Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha

Shoichiro Nitta

Takashi Izuo

Hiroyuki Hattori

Tatsuo Iida

Masahiko Asano

Noritaka Miyamoto

Kazuhiro Asayama

Kazuhisa Mikame

Tatsuya Kawahara

Masayoshi Taki

Masahiko Mitsubayashi

Shinobu Ishida

Shinzo Kobuki

Masazumi Ohnishi

Morimichi Miura

Shinji Kawasaki

Yozo Ito

An electromagnetic actuating system having a valve member is provided. This system can improve a response of movement of the valve member while reducing power consumption of the system. The electromagnetic actuating system includes an armature which moves with the valve member, an electromagnet which attracts the armature in a direction of movement of the valve member by being supplied with a current, and a spring which presses the armature away from the electromagnet. A permanent magnet which can exert a magnetic attracting force between the armature and the electromagnet is provided. A current controller supplies a release current to the electromagnet so that magnetic flux is generated in a direction opposite to a direction of magnetic flux generated by the permanent magnet when the armature is released from the electromagnet. The valve member functions as an intake valve or an exhaust valve of an internal combustion engine, and the current controller controls an amount of the release current in accordance with an operating state of the internal combustion engine.

Electromagnetic actuating system

A fuel-cells system 20 is equipped with an oxygen enrichment unit 34 and supplies air whose oxygen partial pressure has been increased by the oxygen enrichment unit 34 to fuel cells 40 as oxidizing gas. The oxygen enrichment unit 34 is a magnetic oxygen enrichment device that effects oxygen enrichment utilizing the fact that the oxygen molecule is paramagnetic and when magnetized migrates toward a magnetic pole side. Specifically, a magnetic field is generated inside the oxygen enrichment unit 34 by an electromagnet, air compressed by a compressor unit 32 is supplied to the oxygen enrichment unit 34, and compressed oxygen-enriched air is discharged from the vicinity of the magnetic poles in the oxygen enrichment unit 34 and supplied to the fuel cells 40.

Fuel-cells system

In a solenoid valve device, a valving element opens and closes a fluid passage by exerting an electromagnetic force between an armature and a core. The solenoid valve device includes a movable portion which includes the armature and the valving element. A fixed portion includes the core. An impact absorbing unit absorbs an impact of the movable portion on the fixed portion, the impact absorbing unit including a gel part which transforms a mechanical energy of the impact into a thermal energy.

Gel cushioned solenoid valve device

An oxygen enriched air producing apparatus includes a casing, at least one rotor rotatably disposed in the casing to thereby define a space between the casing and the rotor, and a magnetic field generating device for generating a magnetic flux extending axially within the space between the casing and the rotor. An oxygen enriched air outlet and a nitrogen enriched air outlet are formed in the casing so as to be spaced from each other in an axial direction of the space.

Magnetic field type oxygen enriched air producing apparatus

A method of corrugating a metallic pipe which achieves an increase in the limit of tube expansion ratios. First, a heated part is formed by heating a local part of an outer periphery of a pipe in a circumferential direction by a high frequency coil. Next, the heated part is located within a forming surface of a forming die, and an axial compressive stress is applied to the pipe. Thus, the heated part is expanded while restricted by the forming surface. Therefore, even when the axial length of the heated part is increased, formability is stabilized and the tube expansion ratio can be raised.

Method for corrugating a metallic pipe

Growing community of inventors

Aichi-ken, Japan

Shoichiro Nitta