Abstract: A bill discriminating and counting apparatus in which a plurality of bills with different sizes are filled between side hopper members and fed into a transport path by a feeding mechanism. The feeding mechanism comprises a plurality of rollers disposed in a bilaterally symmetrical state. The plurality of rollers are arranged so that, when a distance between the side hopper members is adjusted according to the longitudinal dimension of a bill with the maximum dimension in the longitudinal direction and a bill with the minimum dimension in the longitudinal direction is disposed at a position where the bill is brought into contact with one of the side hopper members, at least a part of the rollers installed on the opposite side of the side hopper member where the bill is brought into contact therewith is brought into contact with the bill. Also, the feeding mechanism comprises a guide member guiding the bill to the inlet of the transport path.

Abstract: A paper sheet handling machine 1 comprises a casing 92 and at least two stacking units 30, 40 provided in the casing 92. Each stacking unit 30, 40 is configured to stack therein paper sheets respectively taken in the casing 92 by a take-in unit 10. From among the paper sheets transported by a transport unit 20, the paper sheets, each judged to be stored in the stacking unit 30 or 40 by a recognition unit 28, are diverted from the transport unit 20 and fed into the stacking unit 30 or 40, by each diverter 60, 62. A reject unit 50 is connected with the transport unit 20 on the downstream side of the diverters 60, 62. To the reject unit 50, the paper sheets that are not diverted from the transport unit 20 by the respective diverters 60, 62 are fed.

Abstract: An optical element mounting method includes: illuminating ultraviolet light onto a polymer optical waveguide device; under the ultraviolet light illumination, capturing, by an image pickup device, the polymer optical waveguide device including a light incident/exiting position of a waveguide core; and judging, from a difference between bright and dark in a captured image, that a portion brighter than other portions or a portion darker than other portions is the light incident/exiting position of the waveguide core.

Abstract: The present invention provides a paper sheet handling machine 1 configured to take therein paper sheets from the exterior and then storing the paper sheets in the interior thereof. This paper sheet handling machine 1 includes storage spaces 30p, 40p respectively provided therein. Each storage space 30p, 40p is configured to store therein the paper sheets taken in the machine 1 from the exterior, in a stacked condition. Further, the paper sheet handling machine 1 includes stacking units 30, 40, each having an opening provided in one side face thereof for allowing the paper sheets stored in each storage space 30p, 40p to be taken out, and a transport unit 20 configured to transport the paper sheets taken in the machine 1 from the exterior, toward each of the stacking units 30, 40. In addition, pushing units, each configured to push the paper sheets stored in each storage space 30p, 40p of the stacking unit 30 or 40 toward the opening, are provided to the paper sheet handling machine 1.

Abstract: An optical waveguide includes: a core portion through which light propagates; a cladding portion enclosing the core portion along a direction of light propagation, and a colored resin for position recognition marking, the optical waveguide having substantially planar outer surfaces including principal surfaces thereof, and the colored resin being embedded in the optical waveguide at a position that does not substantially overlap the core portion when viewed from a direction perpendicular to a principal surface of the optical waveguide and does not substantially contact the core portion.

Abstract: An optical waveguide film includes: an optical waveguide film main body including an optical waveguide core through which light travels and a cladding portion that surrounds the optical waveguide core and has a lower refractive index than that of the optical waveguide core; an electric wiring portion including silver or a silver alloy and formed on at least a part of a principal surface of the optical waveguide film main body; and a protective layer including a titanium layer or a titanium alloy layer and disposed to cover the electric wiring portion.

Abstract: A method of fabricating a polymer optical circuit is provided. The method includes structuring a mold with a main mold and an auxiliary mold. The main mold has a first concavity corresponding to a first portion of the waveguide core, a second concavity corresponding to an end portion of the waveguide core with a specific shape, an injection hole for injecting a resin into the concavities, and a suction hole for suctioning-out the resin. The auxiliary mold has a shape corresponding to the specific shape of the end portion of the waveguide core. The method also includes firmly sticking a clad base film to a surface of the mold where the concavities are formed; filling the concavities with resin by injecting the resin via the injection hole and suctioning the resin via the suction hole; and forming the waveguide core by curing the resin.

Abstract: A polymer optical waveguide includes: at least one core through which light propagates; a cladding which surrounds the core and has a refractive index less than that of the core; at least one conductive wire being provided on at least one side of the cladding, the polymer optical waveguide having a sheet shape, the conductive wire including a conductive layer which is provided on the at least one side of the cladding and being partitioned by a first groove, and the core being formed between second grooves each of which is formed in at least a part of the first groove.

Abstract: An optical waveguide comprising: a waveguide core through which light propagates; a cladding that surrounds the waveguide core and has a refractive index that is less than the refractive index of the waveguide core; a metal layer that is formed on a surface of at least one end of the optical waveguide in a longitudinal direction, the surface being inclined so as not to be perpendicular to the longitudinal direction; and a channel that is formed at a portion of an outer surface of the cladding, the outer surface forming an acute angle with the inclined surface, and the channel being positioned such that light entering the optical waveguide adjacent the channel is reflected by the inclined surface into the waveguide core.

Abstract: An optical waveguide device includes: a waveguide core that guides light; a mirror surface that deflects light coming from the waveguide core by 90°; a main waveguide core that guides light deflected at the mirror surface; a waveguide core for monitoring that branches the light deflected at the mirror surface off from the main waveguide core, and guides the light in a different direction, the mirror surface being disposed at a branching portion of the waveguide core for monitoring; and a clad portion that surrounds the waveguide core, the main waveguide core and the waveguide core for monitoring.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method for producing a retardation film of a polypropylene resin, the method comprising subjecting a film of a polypropylene resin to longitudinal stretching and transverse stretching which are performed sequentially, wherein the transverse stretching comprises the following steps, and a polypropylene resin retardation film which is obtained by such a method and has both a high axial retardation and a uniform retardation: a step of preheating the film at a preheating temperature which is equal to or higher than the melting point of the polypropylene resin; a step of stretching the preheated film in the transverse direction at a stretching temperature which is lower than the preheating temperature; and a step of heat setting the film stretched in the transverse direction.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing an optical waveguide includes forming a core layer on a first clad layer, forming a second clad layer on the core layer, forming a first groove including at least one inclined surface in the second clad layer and the core layer to be in substantially parallel to and near one end of the second clad layer and one end of the core layer, the at least one inclined surface of the first groove having such an angle that the core layer is exposed when viewed above the second clad layer, forming a second groove including at least one inclined surface in the second clad layer on a inner side of the first groove, forming a separation groove in the clad layers and the core layer in a direction intersecting the first groove, and forming a plurality of cores intersecting the first groove.

Abstract: Provided is a film that is made of a propylene-based copolymer selected from among propylene-based random copolymers and propylene-based block copolymers, the film being useful as a precursor film for the production of a retardation film by stretching. The propylene-based copolymer forming the film contains crystals containing smectic crystals, wherein the percentage of smectic crystals to all the crystals of the propylene-based copolymer. The film has an in-plane retardation of 50 nm or less and a thickness falling within the range of 30 to 200 ?m. The propylene-based copolymer is a copolymer that has a parameter (A) falling within the range of from 0.0007 to 0.1, the parameter (A) being calculated from Formula (1) defined for a stress-strain curve produced as a result of stretching a film made of the polymer at a tensile rate of 100 mm/minute at a temperature at which a stress of 0.8±0.

Abstract: A sub-mount for mounting optical components includes a recess for mounting whose side wall is tapered. A light transmission and reception module includes the sub-mount for mounting optical component. The sub-mount is manufactured by forming a master mold of the sub-mount formed with projections and recesses including the recess for mounting of the sub-mount, applying liquid silicone rubber to the mater mold, curing the liquid silicone rubber to produce a mold for duplication, filling the curable material into the mold for duplication, curing the curable material, and separating the cured curable material from the mold for duplication.

Abstract: Digital audio data are divided into a plurality of frames, each of which includes a desired number of sub-band samples, which are gradually increased in a range between “16” and “1024”, and are then compressed by way of psychoacoustics analysis and quantization, whereby compressed data are realized with a high compression ratio and small tone-generation latency. The compressed data are decoded by way of inverse quantization and sub-band synthesis, so that decoded data are sequentially written into a memory (e.g., a FIFO memory). Decoding is appropriately turned on or off in response to a presently vacant capacity of the memory.

Abstract: An optical waveguide includes: a center layer including at least two core layers whose edges are on substantially the same plane, and a first cladding layer provided between adjacent core layers; and a second cladding layer provided at least on both of front and rear surfaces of the center layer. At least surfaces of the core layer and the first cladding layer that are in contact with the second cladding layer include at least one resin selected from the group consisting of a resin having a hydroxyl group and a resin containing a silicon-silicon bond at a main chain thereof, and the second cladding layer includes a silicone resin.

Abstract: An optical waveguide includes a layer A and a plurality of cores enclosed in a cladding. During production of the optical waveguide, a layered film including alternate layers of a core layer and a cladding layer is cut so as to form a groove that penetrates through the layered film in a thickness direction and so as to form a plurality of core portions, and the layer A is provided so as to partially fill the groove depthwise and so as to maintain spacing between the plurality of core portions before the core portions is enclosed by the cladding.

Abstract: A recording apparatus of this invention detects the state of management information, which pertains to a recording address of an image signal, and which is reproduced from a disk-like recording medium having a first area for the image signal and a second area for the management information. On the basis of the detection result, management data is reproduced from the first area of the disk-like recording medium. On the basis of the management data reproduced from the first area, the management information reproduced from the second area is modified. A modify unit records the modified management information in the second area.

Abstract: A polymer optical waveguide includes: a core; and a cladding enclosing the core and extending along a direction of light propagation, the polymer optical waveguide having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape, and the polymer optical waveguide having, at least at a position near one end thereof in a longitudinal direction, a groove that has a surface inclined at an angle of 45° with respect to the light propagation direction which reflects light propagating through the core so as to change the light propagation direction by 90°.

Abstract: An optical waveguide film includes: an optical waveguide film main body including an optical waveguide core through which light travels and a cladding portion that encloses the optical waveguide core and has a lower refractive index than that of the optical waveguide core; and a marking member that is disposed at least at a portion of a principal surface of the optical waveguide film main body so as to protrude from the principal surface and that includes, at a surface thereof, a groove-shaped mark for positioning.