Abstract: A holder device has an elastic member and contact members. The elastic member is curved to extend approximately along a major arc of curvature and is elastically deformable to change a radius of curvature thereof. The contact members are circularly arranged along an inner circumferential side or an outer circumferential side of the elastic member so that each of the contact members is opposed to the elastic member in a radial direction of the elastic member. Each of the contact members has a sidewall that is opposed to the elastic member in the radial direction and is curved along an arc of curvature. A radius of curvature of the sidewall is shorter than the radius of curvature of the elastic member in its natural state.

Abstract: A fuel supply apparatus includes a movable unit, a coil, a drive circuit portion, and a drive control portion. The drive circuit portion energizes the coil with a drive electric current of a first value such that the movable unit is displaced from an opening-side position to a closing-side position. The drive circuit portion energizes the coil with the drive electric current of a second value that is smaller than the first value such that the movable unit is held at the closing-side position. The drive control portion controls the drive circuit portion to change the drive electric current from the first value to the second value while the movable unit is being displaced toward the closing-side position based on energization of the coil with the drive electric current of the first value.

Abstract: A movable portion is movable from a closed position, in which the movable portion is in contact with a valve element, to an opened position so as to supply fuel from a fuel portion to a compression chamber through a fuel passage. A drive control unit supplies of a small driving current, which is sufficient to maintain the movable portion at the closed position, to a coil portion so as to move the movable portion from the opened position to the closed position. The drive control unit switches the supply of the small driving current to supply of the large driving current in the course of the movement of the movable portion to the closed position by supplying the small driving current.

Abstract: A housing has a compression chamber and a first passage, through which the compression chamber communicates with an accumulation chamber. A discharge valve is provided in the first passage and configured to open to supply fuel from the compression chamber to the accumulation chamber in response to increase in pressure in the compression chamber. A second passage is configured to communicate the accumulation chamber with the compression chamber via the discharge valve. A valve element allows fuel flow from the accumulation chamber to the compression chamber. A biasing unit biases the valve element to seat the valve element on a valve seat of the second passage. The sidewall of the valve element and the inner wall defining the second passage therebetween define a throttle midway through the second passage for restricting fuel flow from the accumulation chamber to the compression chamber.

Abstract: A backlight inverter to light a plurality of CCFLs is provided which supplies a stable clamp current without influence of the CCFL temperature, and which stabilizes the LCD surface brightness immediately from the start of lighting the CCFLs, and a method of driving the backlight inverter is also provided. In a backlight inverter including a plurality of inverter transformers and adapted to light a plurality of CCFLs, two primary windings of each of the inverter transformers are connected in series to each other, and a resonant circuit is formed of a leakage inductance and capacitances at the secondary side of each of the inverter transformers, wherein the inverter transformers are operated at a frequency which is lower than an intermediate frequency between the series resonance frequency and the parallel resonance frequency of the resonant circuit, and which is higher than a frequency at which the phase characteristic curve has its peak.

Abstract: A hydraulic pump includes a housing, a seat portion, and a valve element. The housing has a compression chamber and a fluid passage. The seat portion is provided midway through the fluid passage. The valve element is located between the compression chamber and the fluid passage. The valve element is a closed-end cylindrical member having a bottom portion, a cylindrical portion, and an opening end arranged in this order. The cylindrical portion is located farther away from the seat portion than the bottom portion. The valve element is seated to the seat portion at the bottom portion. A stopper substantially closes the opening end when making contact with the opening end to regulate movement of the valve element.

Abstract: A backlight inverter to light a plurality of CCFLs is provided which supplies a stable clamp current without influence of the CCFL temperature, and which stabilizes the LCD surface brightness immediately from the start of lighting the CCFLs, and a method of driving the backlight inverter is also provided. In a backlight inverter including a plurality of inverter transformers and adapted to light a plurality of CCFLs, two primary windings of each of the inverter transformers are connected in series to each other, and a resonant circuit is formed of a leakage inductance and capacitances at the secondary side of each of the inverter transformers, wherein the inverter transformers are operated at a frequency which is lower than an intermediate frequency between the series resonance frequency and the parallel resonance frequency of the resonant circuit, and which is higher than a frequency at which the phase characteristic curve has its peak.

Abstract: In a fluid injection valve, a valve needle and a moving core are installed in the valve housing to be slidable in an axial direction. The moving core has a through hole in which the valve needle is slidably inserted. A stopper provided on the valve needle moves the valve needle integrally with the moving core when the moving core travels toward the fixed core with respect to the needle valve. An elastic member biases the valve needle away from the fixed core, and a helical spring biases the moving core toward the fixed core. A spring seat supports one axial end of the helical spring in both of the axial direction and a radial direction of the helical spring.

Abstract: Light resulting from chemiluminescence inside a reaction chamber 4 is transmitted through a light transmitting window 3, a large part of the light is made incident on a photoelectric surface 71 of a photomultiplier tube 2 to generate photoelectrons, and these photoelectrons are successively multiplied by surfaces 79 at one side of dynodes 78a, 78, and 78b. Meanwhile, a part of the light that is not made incident on photoelectric surface 71 is made incident on and reflected by a surface 77 at the other side of dynode 78a, returned to reaction chamber 4 via light transmitting window 3, reflected further by light reflecting surfaces 40 and 41 inside reaction chamber 4, emitted again from light transmitting window 3, and made incident on photoelectric surface 71 of photomultiplier tube 2 to generate and multiply photoelectrons in the same manner as the above.

Abstract: Light resulting from chemiluminescence inside a reaction chamber 4 is transmitted through a light transmitting window 3, a large part of the light is made incident on a photoelectric surface 71 of a photomultiplier tube 2 to generate photoelectrons, and these photoelectrons are successively multiplied by surfaces 79 at one side of dynodes 78a, 78, and 78b. Meanwhile, a part of the light that is not made incident on photoelectric surface 71 is made incident on and reflected by a surface 77 at the other side of dynode 78a, returned to reaction chamber 4 via light transmitting window 3, reflected further by light reflecting surfaces 40 and 41 inside reaction chamber 4, emitted again from light transmitting window 3, and made incident on photoelectric surface 71 of photomultiplier tube 2 to generate and multiply photoelectrons in the same manner as the above.

Abstract: A discharge lamp lighting device comprises a plurality of discharge lamps, at least one reflector, and at least one leakage transformer. Each leakage transformer lights three discharge lamps and comprises: a first leakage transformer, which comprises a frame-core shaped substantially rectangular and two bar-cores disposed parallel to each other and orthogonal to two opposing sides of the frame-core with a predetermined gap from the frame-core, has two of primary and secondary windings structurally independent of each other, and which lights two discharge lamps of the three; and a second leakage transformer, which comprises a frame-core shaped substantially like square-U letter and a bar-core disposed orthogonal to two opposing sides of the frame-core with a predetermined gap from the frame-core, has one primary and secondary winding structurally independent of each other, and which lights remaining one discharge lamp.

Abstract: A discharge lamp lighting device comprises a plurality of discharge lamps, at least one reflector, and at least one leakage transformer. Each leakage transformer lights three discharge lamps and comprises: a first leakage transformer, which comprises a frame-core shaped substantially rectangular and two bar-cores disposed parallel to each other and orthogonal to two opposing sides of the frame-core with a predetermined gap from the frame-core, has two of primary and secondary windings structurally independent of each other, and which lights two discharge lamps of the three; and a second leakage transformer, which comprises a frame-core shaped substantially like square-U letter and a bar-core disposed orthogonal to two opposing sides of the frame-core with a predetermined gap from the frame-core, has one primary and secondary winding structurally independent of each other, and which lights remaining one discharge lamp.

Abstract: This image tube converts irradiated electrons into fluorescence by irradiating electrons converted from a light beam by a photocathode onto a YAG crystal member. Since the YAG crystal member is a single unitary solid, the fluorescence generated on the input surface of the YAG crystal member contains no fixed pattern noise.