube 30 has corrugated sections 33 in which a plurality of peaks 33a and valleys 33b are alternately formed. The ratio Wb/Wa of the peak longitudinal breadth Wa and the valley longitudinal breadth Wb, with reference to a base line BL established at a position midway in the height direction between the peaks 33a and valleys 33b, is 1.2 to 2.0. The valley 33b floor is formed as a straight portion 33c formed to virtually the same outside diameter along the longitudinal direction of the corrugated tube 30. The corrugated tube 30 stretches less under fluid pressure and has less bending rigidity, improving a better disposition.

Abstract: A switch device whose assembly is easily performed with a simple structure and that has low manufacturing costs includes a case having a rectangular-shaped long groove, a long operating knob held in a vertically movable manner in the long groove, a plurality of operating bodies provided in the longitudinal direction of the long operating knob and operated with the vertical movement of the long operating knob, movable contacts respectively provided below the operating bodies, and a base on which the movable contacts and fixed contacts are mounted such that they can come in contact with or separate from each other. When the long operating knob is pressed, at least one of the plurality of operating bodies is pressed, causing the movable contacts provided below the operating bodies to come in contact with the fixed contacts.