Patents by Inventor Ken Imamura

Ken Imamura has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 11959545
    Abstract: A vehicle control device includes a processor and memory. The memory stores relation-defining data for defining a relation between a state of a vehicle and an action variable that is a variable relating to operations of a transmission installed in the vehicle. The processor is configured to execute acquisition processing, operation processing, reward calculation processing, updating processing, counting processing, and limiting processing. The processor is configured to output the relation-defining data updated so that an expected income is increased when the transmission is operated following the relation-defining data, based on an updating map.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 25, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hideaki Bunazawa, Atsushi Tabata, Koichi Okuda, Ken Imamura, Kota Fujii, Keita Sasaki
  • Publication number: 20240096968
    Abstract: It is an object of the present disclosure to impart desired high frequency characteristics to a nitride semiconductor device including diamond as a substrate at a low cost. In the nitride semiconductor device according to the present disclosure, a via hole extends from a first main surface of a diamond layer through the diamond layer, an intermediate layer, and a nitride semiconductor layer to an electrode. The via hole has a multi-step structure including a large-diameter via hole being in contact with the first main surface of the diamond layer and a small-diameter via hole facing the electrode, having a smaller diameter than the large-diameter via hole, and being tapered.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 17, 2021
    Publication date: March 21, 2024
    Applicant: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Ken IMAMURA, Shuichi HIZA, Kunihiko NISHIMURA
  • Publication number: 20240082559
    Abstract: A connector (50) includes a tubular member (52) and a base tube (58). A light-guiding tube (60) is drawn out from the base tube (58) toward the opposite side to the tubular member (52). An adapter (1) includes: a first connecting portion (10) that can be connected to and disconnected from a light source device (70); a second connecting portion (20) that can be connected to and disconnected from the connector (50); and a light-guiding member (30) that guides light emitted from the light source device (70) to a proximal end surface (61) of the tube (60).
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 7, 2022
    Publication date: March 14, 2024
    Inventors: Takehiko YUKI, Masaya MUTSUKADO, Ken KANDA, Koichiro TOYOTA, Masahiro KINOSHITA, Osuke IWATA, Manabu MOCHIZUKI, Yasuo IMAMURA
  • Publication number: 20230290635
    Abstract: A provided is a polycrystalline diamond substrate that can reduce the cost for inhibiting warpage. The polycrystalline diamond substrate is a polycrystalline diamond substrate having a first principal surface and a second principal surface, and includes, between the first principal surface and the second principal surface, a surface having an average grain diameter smaller than each of average grain diameters of the first principal surface and the second principal surface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 18, 2020
    Publication date: September 14, 2023
    Applicant: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Ken IMAMURA, Masahiro FUJIKAWA, Kunihiko NISHIMURA, Eiji YAGYU
  • Publication number: 20230238296
    Abstract: A split in a dicing street in a semiconductor film is prevented. A semiconductor device includes: a first dicing street passing between a plurality of element regions on which a plurality of protective films are formed one-to-one, the first dicing street extending along a first axis; a second dicing street passing between the plurality of element regions and extending along a second axis; and a stop island disposed on the upper surface of the semiconductor film at an intersection between the first dicing street and the second dicing street, the stop island being in non-contact with the plurality of element regions. X_si>X_ds and Y_si<Y_ds are satisfied.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 25, 2020
    Publication date: July 27, 2023
    Applicant: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Kunihiko NISHIMURA, Masahiro FUJIKAWA, Shuichi HIZA, Shinya NISHIMURA, Ken IMAMURA, Yuki TAKIGUCHI, Eiji YAGYU
  • Patent number: 11692894
    Abstract: An oil pressure estimation device for calculating an estimated differential pressure that is an estimated value of a differential pressure between two oil chambers generated in a torque converter including the two oil chambers and a lockup clutch includes a storage device and an execution device. The storage device stores mapping data defining a mapping, the mapping outputting as an output variable an estimated differential pressure variable indicating the estimated differential pressure, in response to input of an input variable, and the mapping having been trained by machine learning. The mapping includes an instruction differential pressure variable indicating the instruction differential pressure as one of a plurality of the input variables. The execution device executes an acquisition process of acquiring a value of the input variable and a calculation process of inputting the value of the input variable into the mapping to calculate a value of the output variable.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 8, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2023
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Atsushi Tabata, Koichi Okuda, Ken Imamura
  • Patent number: 11674946
    Abstract: An oil condition estimation apparatus to be applied to a vehicle in which oil is agitated by a rotator includes a storage device and an execution device. The storage device stores mapping data for defining mapping. The mapping includes, as input variables, a speed variable indicating a rotation speed of the rotator, and a pressure variable indicating a pressure of the oil, and includes, as an output variable, an air bubble variable related to air bubbles contained in the oil. The execution device executes an acquisition process for acquiring values of the input variables, and a calculation process for calculating a value of the output variable by inputting, to the mapping, the values of the input variables acquired through the acquisition process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 23, 2021
    Date of Patent: June 13, 2023
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Koichi Okuda, Atsushi Tabata, Kota Fujii, Ken Imamura
  • Patent number: 11649892
    Abstract: A hydraulic pressure calculation apparatus is applied to a gear shifting system including a transmission configured to switch between a connected state and a disconnected state of a friction engagement element depending on a hydraulic pressure supplied from a hydraulic circuit, and a hydraulic controller configured to control the hydraulic circuit. The hydraulic pressure calculation apparatus includes a memory and a processor. The memory stores pieces of mapping data of a plurality of phases obtained by dividing a period from a start to an end of switching between the connected state and the disconnected state of the friction engagement element. Each piece of the mapping data defines a mapping. The processor is configured to output, as an output variable, an estimated hydraulic pressure variable indicating an estimated value of an actual hydraulic pressure supplied from the hydraulic circuit to the friction engagement element.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 1, 2021
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2023
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Kota Fujii, Atsushi Tabata, Koichi Okuda, Ken Imamura, Hideaki Bunazawa, Keita Sasaki
  • Patent number: 11614131
    Abstract: An apparatus to be applied to a vehicle including a transmission configured to execute a gear shifting operation for changing a gear ratio by engaging or disengaging friction engagement elements having friction members pushed by a piston that moves through hydraulic pressure supply to an oil chamber, the apparatus including: a memory storing mapping data for defining mapping, the mapping including a pressure variable and a period variable as input variables, the mapping including a stroke amount as an output variable, the pressure variable indicating a waiting pressure, the period variable indicating a waiting period; and a processor configured to: acquire values of the input variables, and calculate a value of the output variable by inputting, to the mapping, the acquired values of the input variables.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 8, 2021
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2023
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Atsushi Tabata, Koichi Okuda, Kota Fujii, Ken Imamura
  • Patent number: 11566966
    Abstract: There is provided a method of specifying a location of occurrence of an abnormal sound, the method including: storing mapping data in a storage device, the mapping data prescribing mapping that receives, as inputs, a sound variable that matches a sound detected in a vehicle and a state variable of a drive-system device of the vehicle synchronized with the sound, and that outputs a location as a main cause of the sound; executing a sound signal acquisition process of acquiring a sound signal output from a microphone that detects a sound; a state variable acquisition process of acquiring the state variable of the drive-system device; and a specifying process of specifying the location of occurrence of the sound corresponding to the sound signal using the sound variable and the state variable as inputs to the mapping. There are also provided a non-transitory storage medium and an in-vehicle device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 25, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2023
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Atsushi Tabata, Koichi Okuda, Kota Fujii, Ken Imamura
  • Patent number: 11519495
    Abstract: A heat load estimation device for a friction engaging element that estimates a heat load when at least one of a temperature, a heat generation amount, and presence or absence of seizure in the friction engaging element at a time of shifting of the transmission is regarded as the heat load, includes a storage device and an execution device. The storage device stores mapping data defining mapping. The mapping includes, as an input variable, a speed variable that is a variable indicating a relative rotation speed of members of the friction engaging element and a hydraulic pressure variable that is a variable indicating hydraulic pressure during the shifting of the transmission, and includes, as an output variable, the heat load. The execution device executes a calculation process for calculating a value of the output variable and a change process for changing an execution mode of the calculation process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 7, 2021
    Date of Patent: December 6, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Kota Fujii, Atsushi Tabata, Koichi Okuda, Ken Imamura, Hideaki Bunazawa, Keita Sasaki
  • Publication number: 20220383675
    Abstract: A plurality of driving force transmitting components of the same kind is categorized into a plurality of groups depending on a frequency range with the loudest operation sound. A component selection device stores mapping data that is data that defines mapping learned by machine learning. When the user-related information is input as an input variable, the mapping outputs a value corresponding to the input variable as an output variable. The vehicle component selection method causes the component selection method to execute: an input process inputting the user-related information into the mapping as the input variable; a selection process selecting the group corresponding to the output variable output by the mapping from the groups; and a determination process determining the driving force transmitting component categorized into the group selected in the selection process as a component to be installed in the vehicle for the user identified by the user-related information.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 18, 2022
    Publication date: December 1, 2022
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Atsushi TABATA, Ken IMAMURA
  • Patent number: 11420644
    Abstract: A vehicle control device includes: a storage device that stores relation-defining data that is data for defining a relation between a state of a vehicle and an action variable; and an executing device configured to acquire the state, operate a drivetrain device based on a value of the action variable, derive a reward such that the reward is larger when the state of the drivetrain device based on the acquired state satisfies a predetermined criterion, perform an updating of the relation-defining data using an updating map, and restrict the updating of the relation-defining data such that an updating amount of the relation-defining data is smaller when the drivetrain device is subject to a predetermined restriction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 27, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 23, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hideaki Bunazawa, Atsushi Tabata, Koichi Okuda, Ken Imamura, Kota Fujii, Keita Sasaki
  • Patent number: 11421781
    Abstract: An oil pressure learning method of an automatic transmission includes acquiring a state of a vehicle in a state where relational regulation data is stored, supplying oil to the automatic transmission such that the value of the oil pressure is set to an oil pressure command value, calculating, as a specific variable, a variable representing an amount in which a detected input rotation speed exceeds a target input rotation speed, or the like, calculating a reward in a manner in which it has a larger value when the specific variable satisfies a criterion than when it does not satisfy the criterion, updating the relational regulation data by inputting, to an update mapping, the reward and the oil pressure command value, and calculating a torque variable having a value that is increased as an amount of change in an input torque is increased.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 28, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 23, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hideaki Bunazawa, Atsushi Tabata, Koichi Okuda, Ken Imamura, Kota Fujii, Keita Sasaki
  • Patent number: 11420646
    Abstract: A driving apparatus is controlled by using a driving command that is obtained by applying an accelerator operation amount to a relation between the accelerator operation amount and the driving command for the driving apparatus, and the relation is set by using a distribution of usage of the driving command by a driver such that a gradient that is a change in the driving command with a change in the accelerator operation amount in a high usage range including a value having a longest usage time among values of the driving command is less than the gradient in a range other than the high usage range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 23, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 23, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Jun Yoshida, Ken Imamura
  • Patent number: 11415217
    Abstract: A device for a vehicle including: a memory configured to store mapping data including machine learning data defining a mapping that uses an estimation variable that is a variable indicating a vehicle operation status of the vehicle and a detection value of a sensor detecting an oil temperature of a power transmission device as input variables, and uses an element corresponding to the input variables as an output variable; and a processor configured to: acquire the input variables; use the mapping to acquire the element as the output variable of the mapping corresponding to the input variables; and determine based on the element whether the detection value becomes equal to or higher than a threshold value due to occurrence of an abnormality in the power transmission device or a mode of vehicle operation by the driver of the vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 7, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 16, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Kota Fujii, Atsushi Tabata, Koichi Okuda, Ken Imamura
  • Patent number: 11396943
    Abstract: A control device provided in a gear shifting device includes an electronic control unit. The electronic control unit determines whether an abnormality of the gear shifting device has occurred, performs a fail-safe process of switching the frictional engagement element corresponding to an abnormality to a disengaged state and fixing the gear shift ratio of the gear shifting device when it is determined that an abnormality has occurred, determines whether the abnormality has been relieved based on a behavior of an input signal at the time of operating a drive device of the frictional engagement element corresponding to an abnormality on condition that the frictional engagement element is maintained in the disengaged state after it is determined that the abnormality has occurred, and releases the fail-safe process when it is determined that the abnormality has been relieved.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 21, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 26, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Atsushi Tabata, Koichi Okuda, Kota Fujii, Ken Imamura
  • Patent number: 11378181
    Abstract: A temperature estimation device for friction engaging elements including an execution device and a storage device is provided. The storage device stores mapping data that defines mapping. The mapping includes, as an input variable, a heat amount variable that is a variable indicating an amount of heat generated by the friction engaging elements during the shifting of the transmission and a shifting variable indicating the friction engaging elements to be engaged at the time of the shifting of the transmission, and, as an output variable, the temperature. The execution device executes an acquisition process of acquiring a value of the input variable and a calculation process of inputting the value of the input variable acquired by the acquisition process into the mapping to calculate a value of the output variable.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 11, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 5, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Kota Fujii, Atsushi Tabata, Koichi Okuda, Ken Imamura
  • Patent number: 11320045
    Abstract: An on-board component abnormal site identifying method includes executing an acquisition process, a calculation process, and a reporting process by an execution device. The acquisition process is a process for acquiring, by the execution device, values of input variables. The mapping includes, as the input variables, a foreign substance variable, and includes, as an output variable, an abnormal site variable. The calculation process is a process for calculating, by the execution device, a value of the abnormal site variable by inputting, to the mapping, the values of the input variables acquired through the acquisition process. The reporting process is a process for reporting, by the execution device, a calculation result of the calculation process by operating a reporting device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 12, 2021
    Date of Patent: May 3, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Koichi Okuda, Atsushi Tabata, Kota Fujii, Ken Imamura
  • Publication number: 20220108570
    Abstract: An unusual-noise determination device for a vehicle that performs unusual-noise determination to determine whether a power transmission system of the vehicle is generating unusual noise. The unusual-noise determination device includes an execution device and a memory device. The memory device stores a neural network that uses the maximum sound pressure and the excess ratio as inputs, and outputs a determination result variable, which is a variable indicating a result of the unusual-noise determination. The neural network is a trained neural network that has been trained using various values related to each of multiple vehicles as training data. The execution device is configured to perform the unusual-noise determination based on an output of the trained neural network that uses, as inputs, the maximum sound pressure and the excess ratio.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 30, 2021
    Publication date: April 7, 2022
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Atsushi TABATA, Ken IMAMURA, Koichi OKUDA, Masato NAKANO, Toshiaki TAMACHI