Abstract: When a pulsating current is applied to an LED string included in an LED lighting device, and the number of LEDs caused to light up is changed, the LED lighting device is in efficient, since there are LEDs lighting up for a long period of time and LEDs lighting up only for a short period of time. The LED string includes LED string 407 that lights up for a long period of time and LED string 408 that lights up only for a short period of time within a period of the pulsating current. The element size of the LED 102 included in LED string 407 is different from the element size of LED 203 string 408. Thus, the amount of light emission per unit area LED string 407 may be equal to the amount of light emission per unit area LED string 408.

Abstract: When update information with respect to a first database or a second database is received, a database update control apparatus updates the first database or the second database on the basis of the update information. When updating the first database or the second database, the database update control apparatus associates pre-update data with an identifier that is added to the update information and retains them for each database. The database update control apparatus extracts, for each database from among the retained identifiers, an identifier that indicates the latest update information and specifies, from the extracted identifiers, an identifier that is the oldest updated identifier. The database update control apparatus reflects pre-update data associated with an identifier that is newer than that specified in a corresponding database out of the first database and the second database.

Abstract: The purpose of the present invention is to reduce the size and thickness of an LED module in which a plurality of LED dies along with other electronic components are mounted on a circuit board, and at the same time to stabilize the operation of the module with respect to source voltage fluctuation. The LED module includes: a circuit board; a plurality of LED dies that are mounted on one surface of a circuit board as bare chips and constitute a series circuit; an FET die that is mounted on the one surface of a circuit board as bare chips and controls a current flowing through the plurality of LED dies; and a constant current circuit that is mounted on the one surface of a circuit board and is series-connected to the series circuit. The constant current circuit includes the FET die.

Abstract: The purpose of the invention is to obtain, with a simple circuit configuration, an LED illumination device having an LED column driven by a pulsating voltage, capable of lighting with little flicker, and also having lighting control capability. The LED illumination device (400) comprises: an LED column (210) including a plurality of LEDs (211) connected in series; a rectifier (460) receiving an AC power supply (202) and outputting a pulsating voltage to the LED column (210); a current limit circuit (420) connected to the LED column (210) in series and having resistor elements (424 to 426); and a control circuit (250) for controlling the current flowing through the LED column (210) by controlling the resistor elements (424 to 426) and thereby controlling the lighting of the LED column (210).

Abstract: A polymer electrolyte fuel cell includes a membrane electrode assembly including an anode, a cathode, and an electrolyte membrane, an anode-side separator having a fuel flow channel for supplying fuel, and a cathode-side separator having an oxidant flow channel for supplying oxidant. The anode includes an anode catalyst layer and an anode diffusion layer, and the cathode includes a cathode catalyst layer and a cathode diffusion layer. At least one of the fuel flow channel and the oxidant flow channel has a plurality of parallel linear portions. The anode catalyst layer or the cathode catalyst layer has a plurality of belt-like first regions facing the linear portions and at least one second region between the adjacent first regions. The amount of catalyst in the first regions per unit area is on average larger than the amount of catalyst in the at least one second region per unit area.

Abstract: A first information processing apparatus includes a unit to attach control information to update processing data containing update differential data per storage device and a unit to transfer the update processing data to a second information processing apparatus, and the second information processing apparatus includes a reflecting unit to reflect the update differential data in the transferred update processing data respectively to one or more storage devices, an exclusion setting unit to set exclusion of the storage device given in a list of the storage devices when the first reflecting unit of the reflecting unit reflects the top update differential data in the update processing data, and an exclusion cancelling unit to cancel the exclusion when the second reflecting unit reflects the last update differential data in the update processing data in the storage device.

Abstract: The fuel cell system of the present invention includes: (A) a fuel cell stack including at least one unit fuel cell including a cathode, an anode, and a polymer electrolyte membrane interposed therebetween; (B) a detecting device for detecting lack of humidification in the fuel cell stack; (C) a water supplying device for supplying moisture to the fuel cell stack when lack of humidification is detected by the detecting device; (D) a heating device for heating the supplied moisture; and (E) a cooling device for cooling the supplied moisture. In the fuel cell system of the present invention, the fuel cell stack is humidified by repeating heating and cooling of the supplied moisture by the heating device and the cooling device, respectively.

Abstract: A cathode for use in a direct oxidation fuel cell (DOFC) comprises a gas diffusion medium (GDM) including a backing layer and a microporous layer comprising a fluoropolymer and an electrically conductive material, wherein loading of the fluoropolymer in the microporous layer is in the range from about 10 to about 60 wt. %. In use, a concentrated solution of a liquid fuel is supplied to an anode and an oxidant to the cathode of the fuel cell, and the fuel cell may be operated at a low oxidant stoichiometry ?c not greater than about 2.5.

Abstract: When an LED lighting apparatus which is a lighter load than an incandescent lamp or halogen lamp is connected to a dimmer, a malfunction may occur. The invention prevents the occurrence of such malfunction without defeating the purpose of low power consumption of the LED lighting apparatus. More specifically, the LED lighting apparatus includes a rectifier circuit, a light-emitting circuit connected to the rectifier circuit and containing a single or a plurality of LEDs in which current begins to flow when an output voltage of the rectifier circuit exceeds a threshold voltage, and a bypass circuit having a bypass path for making the current flow to the rectifier circuit without passing through the light-emitting circuit, and a detecting unit for detecting the current flowing through the light-emitting circuit, and wherein when the current detected by the detecting unit exceeds a predetermined value, the bypass circuit shuts off the current flowing through the bypass path.

Abstract: Disclosed is a fuel cell system that is capable of improved power generating performance and reduced size, and furthermore, is very safe. The system includes a membrane electrode assembly (MEA), a fuel tank, a liquid collecting tank, a two-liquid-joining unit, a first fuel supply unit, a second fuel supply unit, and a fuel filter. The fuel tank stores a liquid fuel. The liquid collecting tank stores a liquid discharged from at least one of an anode or a cathode in the MEA, as a collected liquid. The two-liquid-joining unit prepares a diluted fuel by mixing the liquid fuel and the collected liquid. The first fuel supply unit supplies the liquid fuel to the two-liquid-joining unit. The second fuel supply unit supplies the diluted fuel to the anode. The fuel filter, disposed between the two-liquid-joining unit and the anode, removes impurities in the diluted fuel.

Abstract: The amount of fuel supplied to a fuel cell is set to a second set value Qm2 smaller than a first set value Qm1 determined based on a load. Then, an output current Ifcr of the fuel cell with the fuel supply amount set to the second set value Qm2 is detected. The output current Ifcr is compared with a reference value Iref for determining mild deterioration to determine whether the fuel cell has deteriorated from the comparison result. If a determination that the fuel cell has deteriorated is made, the fuel supply amount is reset to a third set value Qm3 larger than the second set value Qm2.

Abstract: Disclosed is a fuel cell system comprising: a fuel cell including an anode and a cathode to which a water-soluble fuel and an oxidant are supplied, respectively, and a water-permeable electrolyte membrane interposed therebetween; a fuel tank; a first fuel supply unit which supplies an aqueous fuel solution to the anode; a second fuel supply unit which supplies the fuel to the first fuel supply unit; an oxidant supply unit which supplies an oxidant to the cathode; a temperature sensor which detects a temperature FT of the fuel cell; and a control unit which controls the first, second, and oxidant supply units, and the fuel cell whether to start or stop power generation. The control unit allows at least the first fuel supply unit to operate while the fuel cell is stopped from generating power, provided that the temperature FT of the fuel cell as such meets specific requirements.

Abstract: An highly bright and energy efficient FSC color liquid crystal display device incorporating a white light source is provided. The FSC color display device includes a first light source for emitting a light having a plurality of colors, a second light source for emitting a white light, and a light source controller for displaying a color image so as to control the first light source to repeat, in a predetermined cycle, sequentially making a selection from the plurality of color light sources to cause the selected color light source to emit a light, and to control the second light source so that the second light source emits a white light concurrently with light emission from the first light source.

Abstract: Providing a lighting device wherein provisions are made to be able to provide a sufficiently high dielectric strength while retaining the required heat-sink property even when a module substrate with a plurality of LED elements mounted thereon is reduced in size. A lighting device includes a module substrate on an upper surface of which are mounted a plurality of LED elements, a heat-sink member, having a raised portion, for dissipating heat generated by the plurality of LED elements, and an insulating sheet formed with an opening and interposed between a portion of the lower surface of the module substrate and the heat-sink member, and wherein the raised portion is formed so as to be located via the opening in close proximity to the lower surface of a region where the plurality of LED elements are mounted on the module substrate.

Abstract: A lighting device (10) includes a light source (22) that includes at least one LED element and a module (12) including a substrate (23) on that the light source (22) is mounted, and a holder (15) in that at least a part of the module (12) is arranged and held. The holder (15) includes a cylindrical portion (19) that includes a stepped portion (20) and a flange (21) of a heat conductor (18) extending from an outer peripheral edge of the stepped portion on that the substrate (23) is arranged, and the holder includes an insulation layer (16) that covers at least outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion (19).

Abstract: A direct oxidation fuel cell including at least one cell, the cell being a stacked body including: a membrane electrode assembly including an anode, a cathode, and an electrolyte membrane disposed between the anode and the cathode; an anode-side separator having a fuel flow channel for supplying a liquid fuel to the anode; and a cathode-side separator having an oxidant flow channel for supplying an oxidant to the cathode, in which the anode-side separator includes a first region including an upstream half of the fuel flow channel and a second region including a downstream half of the fuel flow channel, the anode includes an anode catalyst layer in contact with the electrolyte membrane and an anode diffusion layer in contact with the anode-side separator, the anode catalyst layer includes an anode catalyst and a polymer electrolyte, the anode catalyst layer includes an upstream-side region facing the first region and a downstream-side region facing the second region, and the content of the polymer electrolyte

Abstract: An object of the invention is to provide an LED drive circuit that can suppress the generation of harmonic noise. The LED drive circuit includes a rectifying circuit an LED array, and a current supply circuit which includes a capacitor and a time constant adjusting element, wherein the discharge time constant of the current supply circuit is set longer than the charge time constant of the current supply circuit, and wherein during a period of time when the magnitude of AC commercial power supply voltage is larger than the light emission threshold of the LED array, current to the light-emitting circuit is supplied mostly from the rectifying circuit, and during a period of time when the magnitude of AC commercial power supply voltage is not larger than the light emission threshold of the LED array, current to the light-emitting circuit is supplied from the current supply circuit.

Abstract: When a pulsating current is applied to an LED string included in an LED lighting device, and the number of LEDs caused to light up is changed, the LED lighting device is in efficient, since there are LEDs lighting up for a long period of time and LEDs lighting up only for a short period of time. The LED string includes LED string 407 that lights up for a long period of time and LED string 408 that lights up only for a short period of time within a period of the pulsating current. The element size of the LED 102 included in LED string 407 is different from the element size of LED 203 string 408. Thus, the amount of light emission per unit area LED string 407 may be equal to the amount of light emission per unit area LED string 408.

Abstract: The purpose of the present invention is to provide an LED lighting circuit, which can normally light an LED even if an alternating current power supply is an electronic transformer, an LED illuminating device, and a socket for an LED illuminating unit. Disclosed is an LED lighting circuit includes a rectifier circuit for rectifying an AC output from an AC power supply, an LED drive unit, which drives the LED by having rectifying output inputted thereto from the rectifying circuit, a reverse current preventing unit, which is provided between the rectifying circuit and the LED drive unit, and a terminal voltage control unit, which reduces the output terminal voltage of the rectifying circuit in the case where the alternating current output from the alternating current power supply is unstable or stopped. Also provided are an LED illuminating device, and a socket for an LED illuminating unit.