For a vector bundle E over a manifold V., denote by S (E) the sheaf of germs of local cross-sections of E. By using local coordinate we may consider linear differential equations on E. When V = Rn and E = V X Rm, the linear differential equations on E are linear differential equations on m unknown functions in n variables. The germs of solutions of a linear differential equation on E forms a subsheaf, say G, of S (E). The importance of such subsheaves G can be seen, for instance, in the recent works of Kodaira and Spencer in the deformation theory of pseudo-group structures. In the first half of the present paper, we study some of properties of such sheaves. Since it is very difficult to treat the general case, we restrict ourselves to the category of real analyticity and to the case where inconvenient degeneracy does not occur in the differential equations. In our argument these restrictions are necessary because in the last analysis we depend on Cartan's theorem of solvability of involutive real analytic differential equations. G together with its defining linear differential equation which is nondegenerate, is called a (S)-sheaf. Our main result is the existence of quotient (S)-sheaves of (S)sheaves by (S) -subsheaves. In the second half the writer gives concise description of how the above results can be applied to deformation theory of transitive continuous pseudo-group compact structures. Since our argument follows the more or less well known line developed in [3], details are omitted. It is noted that another approach, which is still within the same framework as ours but which is more differential geometric, is published in [5] by D. C. Spencer. In the present paper every notions are assumed to be in the category of real analyticity. So when we say manifolds or mappings for example, we mean always manifolds or mappings which are real analytic.
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