Patents Assigned to Sony Corportion
  • Publication number: 20180302551
    Abstract: A signal processing apparatus of one embodiment of the disclosure includes a composition unit that generates first composite imaging data, by adding together a low-frequency component of first imaging data, a high-frequency component of the first imaging data, and a high-frequency component of second imaging data. The first imaging data is imaging data of a relatively wide angle of view, out of two pieces of imaging data that differ in angle of view from each other. The second imaging data is imaging data of a relatively narrow angle of view, out of the two pieces of the imaging data.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 17, 2017
    Publication date: October 18, 2018
    Applicant: Sony Corportion
    Inventors: Hiroaki YAMAJO, Masayuki TACHI
  • Publication number: 20170045963
    Abstract: An information processing apparatus that includes a first sensor that receives a first signal; a second sensor that receives a second signal; and circuitry that calculates a position of a source from which the first signal and the second signal are transmitted based on a first time at which the first signal is received at the first sensor and a second time at which the second signal is received at the second sensor, and controls a display to display an image corresponding to a path obtained based on calculated changes in position of the source.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 1, 2016
    Publication date: February 16, 2017
    Applicants: SONY CORPORTION, SONY MOBILE COMMUNICATIONS, INC.
    Inventor: Susumu TAKATSUKA
  • Publication number: 20170024103
    Abstract: An information processing apparatus, method and computer program product determine an object range to be displayed on a display based on a detected user-related action. For the apparatus, a control unit determines content to be displayed within an object range on a map. An action recognition processing unit that detects a user-related action. The control unit determines the content to be displayed within the object range. The object range includes a current position of the information processing apparatus, and a coverage area of the object range is based on the user-related action detected by the action recognition processing unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 6, 2016
    Publication date: January 26, 2017
    Applicant: SONY CORPORTION
    Inventor: Yasutaka FUKUMOTO
  • Patent number: 9536246
    Abstract: A content recommendation system includes: a client terminal operated by a user; and a content recommendation server that recommends content to the terminal through a network and includes a preference discrimination information storage section accumulating and storing preference discrimination information in which information related to evaluation of content input to the terminal by a user and identification information of the user are associated with each other, a content feature information storage section storing content feature information in which data indicating features of content are associated with identification information of content, a preference information creation section creating preference information of each user by integrating evaluation for content with the feature of the content for each user based on the preference discrimination information and the content feature information, and a recommended content list providing section transmitting a list of recommended content, extracted by evalua
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 26, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 3, 2017
    Assignee: SONY CORPORTION
    Inventors: Katsu Saito, Wataru Onogi, Masaaki Koyanagi, Takayuki Sakamoto
  • Patent number: 8842923
    Abstract: There is provided an image processing apparatus including a quantization unit that quantizes an image subjected to logarithmic conversion such that a quantization error is focused on a luminance region in which expansion of an error caused due to logarithmic inverse-conversion which is inverse conversion of the logarithmic conversion is relatively small or a luminance region in which no expansion of the error occurs; and an encoding unit that encodes an index image obtained through the quantization by the quantization unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 9, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 23, 2014
    Assignees: Sony Corportion, Tokyo Metropolitan University
    Inventors: Takahiro Fukuhara, Hitoshi Kiya
  • Publication number: 20140125451
    Abstract: There is provided an audio illumination apparatus including an illumination unit, an audio output unit, a setting unit configured to set a parameter of at least one of illumination of the illumination unit and audio output of the audio output unit in accordance with a recognized user who is in a neighborhood, a transmission unit configured to transmit the parameter set by the setting unit to an audio illumination apparatus in the neighborhood, and a control unit configured to control the at least one of the illumination of the illumination unit and the audio output of the audio output unit in accordance with the set parameter.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 4, 2013
    Publication date: May 8, 2014
    Applicant: SONY CORPORTION
    Inventors: YOICHIRO SAKO, HIROSHI OKADA, KAZUHIRO WATANABE, KAZUYUKI SAKODA, KOHEI ASADA, MITSURU TAKEHARA, TAKATOSHI NAKAMURA, YASUNORI KAMADA, TAKAYASU KON, KAZUNORI HAYASHI, AKIRA TANGE, HIROYUKI HANAYA, YUKI KOGA, TOMOYA ONUMA
  • Patent number: 8526284
    Abstract: A multilayer optical recording medium includes a plurality of interfacial surfaces that reflect an incident light beam, and neighboring ones of the interfacial surfaces has a spacer therebetween. When a light incident surface side is defined as an upper surface side, a different thickness layer unit including the spacers having different thicknesses arranged sequentially is disposed on the lowermost layer side, and the spacers each having a thickness different from the thickness of any one of the spacers arranged in the different thickness layer unit are sequentially arranged above the different thickness layer unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 8, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 3, 2013
    Assignee: Sony Corportion
    Inventor: Tetsuhiro Sakamoto
  • Publication number: 20130070949
    Abstract: A sound-reproducing apparatus includes plural coupling portions, plural rods, plural shell portions, an actuator, and first, second, and third speakers. The coupling portions are disposed at positions corresponding to vertices of an assumed first regular tetrahedron and second regular tetrahedron in a duality relation. The rods connect adjacent coupling portions with each other among the coupling portions. The shell portions are joined to the rods. The actuator is disposed outside one coupling portion selected from the coupling portions with respect to a center of the first regular tetrahedron or second regular tetrahedron, and the actuator is connected with the one coupling portion. The first, second, and third speakers are disposed on, of the four coupling portions disposed at positions corresponding to the vertices of the one of the first and second regular tetrahedra including the one coupling portion, three coupling portions excluding the one coupling portion.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 20, 2012
    Publication date: March 21, 2013
    Applicant: SONY CORPORTION
    Inventor: Yohei FUKUMA
  • Patent number: 8297892
    Abstract: A cutting apparatus includes a base frame, a pair of holder assemblies, an overhead frame, a cutter assembly and a controller. The pair of holder assemblies are operably connected to the base frame with one holder assembly holding the first workpiece and the other holding the second workpiece. The pair of holder assemblies independently move relative to one another along a transverse axis. The overhead frame is connected to the base frame. The cutter assembly is connected to the overhead frame and moves along a vertical axis and a horizontal axis. The cutter assembly includes a rotary cutter mechanism with a rotating cutting tool. The controller controls and moves of the pair of holders and the cutter assembly so that the rotating cutting tool cuts the first workpiece in a first desired configuration then moves to the second workpiece to cut the second workpiece in a second desired configuration.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 17, 2008
    Date of Patent: October 30, 2012
    Assignees: Sony Corportion, Sony Electronics, Inc.
    Inventor: Esteban Arturo Alvarez Serrano
  • Patent number: 8254641
    Abstract: A biometrics authentication system includes: a detection section; a light source section including a plurality of unit light sources capable of illuminating independently of one another; an image pickup device being arranged on the same side as a side where the light source section is arranged with respect to the detection section; a driving section driving the light source section so that the unit light sources periodically illuminate by time division, and driving the image pickup device so that while an image pickup operation by a first image pickup cell group positioned near each of illuminating unit light sources is suspended, an image pickup operation by a second image pickup cell group positioned farther from each of illuminating unit light sources than the first image pickup cell group is performed; an image processing section; and an authentication section.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 15, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 28, 2012
    Assignee: Sony Corportion
    Inventor: Koichiro Kishima
  • Patent number: 8064596
    Abstract: The present invention provides a stream control device. The device includes a plurality of data processors that sequentially implement processing for stream data. The unit data of processing in each of the data processors has a certain data amount. The stream control device also includes a memory that is provided at a previous stage or a subsequent stage of the data processor, and stores the stream data. Each of the data processors includes a monitoring unit that monitors an amount of data stored in the memories at a previous stage and a subsequent stage of the data processor, and a data retriever that retrieves data to be processed from the memory at the previous stage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 19, 2006
    Date of Patent: November 22, 2011
    Assignee: Sony Corportion
    Inventors: Takatsuna Sasaki, Kaoru Yanamoto
  • Patent number: 7943254
    Abstract: An anode capable of relaxing the stress concentration and improving the characteristics and a battery using it are provided. The anode includes an anode current collector and an anode active material layer containing silicon (Si) as an element, wherein an anode active material layer has a metal element increasing and decreasing region in which a metal element is contained as an element, and a concentration of the metal element is increased and then decreased in a thickness direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 12, 2007
    Date of Patent: May 17, 2011
    Assignee: Sony Corportion
    Inventors: Takakazu Hirose, Masayuki Iwama, Koichi Matsumoto, Isamu Konishiike, Kenichi Kawase
  • Publication number: 20100175095
    Abstract: A data-processing method of receiving broadcast contents and content-related information related to the broadcast contents. The method includes setting a frequency for receiving the broadcast contents from the broadcast station, and recording frequency information corresponding to the set frequency. The method also includes transmitting request information including broadcast station ID identifying the broadcast station corresponding to the frequency information to a server.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 19, 2010
    Publication date: July 8, 2010
    Applicant: SONY CORPORTION
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Kikkoji, Nozomu Okuzawa, Shinsuke Yamashita, Jun Moriya, Yasuhiro Murase
  • Patent number: 7684305
    Abstract: An optical pickup includes an optical system in which light from a light source is introduced through an objective lens into an optical recording medium and in which light reflected from the optical recording medium is introduced into a light-receiving unit and an objective lens driving unit for driving the objective lens based on a light output detected at said light-receiving unit. In this optical pickup, a diffraction element is provided between the light source and the objective lens, the diffraction element is provided with at least first and second diffraction areas and the first and second diffraction areas have such grating shapes that ± first-order diffracted lights diffracted are received by the light-receiving unit at the position in which 0-th order light and ± first-order diffracted lights generated from guide grooves of the optical recording medium may not overlap with each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 14, 2006
    Date of Patent: March 23, 2010
    Assignee: Sony Corportion
    Inventors: Yoshiki Okamoto, Katsuhiro Seo
  • Patent number: 7551328
    Abstract: The present invention enables image data with good S/N and high resolution to be obtained reliably in a short reading time. A CCD 102 is formed by arranging line sensors, in which detecting elements having a time integration effect are arranged in a direction orthogonal to a relative movement direction in which the CCD 102 moves relative to an original, in a plurality of columns in the relative movement direction. A signal processing unit 107 detects pixel components on the basis of a model for separating first pixel values obtained in a processing unit time by the CCD 102 into a plurality of the pixel components corresponding to detection positions of the object being detected, and generates second pixel values corresponding to the detection positions of the object being detected on the basis of the detected pixel components. The present invention is applicable to scanners.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 8, 2003
    Date of Patent: June 23, 2009
    Assignee: Sony Corportion
    Inventors: Tetsujiro Kondo, Takashi Sawao, Junichi Ishibashi, Takahiro Nagano, Naoki Fujiwara, Toru Miyake, Seiji Wada
  • Patent number: 7257831
    Abstract: A program distribution system enabling a user to easily buy a program includes a video server for storing a plurality of distributable programs, and a video on demand controller which receives a request for the distribution of a distributable program from an integrated receiver decoder. The distribution request is formed in a free-style text format described in the arbitrary style of the user of the receiver decoder. The controller compares a word described in the distribution request with each title of the distributable programs stored in the video server, and if a title that corresponds to the word described in the distribution request is found, the controller reads out the corresponding distributing program from the video server and distributes it to the receiver decoder.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2000
    Date of Patent: August 14, 2007
    Assignee: Sony Corportion
    Inventor: Toshiro Ozawa
  • Patent number: 6937437
    Abstract: Each lock portion (15) has a front portion (23) including an anchoring pawl (24) and a back portion (25) extending in a direction opposite to the front portion. Therefore, when a slider (14) withdraws, each back portion comes into contact with the inside surface of a back wall (10) of a cassette shell (4) and each lock portion rotates in an unlocking direction. A bottom surface (109) defining each recess between engaging teeth (107) has a central portion which protrudes in a chevron shape. A corner of each protrusion has tapered surfaces (110?) and (110?). An anchoring pawl of each lock portion has a flat surface that comes into contact with one inclined surface (109?) of a chevron-shaped portion of any one of the recesses and one tapered surface (110?) of a protrusion disposed behind the adjacent recess.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 30, 2002
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2005
    Assignee: Sony Corportion
    Inventors: Hiroshi Fujii, Sunao Kushiro, Shuichi Ota, Takashi Ota
  • Patent number: 6922376
    Abstract: An optical device is provided which has a light converging unit for converging the light illuminated on a magneto-optical recording layer of an optical recording medium and a magnetic field generating unit provided on the light converging unit towards the optical recording medium. The diameter of the light beam radiated on the magneto-optical recording layer of the optical recording medium is controlled by a light transmitting hole of the magnetic field generating unit. The light beam illuminated on the magneto-optical recording layer of the optical recording medium is not fluctuated in diameter so that it is possible to produce a magnetic field at a low power consumption. In addition, the magnetic field generating unit is not liable to be ruptured. There is also provided a recording and/or reproducing apparatus employing this optical device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 1998
    Date of Patent: July 26, 2005
    Assignee: Sony Corportion
    Inventors: Ariyoshi Nakaoki, Kenji Yamamoto, Akira Kouchiyama, Akira Suzuki
  • Patent number: 6163345
    Abstract: An innovative but easy to use on-line guide is provided to provide the user of a multiple channel television broadcast system a wealth of programming information in a simple format that is easy to understand. The guide enables the user to easily select a particular program to watch. In particular, when the guide is presented to the user, the guide covers only a portion of the actual television screen or display. The remaining portion of the television screen continues to broadcast the audio and video of the currently selected program. As a user scans through the guide and moves the pointer from one station to another, the system responds by automatically tuning to the channel pointed to by the pointer and provides the audio and displays the video in the portion of the screen not covered by the guide. Thus, the user can easily get an idea of the broadcast on a particular station without exiting the guide and without expressly selecting a particular channel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 4, 1995
    Date of Patent: December 19, 2000
    Assignees: Sony Corportion, Sony Electronics, Inc.
    Inventors: Fujio Noguchi, Gail Karen White, Richard Gioscia, Peter Jordan, Setsuko Watanabe Blaszkowski, Kazuhiko Akaike, Mark Schaffer, Noriko Kotabe, Takashi Otani, Tadashi Kajiwara
  • Patent number: 5848235
    Abstract: A boundary scan analog signal test circuit for boundary scan testing of analog signals. The boundary scan analog signal test circuit provides for known upper and lower bound values at specified times for testing whether sample analog signals are within the specified lower and upper bound values. If the sample analog signals are not between the known upper and lower bound values, the boundary scan analog signal test circuit produces a result flag indicating a "not pass" for the device being tested. If the sample analog signal being tested is found to be within the known upper and lower bound values, then the circuit generates a result flag indicating that the device being tested has passed the test.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 15, 1996
    Date of Patent: December 8, 1998
    Assignees: Sony Corportion, Sony Trans Com, Inc.
    Inventors: Edward Scott, Kaz Takata, Toshiharu Fukui