Abstract: The apparatus for controlling operation of a storage battery of the present invention comprises: a component deterioration index measuring part, which measures a deterioration index with respect to each of predetermined components of a storage battery; a deterioration condition determination part, which determines deterioration condition with respect to each of the predetermined components, based on the deterioration indices of the components measured by the component deterioration index measuring part: an operation condition determination part, which determines such an operation condition of the storage battery as would cause deterioration of each component to progress in a manner such that the longest battery life is achieved, based on the deterioration conditions determined by the deterioration determination part; and an operation control part for operating the storage battery based on the operation condition determined by the operation condition determination part

Abstract: An osteoporosis diagnosis yapparatus provided with a two-dimensional ultrasonic transducer array (3) comprising a number of cells (1.sub.1, 1.sub.2, . . . ). The ultrasonic transducer array (3) is applied to the skin covering a predetermined bone of a subject, and the individual cells sequentially emit a predetermined number of ultrasonic pulses through the skin while receiving echoes from the bone. The received echo data are processed so that they can be handled in a planewave problem, from which the information on the reflection from the bone is determined. This information is processed to obtain the acoustic impedance of a cortical bone and a cancellous bone, so as to check for the presence of osteoporosis. The information on the reflection from the bone can also be handled as an eigen-value problem, and, when the information is handled in such a manner, the shape determination of a bone becomes un necessary.