Denso Corporation

Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Limited

Toyoda Gosei Co., Ltd.

Shinshu University

Genesis Research Institute, Incorporated

Hitoshi Kondo

Shinya Kaneura

Kouji Matsunaga

Tatsuya Hayakawa

Eiichi Yamada

Atsushi Nagata

Shigeo Nagaya

Tomohide Shindo

Kazuhiro Nakayama

Yoshimasa Ohashi

Masaru Oka

Tsutomu Tamada

Sai Hiramatsu

Yuji Enomoto

A plurality of electrochemical corrosion protection systems () for underground buried structure installed geographically dispersed are utilized so as to predict an earthquake. Changes in amounts of current flowing through closed loop electric circuits (W) for electrochemical corrosion protection in the electrochemical corrosion protection systems () are detected and an earthquake is predicted based on the detected changes in the amounts of current.

Earthquake prediction method and earthquake prediction system

A liquefied gas reliquefier reliquefies boil-off gas resulting from evaporation of liquefied gas in a liquefied-gas storage tank to prevent a rise in the internal pressure of the liquefied-gas storage tank. The liquefied gas reliquefier includes a cooling unit for liquefying a secondary refrigerant, a liquefied-secondary-refrigerant feeding unit for feeding the liquefied secondary refrigerant, and a heat exchange unit disposed in the secondary-refrigerant circulating channel to condense the BOG by heat exchange between the BOG and the liquefied secondary refrigerant. The heat exchange unit is disposed near the liquefied-gas storage tank. The cooling unit includes a plurality of pulse-tube refrigerators. The number of pulse-tube refrigerators in operation and/or the cooling capacities of the individual pulse-tube refrigerators are controlled based on a measurement result from at least one of a thermometer, a pressure gauge, and a pump discharge flow meter installed in the liquefied-gas storage tank.

Liquefied gas reliquefier, liquefied-gas storage facility and liquefied-gas transport ship including the same, and liquefied-gas reliquefaction method

A knee protection apparatus includes an airbag and an airbag support that is attached to the airbag. Upon deployment of the airbag, the airbag support together expands so as to cover the instrument panel and thus help the airbag smoothly expand.

Knee protection apparatus for vehicle occupant

A knee-protecting airbag device is located below a steering column in front of a driver and, at a lower side of a key cylinder into which an ignition key with accessories is inserted. The airbag device includes a housing located below the steering column for housing an airbag and an airbag. The airbag is folded and housed in the housing in undeployed condition, and upon inflow of inflation gas, protrudes rearward from the housing to deploy upward to protect knees of the driver. The airbag is provided in its upper edge in completely deployed condition with a cover portion for covering vehicle's rearward of an area proximate to the key cylinder. The airbag is further provided with a flexible reinforcing cloth to be located in a part of the cover portion to contact the key accessories as the key is inserted into the key cylinder. The airbag is protected by the reinforcing cloth even if it contacts with the key accessories upon deployment.

Knee-protecting airbag device

In a vehicle air conditioner, a heater core is disposed in an air conditioning case to form front and rear cool air bypass passage through which cool air bypasses the heater core, and front and rear air mixing doors are disposed to independently adjust temperature of air blown toward a front seat side and temperature of air blown toward a rear seat side in a passenger compartment. A switching door is disposed to partition front and rear passage portions of the heater core from each other at a partition position, and to shut the rear passage portion at a rear shutting position. The switching door and the rear air mixing door are connected to a common operation mechanism to be operatively linked with each other.

Air conditioner for vehicle

An air conditioning unit of a vehicle air conditioner is disposed inside a dashboard approximately at a center portion in a vehicle right-left direction. Center face air outlets are provided in the dashboard opposite to right and left end sides of the air conditioning unit, and center face openings are provided in the air conditioning unit at right and left end sides in a vehicle right-left direction. Therefore, the center face outlets on the dashboard and the center face openings of the air conditioning unit can be connected by center face ducts each of which extends substantially straightly. Accordingly, pressure loss of air in the center face ducts can be reduced, and an air amount blown from the center face air outlet into the passenger compartment can be effectively increased.

Vehicle air conditioner with arrangement structure of face ducts

In a vehicle air conditioner, a heater core is disposed in an air conditioning case to heat air so that conditioned air is obtained. The air conditioning case has a rear wall surface extending substantially in a vehicle width direction and in a vertical direction, and a foot opening portion is provided in the wall surface at an upper side position of the heater core to extend in an entire width dimension of the wall surface in the vehicle width direction. A foot air duct is connected to the wall surface around the foot opening portion, and extends downwardly to be tilted toward right and left sides. Foot air outlets are provided at a bottom end of the foot air duct to be opened downwardly. Thus, a flow resistance in a foot air-outlet passage can be reduced, and air can be uniformly blown toward a foot area.

Vehicle air conditioner with foot air-outlet structure

In an air conditioning apparatus, an air conditioning case has an upstream portion defining an air intake port through which air flows into the upstream portion substantially parallel to a core surface of a heat exchanger. The air intake port has a vertical dimension H1 that is smaller than a vertical dimension H2 of the core surface. The upstream portion has an air flow direction changing portion protruding inside of the upstream portion at a position opposite to the core surface above the air intake port. The air flow direction changing portion defines a clearance between the core surface and itself. A part of the air turned upward and further turned substantially parallel to the core surface strikes the air flow direction changing portion and flows toward the core surface through the clearance.

Air conditioning apparatus for vehicle

In a vehicle air conditioner, an air conditioning case has a front air passage and a rear air passage through which air is blown to a front seat side and a rear seat side in a passenger compartment, respectively. The air conditioner includes an air-blowing amount determination unit for determining an air-blowing amount of a blower, and a correction unit for increasing the air-blowing amount determined by the determination unit when the rear air passage is opened. The correction unit increases an increase amount of the air-blowing amount to be larger in a face mode, than that in a bi-level mode.

Growing community of inventors

Kariya, Japan

Hitoshi Kondo