Patents Assigned to Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.
  • Patent number: 11805367
    Abstract: A vibrating unit includes a diaphragm and a bobbin, and a voice coil is secured to the bobbin. A detecting unit includes a moving magnet and a magnetic sensor. An annular magnet support is secured to a front edge of the bobbin, and the moving magnet is positioned and secured to the magnet support. The magnetic sensor is secured to a drive supporting unit. The moving magnet is secured to the bobbin, with the magnet support therebetween. This facilitates mounting and positioning of the moving magnet.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 2, 2022
    Date of Patent: October 31, 2023
    Assignee: Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hiroki Toita, Ryosuke Tachi, Ryo Ito
  • Patent number: 11794448
    Abstract: A sensor device has an insulative non-woven fabric and a conductive fabric forming an electrode. The conductive fabric is joined to one surface of the non-woven fabric by at least one of fusion and seaming.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 24, 2023
    Assignee: Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Tadamitsu Sato, Sascha Kunzmann, Unmesh Ghoshdastider, Martin Oehler
  • Patent number: 11797264
    Abstract: An acoustic system can include an acoustic processor that is configured to analyze and output acoustic signals to each of first and second loudspeakers corresponding to each of first and second acoustic zones of a shared acoustic space. The system can determine a first measure of loudness associated with a first acoustic signal. The system can be configured to output the first acoustic signal as sound on the first loudspeaker in the first acoustic zone. The system can determine a second measure of loudness associated with a second acoustic signal. The system can be configured to output the second acoustic signal as sound on the second loudspeaker in the second acoustic zone. The system can also modify the second acoustic signal based on the first acoustic signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 2021
    Date of Patent: October 24, 2023
    Assignee: ALPS ALPINE CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Francesto Villamizar, Ryosuke Shibuya
  • Patent number: 11789559
    Abstract: An input device includes a top panel having an operation surface, a detection unit configured to detect a capacitance corresponding to a distance between the operation surface and an object, and a controller configured to determine, based on a detection result from the detection unit, a relative state between the operation surface and the object to be one out of a non-detection state and a plurality of states. The controller measures, for each of the plurality of states, a duration in which the capacitance is greater than or equal to a corresponding one of capacitance thresholds set for the plurality of states, and determines, using the durations and the time thresholds and capacitance thresholds set for the plurality of states, the relative state to be one out of the non-detection state and the plurality of states.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 28, 2023
    Date of Patent: October 17, 2023
    Assignee: Alps Alpine Co. , Ltd.
    Inventors: Akira Sato, Satoshi Nakajima, Tomohiro Sasaki
  • Publication number: 20230327617
    Abstract: A sound output device of the present disclosure includes a controller, a power amplifier, a low-pass filter, and a speaker. The controller includes first and second low-pass filters configured to remove high-frequency components of a sound input signal and a sound output signal, a first peak detection unit configured to detect a peak current of the sound input signal from which the high-frequency component has been removed, a second peak detection unit configured to detect a peak current of the sound output signal from which the high-frequency component has been removed, and a comparison unit configured to compare the peak current with the peak current and determine connection or disconnection of the speaker when a level of the peak current is equal to or higher than a certain level.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 5, 2023
    Publication date: October 12, 2023
    Applicant: ALPS ALPINE CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Minoru MATSUYAMA
  • Patent number: 11782556
    Abstract: A capacitive sensor includes a sensor unit including a detection electrode, a capacitance detection unit configured to detect a capacitance value of the detection electrode of the sensor unit, a difference value calculation unit configured to calculate a difference value between the capacitance value and a reference value, a filter calculation unit configured to perform a time-directional filtering process using a filter parameter on the difference value and calculate a filter calculation value, a determination unit configured to determine a condition around the sensor unit on the basis of the filter calculation value calculated by the filter calculation unit, and a filter parameter calculation unit configured to calculate the filter parameter on the basis of the difference value calculated by the difference value calculation unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 25, 2022
    Date of Patent: October 10, 2023
    Assignee: Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Tomoki Yamada
  • Patent number: 11773629
    Abstract: An operation detection device includes an electrostatic sensor accommodated inside a casing and including a first conductor and a second conductor, and a controller electrically connected to the first conductor and the second conductor, and applies a voltage to each of the first conductor and the second conductor, to measure an electrostatic capacitance of each of the first conductor and the second conductor. The first conductor is arranged in and the second conductor is not arranged in a detection region in which an operating body is detected by the electrostatic sensor. The first conductor and the second conductor are arranged in a non-detection region in which the operating body is not detected.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 20, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2023
    Assignee: ALPS ALPINE CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Toshiki Nakamura, Daisuke Takai, Takashi Sasaki, Yuzuru Kawana, Yoshiyuki Kikuchi, Heishiro Fudo
  • Patent number: 11776367
    Abstract: A tactile sensation providing apparatus includes a linear resonant actuator; and circuitry configured to provide a pulse wave to the linear resonant actuator as a driving signal. The circuitry is further configured to, when a frequency of the pulse wave is smaller than a resonance frequency of the linear resonant actuator, set a pulse width of the pulse wave at a value smaller than a half of a reciprocal of the frequency of the pulse wave.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 18, 2021
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2023
    Assignee: ALPS ALPINE CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Kunio Sato, Toshihiko Saito, Hajime Shikata
  • Patent number: 11770086
    Abstract: An operation device includes a movable portion, a vibration generating unit, a fixed portion, a detecting unit, and a control unit. The vibration generating unit includes a movable yoke attached to the movable portion, and a fixed yoke attached to the fixed portion and disposed facing the movable yoke in a first direction. The vibration generating unit includes a permanent magnet attached to one yoke among the movable yoke and the fixed yoke, both ends of the permanent magnet in the first direction being opposite magnetic poles created by magnetization. The vibration generating unit includes an exciting coil attached to a different yoke from the one yoke among the movable yoke and the fixed yoke, the exciting coil being configured to induce magnetic flux in response to a current flowing through the exciting coil.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 24, 2021
    Date of Patent: September 26, 2023
    Assignee: ALPS ALPINE CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Hiroshi Wakuda
  • Patent number: 11762514
    Abstract: A capacitive sensor has a structure in which first transparent electrode portions and second transparent electrode portions formed from crystalline indium tin oxide (ITO) are provided on a base material by patterning. A bridge wiring portion formed from amorphous indium zinc oxide (IZO) is provided on each two adjacent first transparent electrode portions and a link continuous to them, with an insulating layer intervening between the bridge wiring portion and the two first transparent electrode portions and link. These two adjacent second transparent electrode portions are electrically connected together by the bridge wiring portion. The thickness of the second transparent electrode portion TE and the thickness of the bridge wiring portion TB satisfy the following expressions: 0.28×TE+83 nm?TB?0.69×TE+105 nm; and 30 nm?TE?50 nm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 10, 2022
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2023
    Assignee: Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Manabu Yazawa, Ken Yamamura, Sota Takahashi
  • Patent number: 11764009
    Abstract: A device includes a housing, a circuit board disposed inside the housing, and an elastic seat covering one surface on one side of the circuit board, wherein the housing includes a wall having one opening provided on the one side and another opening provided on another side which is other than the one side, the wall extending between the one opening and the another in a direction intersecting in a direction in which the one surface of the circuit board extends, wherein the elastic seat has a flange, and wherein the flange contacts the wall so as to deflect against the wall.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2021
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2023
    Assignee: ALPS ALPINE CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Kazuyoshi Yamagata
  • Patent number: 11763570
    Abstract: An obstacle detection device includes a stereo camera that captures IR images on the right side and left side; a point cloud data creation unit that creates point cloud data having three-dimensional position information from the IR images captured by the stereo camera; an obstacle detection unit that detects an obstacle according to point cloud data; an invalid area identification unit that identifies whether an invalid area with no point cloud is present in point cloud data; and a target recognition unit that recognizes a particular target in the invalid area with no point cloud according to an IR image. When a particular target is recognized by the target recognition unit, the obstacle detection unit does not determine the invalid area with no point cloud to be an obstacle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 23, 2021
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2023
    Assignee: Alps Alpine Co., LTD.
    Inventors: Kaoru Mashiko, Tomoki Nakagawa, Tatsuya Matsui
  • Publication number: 20230288613
    Abstract: A method for manufacturing an optical element includes forming an optical element unit comprised of an optical material such as glass and having an outer shape of a regular triangle or a regular hexagon, arranging a plurality of optical element units two-dimensionally on a substrate so as to have a structure imitating a molecular structure of graphene or a carbon nanotube, and processing the substrate on which the plurality of optical element units are mounted into a desired surface shape.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 7, 2023
    Publication date: September 14, 2023
    Applicant: Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Katsunari Ashimine, Shingo Yuza, Chihiro Oshima, Hirokuni Fukai, Kazuya Hikichi
  • Publication number: 20230289010
    Abstract: A proximity detection device includes a detection controller and a touch panel. The detection controller includes a drive unit that drives a sensor line on an X side or a Y side, a measurement unit that measures capacitance Cm, Cpx, and Cpy formed by the sensor line on the X side or the Y side, and a detection unit that performs touch detection or hover detection based on the capacitance Cm, Cpx, and Cpy measured by the measurement unit. When detecting a hover, the drive unit changes a frequency of the drive signal that drives the sensor line on the X side or the Y side and this improves a hover detection sensitivity.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 10, 2023
    Publication date: September 14, 2023
    Applicant: ALPS ALPINE CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Teiichi Ichikawa
  • Publication number: 20230292044
    Abstract: One form of an audio signal processing apparatus adds a low-frequency sound sensation enhancement signal for enhancing a low-frequency sound sensation of an audio source signal to the audio source signal output by an audio source device, and outputs a resultant signal to a loudspeaker. The audio signal processing apparatus generates the low-frequency sound sensation enhancement signal with a frequency range from f0 to f1 (where f0<f1) by contraction mapping of components in a frequency range lower than f0 of the audio source signal using FIF (Fractal Interpolation Functions) where f0 is a frequency at a lower limit of a reproduction frequency range of the loudspeaker.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 23, 2023
    Publication date: September 14, 2023
    Applicant: Alps Alpine Co., LTD.
    Inventor: Ryosuke TACHI
  • Patent number: 11756361
    Abstract: A storage case for being provided in a vehicle includes a case body having a storage space for an electronic key; a first actuator to protrude into the storage space and pressing an unlocking button of the electronic key in the storage space; a second actuator; an adjustment piece for adjusting positions of the first actuator and the second actuator; a transceiver for communicating with an external terminal apparatus; and a processor to, in response to the transceiver receiving an unlocking request signal transmitted from the external terminal apparatus, cause the first actuator to press the unlocking button. The adjustment piece includes a rotating plate rotatably provided with respect to the case body; and, with respect to the rotating plate, the first and the second actuators being adjustable to become nearer to each other and adjustable to become farther from each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 16, 2022
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2023
    Assignee: ALPS ALPINE CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Seishi Takahashi, Nobuaki Oka
  • Patent number: 11756523
    Abstract: In some implementations, an output of a first channel of an echo cancellation variable filter having an output of a first microphone output from a second speaker as an input is added to an output of a second microphone. An echo cancellation coefficient updating unit updates the filter coefficient of the first channel so that the error that is the output of a second adder is minimized. Using the output of the second channel that uses the output of a sound source device output from the first speaker as an input and shares the filter coefficient with the first channel as a reference signal, and the output of the second microphone as an error, the noise cancellation coefficient updating unit updates the filter coefficient of the noise cancellation variable filter that generates a noise-canceling sound to be output from the output of the sound source device to the second speaker.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2022
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2023
    Assignee: Alps Alpine Co., LTD
    Inventor: Ryosuke Tachi
  • Patent number: 11750976
    Abstract: One form of an in-vehicle sound emitting device includes a front case and a rear case. The front case is partitioned from the rear case by a partition plate made from a metal plate. Rear space inside the rear case is sealed, and an electronic circuit is disposed in the rear space. A loudspeaker is mounted in front space inside the front case. By using two of the partition plates having the same structure, the front case having the incorporated loudspeaker and the rear case having the incorporated electronic circuit can be disposed separately.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2021
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2023
    Assignee: Alps Alpine Co., LTD
    Inventor: Ryo Ito
  • Publication number: 20230274723
    Abstract: A noise canceling adaptive filter outputs, from a front seat speaker, a noise canceling sound generated by applying a transfer function X(z) adapted by an adaptive operation using an output of a front seat microphone as an error to an output sound of a sound source apparatus. An output of the front seat microphone is added to an output of an audio feedback canceling filter by a second adder, added to an output sound of the sound source apparatus by a third adder, and output from a rear seat speaker. The audio feedback canceling filter applies a transfer function X?(z) and a transfer function C^(z) on an output of the second adder and outputs a resultant. The transfer function C^(z) corresponds to a transfer function C(z) from the front seat speaker to the front seat microphone. In synchronization control, the transfer function X(z) is set as the transfer function X?(z).
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 23, 2023
    Publication date: August 31, 2023
    Applicant: Alps Alpine Co., LTD.
    Inventor: Ryosuke TACHI
  • Publication number: 20230276185
    Abstract: A speaker has a magnetic angle sensor that detects the displacement of the vibration system of the speaker. A non-linearity compensation filter compensates for output distortion due to a non-linear parameter of the speaker. A transfer function of a linear inverse filter is applied so that output distortion is eliminated from the displacement, detected by the magnetic angle sensor, of the vibration system. A controller drives the speaker by using a test signal, and measures a response from the detected displacement of the vibration system. If error between the measured response and the theoretical value, theoretically determined from the design specifications, of the response is small, the controller uses the theoretical value, theoretically determined from the design specifications, of the non-linear parameter as an active non-linear parameter and sets, in the non-linearity compensation filter, a transfer function that compensates for distortion in an output due to the active non-linear parameter.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 31, 2023
    Publication date: August 31, 2023
    Applicant: Alps Alpine Co., LTD
    Inventors: Yuji SAITO, Katsuhiko EGAMI, Hiroyuki TAGUCHI