Abstract: A sole constituting a part of footwear includes a shock-absorbing part provided at least in a rearfoot region, the shock-absorbing part cushioning an impact applied to a heel of a foot upon landing, and a support part provided at least in a midfoot region, the support part being higher in rigidity than the shock-absorbing part and supporting a midfoot portion of the foot, the support part includes a support surface, the support surface being provided forward of the shock-absorbing part and having a shape extending from one end to the other end in a width direction, and the shock-absorbing part includes a recessed surface located at a height position lower than the support surface, and a plurality of columnar bodies each having a shape extending from the recessed surface to a height position identical in height to the support surface.

Abstract: An upper includes an upper main body that covers an instep of a foot. A first region and a second region adjacent to the first region are formed in the upper main body . The upper main body includes: a first linear body provided across the first region and the second region or provided only in the second region; and a second linear body provided in the first region while avoiding the second region and having an end located at a boundary portion between the first region and the second region. The first linear body and the second linear body have mutually different stretchability.

Abstract: A shoe sole includes a body portion and a heel holding portion. The heel holding portion is located opposite to a ground contact surface of the body portion and holds a heel portion of a foot at least from a medial foot side. The body portion includes a low hardness portion and a high hardness portion. The high hardness portion is a foam material harder than a foam material of the low hardness portion. The heel holding portion is a resin harder than the foam material of the low hardness portion and the foam material of the high hardness portion. On the medial foot side in a rear foot portion, the low hardness portion is located between the heel holding portion and the high hardness portion in an up-down direction.

Abstract: A conveyance device includes: moving members 3A and 3B that move along a table 7 for disposing an article 5 thereon; shafts 21A and 21B that are rotatably connected to the moving members 3A and 3B; a contact member 22 configured to come into contact with the article 5, the contact member 22 being connected to the shafts 21A and 21B; inhibiting mechanisms 23A and 23B that inhibit rotation of the shafts 21A and 21B so that the contact member 22 is held above the article 5, the inhibiting mechanisms 23A and 23B being disposed at the moving members 3A and 3B; and dogs 24A and 24B that come into contact, at a predetermined location with the inhibiting mechanisms 23A and 23B to deactivate inhibition of rotation of the shafts 21A and 21B by the inhibiting mechanisms 23A and 23B, thereby lowering the contact member 22 toward the table 7.

Abstract: A conveyance device includes: moving members 3A and 3B that move along a table 7 for disposing an article 5 thereon; shafts 21A and 21B that are rotatably connected to the moving members 3A and 3B; a contact member 22 configured to come into contact with the article 5, the contact member 22 being connected to the shafts 21A and 21B; inhibiting mechanisms 23A and 23B that inhibit rotation of the shafts 21A and 21B so that the contact member 22 is held above the article 5, the inhibiting mechanisms 23A and 23B being disposed at the moving members 3A and 3B; and dogs 24A and 24B that come into contact, at a predetermined location with the inhibiting mechanisms 23A and 23B to deactivate inhibition of rotation of the shafts 21A and 21B by the inhibiting mechanisms 23A and 23B, thereby lowering the contact member 22 toward the table 7.

Abstract: A transport apparatus includes a moving member, a shaft, a contact member, and an air damper. The moving member is moved along a table where an article is to be disposed. The shaft is rotatably connected to the moving member. The contact member is connected to the shaft and is to be brought into contact with the article. The air damper attenuates kinetic energy of the contact member and the shaft while the contact member and the shaft are being moved down toward the table.

Abstract: An upper including: a cord placed along the longitudinal direction, the cord running through the through holes of the reinforcement members of the medial side portion and/or the lateral side portion; exposed areas in which portions of the cord are placed exposed; and a shoelace engaging with the cord in the exposed areas in a transverse direction of the foot so as to bring the medial side portion and the lateral side portion closer to each other, wherein each of the upper end portions of at least one reinforcement member is attached to the flexible member in one of a fore portion and a rear portion, and is set to be un-attached to the flexible member in the other one of the fore portion and the rear portion.

Abstract: An upper including: a cord placed along the longitudinal direction, the cord running through the through holes of the reinforcement members of the medial side portion and/or the lateral side portion; exposed areas in which portions of the cord are placed exposed; and a shoelace engaging with the cord in the exposed areas in a transverse direction of the foot so as to bring the medial side portion and the lateral side portion closer to each other, wherein each of the upper end portions of at least one reinforcement member is attached to the flexible member in one of a fore portion and a rear portion, and is set to be un-attached to the flexible member in the other one of the fore portion and the rear portion.

Abstract: The lighting apparatus in accordance with the present invention includes a dimming control unit configured to control, in accordance with a dimming ratio, a light source including a plurality of light emitting elements designed to emit light in response to DC power. The dimming control unit is configured to, when the dimming ratio falls within a first dimming range, vary supply power to the light source in accordance with the dimming ratio. The dimming control unit is configured to, when the dimming ratio falls within a second dimming range different from the first dimming range, vary, in accordance with the dimming ratio, a lighting number defined as the number of the light emitting elements to be lit.

Abstract: In a thermoelectric device, a thermoelectric element has one surface on a low temperature side and the other surface on a high temperature side. A member is attached to at least one of the low- and high-temperature-side surfaces of the thermoelectric element. A temperature detection element is provided between the member and the surface of the thermoelectric element to which the member is attached. A mirror surface state detection device is also disclosed.

Abstract: Very small projections (10-2) are arranged on a mirror surface (10-1) of a mirror (10). The shape of a projection (10-2) is not limited to a circular cone, but it can be a hollow-cylindrical shape, semispherical shape, or square prism shape, and also, it can be a polyhedron with many faces. With a reduction in temperature of the mirror (10), water vapor contained in a gas to be measured condenses on the mirror surface (10-1) of the mirror (10). In this case, because of the very small projections (10-2) on the mirror surface (10-1), the condensation is promoted by the projections (10-2) serving as the cores. This facilitates condensation even at low dew points and improves response. Further, the size of condensation products does not easily vary relative to variation in flow speed of the gas to be measured, and this makes equilibrium of condensation less likely to break, increasing measurement accuracy.

Abstract: The long-side surface of a triangular prism is a detection surface. The distal end portions of coaxial light-emitting/light-receiving optical fiber cables are joined to one short-side surface of the prism. A thermoelectric cooling element is mounted on the other short-side surface of the prism. A mirror is provided between the cooling surface of the thermoelectric cooling element and the short-side surface. When dew condensation occurs on the detection surface, part of light applied from an optical fiber on the light-emitting side onto the lower surface of the detection surface exits from the prism through the condensed dew. The specular reflection returns to the lower detection surface by a mirror surface and is specularly reflected again. The specular reflection then enters an optical fiber on the light-emitting side. Dew condensation on the detection surface is detected by a change in the intensity of light received through the optical fiber.

Abstract: Electrodeless discharge lamp lighting device. Start circuit 19 sweeps operating frequency of resonance circuit 16 from start frequency to end frequency of resonance frequency side through drive circuit 18 and DC/AC conversion circuit 15, and starts electrodeless discharge lamp 13. Control circuit 10 increases or decreases variable power into circuit 18 so that detection current comes to equal prescribed current for shifting the operating frequency to middle range frequency between the start frequency and the end frequency. The prescribed current is set so that the detection voltage in case of the middle range frequency becomes lower than that in case of the end frequency. Capacitor 106 constituting integration circuit starts suppression of operation of circuit 10 when lamp 13 is started, and holds the suppression during at least start mode. Accordingly, it is possible to stably start lamp 13 and control stress on circuit(s) after lamp 13 is successfully started.

Abstract: A ballast for an electrodeless discharge lamp includes a high frequency power supply that supplies a high frequency electric power to an induction coil for operating the lamp. A dimmer controller generates a control signal in response to a dimmer command designating a varying dimming ratio. The control signal defines a first period Ton in which the power supply is controlled to apply a coil voltage of a first level V1 to the induction coil for operating the lamp. The first period is followed by a second period Toff in which the power supply is controlled to apply the coil voltage of a second level V2 that is lower than the first level and fails to sustain the lamp. The control signal defines, between the second period and the first period, a starting period Tst in which the coil voltage increases continuously for smooth transition from an off-condition to an on-condition of the lamp.

Abstract: A plurality of minute projections (10-2) are provided on a mirror surface (10-1) of a mirror (10). The shape of a projection (10-2) is not limited to a conical shape, and may be a cylindrical shape, semispherical shape, quadratic prism shape, and the like. Furthermore, the shape may be a polyhedral shape with many surfaces. With a reduction in the temperature of the mirror (10), water vapor contained in a gas to be measured condenses on the mirror surface (10-1). In this case, because of the minute projections (10-2) on the mirror surface (10-1) of the mirror (10), the condensation is promoted by the projections (10-2) serving as nuclei. This facilitates condensation even at low dew points and improves responsiveness. Further, the sizes of condensed dew drops do not easily vary relative to variation in the flow rate of the gas to be measured, and this makes the equilibrium state of condensation unlikely to break, increasing measurement accuracy.

Abstract: A cooled mirror dew-point hygrometer includes a thermoelectric cooling element, mirror, light-emitting unit, light-receiving unit, temperature detector, dew-point increase detector, and control unit. The control unit forcibly supplies a current to the thermoelectric cooling element in a direction reverse to a positive direction when the dew-point increase detector detects a rise in dew point.

Abstract: The long-side surface of a triangular prism is a detection surface. The distal end portions of coaxial light-emitting/light-receiving optical fiber cables are joined to one short-side surface of the prism. A thermoelectric cooling element is mounted on the other short-side surface of the prism. A mirror is provided between the cooling surface of the thermoelectric cooling element and the short-side surface. When dew condensation occurs on the detection surface, part of light applied from an optical fiber on the light-emitting side onto the lower surface of the detection surface exits from the prism through the condensed dew. The specular reflection returns to the lower detection surface by a mirror surface and is specularly reflected again. The specular reflection then enters an optical fiber on the light-emitting side. Dew condensation on the detection surface is detected by a change in the intensity of light received through the optical fiber.

Abstract: Electrodeless discharge lamp lighting device. Start circuit 19 sweeps operating frequency of resonance circuit 16 from start frequency to end frequency of resonance frequency side through drive circuit 18 and DC/AC conversion circuit 15, and starts electrodeless discharge lamp 13. Control circuit 10 increases or decreases variable power into circuit 18 so that detection current comes to equal prescribed current for shifting the operating frequency to middle range frequency between the start frequency and the end frequency. The prescribed current is set so that the detection voltage in case of the middle range frequency becomes lower than that in case of the end frequency. Capacitor 106 constituting integration circuit starts suppression of operation of circuit 10 when lamp 13 is started, and holds the suppression during at least start mode. Accordingly, it is possible to stably start lamp 13 and control stress on circuit(s) after lamp 13 is successfully started.

Abstract: In a mirror surface state detection device, a light-emitting element obliquely irradiates the mirror surface of a mirror with light. A light-receiving element is arranged adjacent to the light-emitting element to have an optical axis almost parallel to that of the light-emitting element and a tilt angle almost equal to that of the light-emitting element and receives scattered light of the light emitted from the light-emitting element. A condensation detection unit detects the state on the mirror surface on the basis of the scattered light received by the light-receiving element. A moisture detection device is also disclosed.