Abstract: A knowledge provider system is configured as a plurality of data servers connected via a data communication network, which function as respective knowledge provider agents in response to information request messages sent from users of the network. Each agent holds a script which contains a knowledge base, and data defining predetermined message formats for respective types of messages and predetermined content formats for respective types of message contents which can be handled by that agent. A message received by an agent is pattern-matched against the message formats, if it is thereby found to be an information request message the message content portion is pattern-matched against the predetermined content formats, and if that matching is successful, the subject for which information is requested is pattern-matched against the contents of the knowledge base, to find a set of information corresponding to that subject.

Abstract: Robbery of a vehicle-mount electric apparatus can be prevented by only driving an operation panel to turn it upside down. The operation panel is disposed in front of the main body of the vehicle-mount audio apparatus, and is moved while being rotated about its rotary shaft. The operation panel moves between first and second states. In the first state, the normally used surface of the operation panel is used as the front surface of the apparatus, and in the second state, the surface other than the normally used surface is used as the front surface. When the operation panel takes generally a horizontal state during the motion of the operation panel 5, the rotary shaft thereof is positioned at one end of the motion range of the operation panel.

Abstract: A sheet feeding apparatus includes: a sheet feeding table on which sheets are stacked, the sheet feeding table being vertically movable; a sheet feeding roller mechanism provided in a vertical movement path of the sheet feeding table, the sheet feeding roller mechanism having a roller for feeding the sheets from the sheet feeding table one at a time, the roller being vertically displaceable; a spring for urging the sheet feeding roller mechanism in a direction of downward movement of the sheet feeding table; a detector for detecting when, during the upward movement of the sheet feeding table, the sheet feeding roller mechanism is lifted to a predetermined position against the spring, to stop the upward movement of the sheet feeding table; and a movable member movable and lockable for operating a change-over mechanism for changing the raised position of the sheet feeding roller mechanism which is obtained when the sheet feeding roller mechanism is detected by the detector.

Abstract: A hypertext document and anchor sentences of parent documents for the hypertext document are registered with an hypertext document identifier as document information for each of hypertext documents having reference relationships with each other. A user can refer to one hypertext document according to an anchor sentence of another hypertext document functioning as a parent document. Also, occurrence positions of one word in hypertext documents and parent documents are registered as word information for each of words.

Abstract: A digital signal detection circuit includes a threshold value calculator calculating a threshold value from assumptive sampled values corresponding to various data patterns of a regenerated signal. The regenerated signal is obtained by regenerating data recorded on a recording medium by a regenerating head. The detection circuit also includes a Viterbi decoder carrying out Viterbi decoding of the regenerated signal with the threshold value determined by the threshold value calculator as a constant. The threshold value calculator variably controls the threshold value using a decoded output of the Viterbi decoder and a regenerated signal corresponding to the decoded output of the Viterbi decoder.

Abstract: A improved spanner includes a lever handle, coaxial interior and exterior rings, a plurality of columned cams with non-circular cross section retained in an annular space formed between both rings, an annular spring for rolling each columned cam on the outer peripheral surface of the interior ring and wedging the non-circular surface of each columned cam into the inner surface of the exterior ring, and a shaft, for mounting an adapter which engages a bolt head, nut, or the like, coaxially mounted in the interior ring. The shaft is movable in the direction of an axis of the interior ring.

Abstract: The rotation of the inner press roller 16 is synchronized with the rotation of the printing drum 10 by the gear train including a gear wheel 22 coaxial with the printing drum, a gear wheel 24 meshing with the gear wheel 22 and rotatably supported by an arm 26 swingable about the central axis of the printing drum, and a gear wheel 28 meshing with the gear wheel 24 and coaxially connected with the inner press roller 16 to rotate therewith and rotatably supported by an arm 18 swingable about a pivot axis Ob parallel with and distant from the central axis Oa of the printing drum. A clutch 86 is provided to apply a torque from the printing drum when driven to the arm 26 to control the biasing out operation of the inner press roller 12 against the circumferential wall 12 of the printing drum. The clutch may be replaced by the linear actuator 96. The clutch or linear actuator may be temporarily actuated stronger during a starting up of the printing operation.

Abstract: The rotation of the inner press roller 16 is synchronized with the rotation of the printing drum 10 by the gear train including a gear wheel 22 coaxial with the printing drum, a gear wheel 24 meshing with the gear wheel 22 and rotatably supported by an arm 26 swingable about the central axis of the printing drum, and a gear wheel 28 meshing with the gear wheel 24 and coaxially connected with the inner press roller 16 to rotate therewith and rotatably supported by an arm 18 swingable about a pivot axis Ob parallel with and distant from the central axis Oa of the printing drum. In the gear train, a brake 86 or 90 is provided for braking the gear wheel 28 or 24 to control the biasing out operation of the inner press roller 12 against the circumferential wall 12 of the printing drum. The braking action may be temporarily increased during a starting up of the printing operation. The distance between the axes of the gear wheels 24 and 28 may desirably be restricted not to increase beyond a predetermined distance.

Abstract: In a stencil printer in which a printing drum is carried by a carrier mounted in a frame body of the printer to be transversely withdrawable from the frame body on its one side for maintenance, etc., the carrier is selectively engaged with a transverse position adjustment device at its operating position inside the frame body, wherein the transverse position adjustment device engages the carrier to adjust its transverse position for adjustment of transverse position of print image via a latching mechanism so that, when the carrier is to be disengaged from the transverse position adjustment device for the withdrawal, the transverse position adjustment device once shifts the carrier to its terminal biasing position toward the withdrawal direction and returns to its standard transverse position, while disengaging the latching mechanism at the moment of reversing its biasing movement.

Abstract: A propylene resin composition containing a propylene-ethylene block copolymer containing (a) a crystalline polypropylene moiety (constituent A) and an ethylene-propylene random copolymer moiety (constituent B), (b) a styrene-ethylene-butylene-styrene block copolymer which contains 10% to 25% of bound styrene, and (c) at least one filler selected from talc and inorganic whiskers and wherein the surface of the filler is treated with one of the organic compounds (I), (II) and (III) having the formulas, ##STR1## in which the various substituents and R groups are as defined in the specification and claims. The composition of the present invention has excellent mechanical strength, moldability and is capable of producing molded products having an excellent appearance.

Abstract: There is provided an improved electrophotographic image-forming method in which a image-bearing member is charged by brushing a surface of the image-bearing member with a magnetic brush of a charging material containing a magnetic carrier having a volume specific resistance of less than 10.sup.5 .OMEGA..multidot.cm. The present method causes no air pollution including generation of undesired by-products such as ozone, NOx, etc. The present method provides a toner image having high quality such as high resolution and high density without fogging on a background area of a recording sheet.

Abstract: Clock pulses are generated at a frequency having a fixed relation with a rotation of an information recording disk formed with a track. The clock pulses are counted. A first kick pulse is generated when the counting of the clock pulses starts. A tracking error signal is generated. A detection is made as to whether the tracking error signal crosses a zero level after the first kick pulse is generated. A brake pulse is generated when the tracking error signal crosses the zero level. A second kick pulse is generated when a number of the counted clock pulses reaches a predetermined number.

Abstract: The present invention concerns a method of preparing a porous structural unit comprising a plurality of layers having different specific gravities by pressing and heating a material including resin particles between opposing molds having a temperature difference to thereby cause the fusion or bonding of the resin particles, and a porous structural unit which improves acoustic absorption properties and heat insulation properties and in which the specific gravity is continuously changed.

Abstract: A sound attenuator has at least one sound absorber composed of a hollow body of a hard porous material and an outer or inner layer of air, and exhibits good sound-absorbing property even in a low frequency range, even if the hollow body has a small wall thickness. The hollow body may be provided with projections or a semicircular or otherwise shaped part or parts, or both, serving to maintain the outer or inner layer of air in proper shape. The device is inexpensive and yet is very reliable in quality. When the device is long, the projections in linear form are particularly useful for restraining any flanking transmission of noise and thereby enabling the device to achieve a higher rate of attenuation per unit length. The sound-absorbing property of the device can be controlled over a wide range of frequencies if the hollow body has a porosity varying continuously in a specific direction.

Abstract: A blower comprises an impeller which can function to raise the pressure of a fluid and delivers it; a driving device for driving the impeller; and a fan casing which includes a fluid path to inspire the fluid from the outside and deliver it to the outside through the impeller; wherein the fan casing is at least partly formed by a hard porous structural unit whose specific gravity is continuously changed in at least one of the direction of thickness and a direction of surface.

Abstract: The present invention concerns a method of preparing a porous structural unit comprising a plurality of layers having different specific gravities by pressing and heating a material including resin particles between opposing molds having a temperature difference to thereby cause the fusion or bonding of the resin particles, and a porous structural unit which improves acoustic absorption properties and heat insulation properties and in which the specific gravity is continuously changed.

Abstract: A mimeographic printing apparatus having a printing drum wound with a stencil and a clamping plate for fastening one end of the stencil on the drum. An elastic holding device is provided over a clamping position with a gap from the drum enough to receive one end of the supplied stencil. The holding device is, at the clamping state, pressed by the clamping plate to fasten one end of the stencil on the printing drum. At the non-clamping position, the holding device returns to the original position and here restrains the external curling of the stencil. The result is that the stencil thereafter reliably introduced to the removing device, thereby realizing a normal stencil-removing operation.

Abstract: A floor detector for a power brush of a vacuum cleaner comprises a lift sensor S1 and a floor sensor S2. The lift sensor S1 has a movable member which yieldably displaces when the power brush is placed on a relatively soft floor while the floor sensor S2 has a movable member which yieldably displaces when the power brush is placed on a relatively hard floor. Each of movable members is detected its movement by a corresponding light sensor which provides a signal representative of the movements. The signals from the light sensors are sent to a control circuit which controls a drive source for driving the brush member of the power brush. In this manner, the brush member is rotated when the power brush is placed on a relatively soft floor such as a carpeted floor and is not rotated when the power brush is placed on a relatively hard, flat, smooth floor.

Abstract: A stationary tape guide, for use with a magnetic tape recorder having an inclined cylinder mounted on a chassis, the tape-guide containing a guide block mounted on the chassis the guide block having the following features. A first tape surface guide inclined with respect to a first reference plane. A second tape surface guide inclined with respect to the first reference plane and located further from the inclined cylinder than the first tape surface guide. A third tape surface guide oriented orthogonal to the first reference plane and located further from are inclined cylinder than the second tape surface guide. A first tape edge guide extending from the guide block beyond a second reference plane defined by the first and second tape surface guides and having a first tape edge contact surface.

Abstract: A cylindrical permanent magnet suitable for use as the rotor magnet of a stepping motor. The magnet is a sintered cylindrical permanent magnet having a composition expressed by MO.nFe.sub.2 O.sub.3, where M represents Ba, Sr, Pb or mixture thereof, while n represents a value of 5 to 6. The sintered cylindrical permanent magnet is provided on its surface with multipolar anisotropy of more than 8 (eight) magnetic poles. Disclosed also is a method of producing the cylindrical permanent magnet.