31results about How to "Wasteful consumption" patented technology

A playback system includes headphones worn on a user's body and converting an electrical signal into sound and a playback apparatus supplying the electrical signal to the headphones. The headphones include first and second electrodes provided in first and second converters, respectively, so as to be in contact with the user's body. The first converter converts the electrical signal in a right channel into sound. The second converter converts the electrical signal in a left channel into sound. The playback apparatus includes measuring means for measuring a resistance or a capacitance between the first and second electrodes, determination means for determining whether or not the headphones are being worn on the user's body in accordance with the resistance or the capacitance measured by the measuring means, and control means for controlling a state of the playback apparatus in accordance with the determination result of the determination means.

Provided is a brake control apparatus for a vehicle which detects an amount of brake-pedal operation by means of an electric signal, and then calculates a braking force demanded by a driver from the electric signal, and thereby generates the demanded braking force. A control mode for a braking force is switched from a normal control mode to a stationary-vehicle control mode, if a determination that the vehicle is in a stationary state is followed by another determination that an electric signal corresponding to an actual braking force exceeds a command value for a stationary-vehicle braking force while the vehicle is in the stationary state. The control mode for a braking force is switched from the stationary-vehicle control mode to the normal control mode, if it is determined that the demanded braking force becomes smaller than the command value for the stationary-vehicle braking force. In addition, in the stationary-vehicle control mode, a braking force generated by a means for braking is equal to the command value for the stationary-vehicle braking force, whereas, in the normal control mode, the braking force generated by the means for braking is equal to the braking force demanded by the driver.

When recording operation is stopped due to, for example, unexpected interruption of electric power supply in the course of the recording operation on a real time basis, a technique of repairing a moving picture and sound data recorded on a recording medium until the recording is stopped, to thereby restore management information data which enables random access and special reproduction is provided. A video/audio/management information multiplexing means is so implemented as to generate data required for generating management information data for allowing random access to the recording medium and effectuating special reproduction of the recording medium, for thereby multiplexing the data required for generating the management information data, encoded video data outputted from a video encoding means and encoded audio data outputted from an audio encoding means.

Methods and systems are provided for controlling the automatic shutdown of an idling vehicle engine. When the vehicle is parked in an enclosed space, the idling engine may be automatically shutdown, while when the vehicle is parked in an open space, the automatic shutdown may be delayed based on an ambient temperature. In this way, the vehicle cabin may be maintained at a temperature that provides enhanced driver comfort while allowing wasteful engine idling to be reduced.

The power consumption is reduced by efficiently using C-AF (continuous autofocus). An angular velocity detection circuit calculates angular velocity based on output from a yaw direction angular velocity sensor and a pitch direction angular velocity sensor. Based on the angular velocity, a shake width detection circuit 45 continuously detects the shake amount of the apparatus. If the maximum value of the shake amount during the latest Nms (N milli-seconds) is less than a pre-determined value, it is judged to be a time for shooting operation and the C-AF is operated. If the maximum value of the shake width during the latest Nms is the pre-determined amount or more, it is judged that shooting operation is not being performed and the C-AF is stopped. In this manner, the power consumption can be reduced by operating the C-AF only as needed.

A first flushing pulse is a drive waveform for ejecting ink by displacing a meniscus onto a pressure chamber side and an ejecting side while interposing a standby position from the standby position, a second flushing pulse is a drive waveform for ejecting the ink by pushing out the meniscus onto the ejecting side, without substantially displacing the meniscus onto the pressure chamber side from the standby position, and in a flushing processing, after a first flushing processing is performed by ejecting the ink one or more times in accordance with the first flushing pulse, a second flushing processing is performed by ejecting the ink a plurality of times in accordance with the second flushing pulse.

A vehicular room illuminating lamp includes: a plurality of illumination units applying voltages through courtesy wires thereof to lamps which irradiate positions in a vehicle cabin, the positions corresponding to four doors; a mode switch capable of selecting an all-lights-on mode, a door mode and a light-off mode; and a controller that individually receives a mode selection signal of the mode switch and respective door open/close signals of the four doors. The controller applies the voltages to all of the courtesy wires in the all-lights-on mode, applies the voltage only to the courtesy wire of the illumination unit corresponding to the door indicated to be open by the door open/close signal in the door mode, and doe not apply the voltage to any of the courtesy wires irrespective of states of the door open/close signals in the light-off mode.

A centralized-monitoring apparatus, which centralized monitors a device including a storage, a temperature sensor to detect a temperature therein, and a temperature-variable device to cool or heat inside the storage such that the temperature reaches a set object-preservation temperature, comprises: an input device to be input with first information indicative of a time zone in which the temperature-variable device performing power-saving operation and second information indicative of a set temperature of the time zone; a storage device to store the first-and-second information from the input device; a timing device to measure a current time; and a control device to control the temperature-variable device, based on the first-and-second information and current time, so as to start operation of turning the temperature to the set temperature when the current time reaches a starting time of the time zone, and terminate the operation when the current time reaches an ending time thereof.

An electromagnetic clutch for a compressor includes a rotor, an armature, an electromagnetic coil for bringing the rotor into contact with the armature and for separating the rotor from the armature, and a temperature detection device, such as a temperature fuse or a temperature switch, or both, for detecting an excessive increase in temperature ascribed to slippage between the rotor and the armature or a temperature increase of refrigerant discharged from the compressor. An electric circuit of the temperature detection device is separated from the electric circuit of the electromagnetic coil. An abnormal condition may be accurately detected by the separate circuit structure, and a proper response to the abnormal condition may be taken quickly.

An object of the present invention is to perform removal of NOx in an exhaust gas purification system for an internal combustion engine equipped with an NOx catalyst while suppressing the consumption amount of reducing agent used for NOx removal even when the NOx catalyst is deteriorated. To achieve the object, when the degree of deterioration of the NOx catalyst is lower than or equal to a specific deterioration degree, the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas flowing into the NOx catalyst is adjusted to the stoichiometric air-fuel ratio or a rich air-fuel ratio. On the other hand, when it is determined that the degree of deterioration of the NOx catalyst is higher than the specific deterioration degree, the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas flowing into the NOx catalyst is adjusted to a specific lean air-fuel ratio.

An image forming device includes an intermediate transfer member to which a toner image formed on an image bearing member is primarily transferred and which is able to simultaneously support a plurality of toner images, a secondary transfer member for secondarily transferring a toner image held on the intermediate transfer member to a sheet, a cleaning unit for removing the toner images from the intermediate transfer member after the secondary transfer, and a feeding member for feeding a sheet into the secondary transfer member. The secondary transfer member features a sheet-delay transfer mode in which a subsequent toner image on the intermediate transfer member is transferred if a previous toner image on the intermediate transfer member is out of sync with the timing at which the toner image is transferred to the fed sheet.