Abstract: A surgical knife which is formed with air vent holes in the vicinity of the cutting edge of the blade to provide improved sharpness during the incision without the possibility of incised living tissue sticking to the blade surface and improved visibility of the incised surface or cut region.

Abstract: This application is to provide a medical guide wire serving also as a catheter which requires only single insertion operation, and nevertheless by which it is possible to apply a pressure to a specified part on the internal wall of a vessel, to thereby expand the narrowed lumen, or to cut the part for removal, as well as to apply a therapeutic agent to the part.

Abstract: The present invention provides a sanitary western-style flush toilet in which stains are hardly adhered to a rim, and as a result, a nasty smell and the like are hardly generated. A western-style toilet body comprises a bowl portion and an open rim. The open rim has a rim channel in the inside thereof. At the rear of the western-style toilet body, a washing device which is capable of spouting water is formed. The bowl portion is washed by the water which is spouted from the washing device. An inward surface of an inner side wall portion of the open rim is an identical surface to a bowl face of the bowl portion.

Abstract: The present invention provides an open/close valve which contributes the stabilization of the operation responsibility. A housing has a water-in port and a water-out port. Furthermore, a piston which is slidably mounted in the housing in an axial direction by means of an external operation of a shaft, and a pressure offset means for offsetting the pressure which the piston receives from water in the water-out port to the other side are provided. The piston is attached to a seat face of the housing by being slided on one side in an axial direction to close the communication between the water-in port and the water-out port, and the piston is detached to the seat face of the housing by being slided on the other side in an axial direction to open the communication between the water-in port and the water-out port. The pressure offset means comprises a pressure offset room which is formed at the other side of the piston, and a passage for communicating one side of the piston with the pressure offset room.

Abstract: A valve assembly has a valve seat formed with valve holes which can be opened and closed by sliding a valve body on the valve seat. Its water stopping capacity is kept high after long, continuous use. Its handle operability is also kept high. A valve seat 6 or valve body 11 is made of a synthetic resin composition comprising 100 parts by weight of a polycyanoarylether resin, and 40-165 parts by weight of glassy carbon having an average particle diameter not exceeding 25 .mu.m. This resin composition may further comprise not more than 30 parts by weight of a fluororesin powder such as PTFE. Otherwise, the valve assembly may have a valve body 11 made of a ceramic material, and a valve seat 6 made of a synthetic resin having a land portion 12 formed on the center of its surface opposite the valve body 11. The diameter of the land portion 12 is smaller than the outer diameter of the valve body 11. Even if the valve seat 6 is deformed under water supply pressure, the land portion 12 can retain its shape.

Abstract: A secondary battery device charging apparatus includes a number of first terminals, a pair of second terminals, a power supply circuit, a switching element and a control circuit. The secondary battery device includes an even number of secondary batteries arranged with electrodes facing in mutually opposite directions, a middle spacer set up between the secondary batteries, a thermistor set up at the middle spacer so as to be thermally in contact with the secondary batteries, a pair of electrodes set up at the middle spacer and a uniting member for uniting the secondary batteries together into a single item. The pair of electrodes are arranged symmetrically with respect to the mechanical center of the secondary batteries and the thermistor is connected to the pair of electrodes. When the secondary battery device is installed, the number of first terminals come into contact with each of their corresponding second battery electrodes.

Abstract: A battery charging apparatus for charging a chargeable battery is disclosed. The apparatus comprises: a dc power source for generating a charging current; current control means connected between the dc power source and a chargeable battery to be charged; charging controller means connected to the current control means for controlling a flow of the charging current from the dc power source to the chargeable battery; and charging condition detecting means for detecting charging condition of the chargeable battery during charging operation. The charging controller means supplies control pulse to the current control means.

Abstract: Disk-shaped recording medium on which are recorded a first data signal, such as digital audio data, a second data signal in the direction of reproduction and of the disk, such as digital video data and computer program data, and identification data recorded in the read-in track for representing the fact that the second data signal has been recorded. It is possible for this recording medium to be reproduced by a reproducing apparatus which is exclusively used for a conventional disk-shaped recording medium on which the first data signal alone has been recorded. Also disclosed is an apparatus for reproducing the above-described disk-shaped recording medium.

Abstract: Digital data consisting of different kinds of digital audio signals having sampling frequencies, numbers of quantization bits and the like that are different from those of the two-channel digital audio signals, display data, program data, and the like are recorded in the same signal format as that of the two-channel digital audio signals. A code signal representing either of the two-channel digital audio signals and the digital data is recorded and control data indicative of the linear velocity of the digital disc upon reproduction are inserted in every frame of the recording signal. One block of the digital data is formed by a predetermined amount of data and the same control data used for controlling the processing of the digital data is recorded at least twice in one block. The digital disc is rotated at a constant linear velocity on the basis of the control data upon reproduction.

Abstract: A sludge condensation and dewatering apparatus is described which comprises a condensation unit and a dewatering unit. The condensation unit comprises a flocculating reaction tank (1) for forming a sludge flock, a first holding tank (2) slantingly arranged and upwardly inclined along the moving direction of the sludge, a conveyor for conveying the sludge flock from the flocculation tank to the holding tank for retaining the sludge flock produced by the flocculation reaction tank and an endless running screen belt (3) located just below and adjacent to the first holding tank, a dewatering unit, a solidification device (13) in communication with the first holding tank located between the condensation unit and the dewatering unit. The dewatering unit comprises an upper running piled filter cloth (4) and a lower running piled filter cloth (5), a plurality of rolls (R.sub.1 -R.sub.

Abstract: A signal processing circuit for improving the signal-to-noise ratio of input signals, such as audio signals recorded on tape, has a low-pass filter circuit for controllably filtering signals at the lower end of the frequency spectrum, and a high-pass filter circuit for controllably filtering signals at the higher end of the frequency spectrum, with the high-pass filter circuit and the low-pass filter circuit defining the only paths through the signal processing circuit for the input signals. Associated control circuitry provides first and second control signals to control the attenuation of signals at the lower-frequency and higher-frequency parts of the spectrum, respectively, in dependence on the amplitude of the input signals in the respective parts of the spectrum.

Abstract: An apparatus for thickening and extracting the liquid from a sludge comprises a sludge-thickening assembly wherein solid matters in the sludge are coagulated to form coagulated flocs and the floc sludge is separated and thickened, and an assembly for extracting liquid from said floc sludge under pressure to obtain a dehydrated cake. The sludge-thickening assembly comprises coagulation means for the sludge, a first and a second screen rolls having a reticulate material covering the outer surface; and the assembly for extracting the liquid comprises an endless moving flocked filter belt, means for supporting the belt, a cylinder forced to closely contact with an upper portion of said endless moving flocked filter belt, and at least one press roll urging said endless moving flocked filter belt against said cylinder.

Abstract: A system for handling pulse encoded signals includes several parallel signal paths to carry pulses on which a signal has been encoded. The encoding is based on a predetermined amplitude value, or weight, for each pulse, and each signal path receives all pulses having the same weighting factor. A switching system is provided to switch the signals received on the various paths to different paths in a determinable order at a repetition rate commensurate with the pulse encoding repetition rate. The signals are then transmitted along the signal paths and are then switched back to the original order for pulse decoding. If pulse bits are lost in the second path, an interpolation may be made to provide a reasonable restoration of the signal to minimize the dropout effect.

Abstract: A transmitting and reproducing system includes an encoder for selectively combining at least four signals for transmission along two channels. At least three of the signals are combined in a predetermined amplitude and phase relationship to form a first unmodulated signal and at least one of the three signals is used to vestigially modulate a carrier. The unmodulated signal and the modulated carrier are combined for transmission along one of the channels. A different grouping of three of the signals are combined in a different predetermined amplitude and phase relationship to form a second unmodulated signal, and at least one signal different from the first modulating signal is used as a second modulating signal for vestigial modulation of the carrier. The second unmodulated signal and the carrier modulated by the different signal are combined for transmission on the second channel.

Abstract: An amplitude adjustment circuit transmits an analog signal to an analog-to-digital converter. If the resulting digital signal reaches the maximum permissible digital value, a monostable control circuit is triggered to cause the amplitude adjustment circuit to reduce the level of the analog signal a certain amount. If the digital signal again reaches the maximum permissible digital value before the control circuit returns to its stable condition a second monostable circuit is triggered (and the first one is retriggered) to cause the amplitude adjustment circuit to reduce the level of the analog signal another amount. The unstable interval for the second monostable circuit is shorter than for the first, and, in the absence of further triggering, both such circuits return to their stable states in succession. The digital signals are used to reconstruct the analog signal in apparatus similar to the encoding apparatus and including amplitude adjustment apparatus controlled by the amplitude compression signals.

Abstract: A tape recorder comprises a noise reducing circuit provided at its output side with a first switch for changing over the circuit from its operative condition to its inoperative condition and vice versa and a second switch operatively connected to the first switch and for changing over the signal level. The use of the noise reducing circuit causes a decrease of the standard point of the recording level and an increase of the standard point of the reproduction level so as to increase the dynamic range of the tape recorder.

Abstract: A zone time display clock having a zone or locality appointing and displaying means having a form of a world map and provided with touch detecting terminals disposed on the world map and with zone illuminating means for illuminating the designated zone. The clock further comprises a reference clock, a time difference generating circuit for generating the time difference signals for the designated and the "home" localities with respect to the reference locality alternately, touch switch means for memorizing a touched place in the world map and activating the zone displaying means and the time difference generating circuit, time and date difference calculating means for calculating the time and the date difference for the designated locality with respect to the "home" locality, and display driving means for displaying the time and the date difference or the date for the designated locality.