Patents by Inventor Kenji Yamazoe

Kenji Yamazoe 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: 10444146
    Abstract: The present invention relates generally to apparatus and methods for endoscopy which includes a probe, a first and a second optical fiber to guide light, a third optical fiber to capture light; and a switch configured to operate the first optical fiber and second optical fiber. Light dispersed by the first optical fiber at least partially overlaps light dispersed by the second optical.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 2016
    Date of Patent: October 15, 2019
    Assignee: CANON U.S.A., INC.
    Inventors: Kenji Yamazoe, Seiji Takeuchi
  • Publication number: 20190174038
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides apparatuses and methods for color imaging and an increased field of view using spectrally encoded endoscopy techniques. At least one of the apparatuses includes an illumination unit having two or more spectrally dispersive gratings positioned, for example, on different planes or on the same plane but having grating vectors at an angle to each other such that bands of spectrally dispersed light propagating from the gratings propagate on different planes.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 11, 2018
    Publication date: June 6, 2019
    Inventors: Seiji TAKEUCHI, Jacob Schieffelin BRAUER, Anderson MACH, Badr ELMAANAOUI, Sarika VERMA, Kenji YAMAZOE, Toshiyuki SUDO, Michio ISHIKAWA
  • Patent number: 10288868
    Abstract: Exemplary apparatus, systems, methods of making, and methods of using a configuration in an optical arrangement for forward viewing spectrally encoded endoscopy (SEE) probe can be provided. For example, the probe can comprise a light focusing component, a light guiding component, a light reflecting component, and a grating component.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 30, 2015
    Date of Patent: May 14, 2019
    Assignees: CANON U.S.A., INC., THE GENERAL HOSPITAL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Guillermo J. Tearney, Dongkyun Kang, Mitsuhiro Ikuta, Kenji Yamazoe, Anderson Thi Mach, Jacob Schieffelin Brauer
  • Patent number: 10194065
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides apparatuses and methods for color imaging and an increased field of view using spectrally encoded endoscopy techniques. At least one of the apparatuses includes an illumination unit having two or more spectrally dispersive gratings positioned, for example, on different planes or on the same plane but having grating vectors at an angle to each other such that bands of spectrally dispersed light propagating from the gratings propagate on different planes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 5, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 29, 2019
    Assignee: Canon U.S.A., Inc.
    Inventors: Seiji Takeuchi, Jacob Schieffelin Brauer, Anderson T. Mach, Badr Elmaanaoui, Sarika Verma, Kenji Yamazoe, Toshiyuki Sudo, Michio Ishikawa
  • Publication number: 20180372633
    Abstract: The present invention relates generally to apparatus and methods for endoscopy which includes a probe, a first and a second optical fiber to guide light, a third optical fiber to capture light; and a switch configured to operate the first optical fiber and second optical fiber. Light dispersed by the first optical fiber at least partially overlaps light dispersed by the second optical.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 28, 2016
    Publication date: December 27, 2018
    Inventors: Kenji YAMAZOE, Seiji TAKEUCHI
  • Patent number: 10073936
    Abstract: A generation method of generating, by a computer, data of a pattern of a mask used for an exposure apparatus including a projection optical system. The method includes dividing an effective light source formed on a pupil plane of the projection optical system into a plurality of point sources; generating a plurality of shifted pupil functions by shifting a pupil function corresponding to each of the plurality of point sources by a shift amount in accordance with a position of each point source; defining a matrix by arranging each of the plurality of shifted pupil functions in each row or each column of the matrix; calculating an eigenvalue and an eigenfunction by performing singular value decomposition of the matrix; calculating a map representing, when elements of a target pattern are inserted on an object plane of the projection optical system, an influence the elements inflict on each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 14, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 11, 2018
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Kenji Yamazoe
  • Publication number: 20180214008
    Abstract: Exemplary apparatus and optical systems for forward and side view apparatus are described. These apparatus include a light focusing element, a grating element inclined with respect to the optical axis of the apparatus, and a transparent element. The transparent element has a proximal surface in contact with the grating element and an inclined distal surface. Such apparatus can be sued as spectrally encoded endoscopy (SEE) probes.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 4, 2016
    Publication date: August 2, 2018
    Applicant: Canon U.S.A., Inc.
    Inventors: Kenji Yamazoe, Anderson Mach, Zhuo Wang
  • Patent number: 9869820
    Abstract: Gradient index lenses, or GRIN lenses, are useful for collimating light from a waveguide and reducing loss when coupling two fibers or coupling the fiber to other optical components. There is provided herein a method to align a GRIN lens to the distal end of an optical fiber with precise lateral alignment. The alignment occurs by: (1) rotating the fiber with respect to the lens so that the fiber is parallel with the lens, such that a light is transmitted through the fiber and then through the lens, and (2) translating the fiber laterally with respect to the lens based on the position of a circle pattern that appears on the screen after the distal end of the lens. The transmitted light is centered in the circle pattern for centered alignment or positioned at calculate distance from the center of the circle pattern for off-axis alignment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 9, 2015
    Date of Patent: January 16, 2018
    Assignee: Canon U.S.A, Inc.
    Inventors: Jeffrey Chen, Kenji Yamazoe
  • Publication number: 20170167861
    Abstract: Gradient index lenses, or GRIN lenses, are useful for collimating light from a waveguide and reducing loss when coupling two fibers or coupling the fiber to other optical components. There is provided herein a method to align a GRIN lens to the distal end of an optical fiber with precise lateral alignment. The alignment occurs by: (1) rotating the fiber with respect to the lens so that the fiber is parallel with the lens, such that a light is transmitted through the fiber and then through the lens, and (2) translating the fiber laterally with respect to the lens based on the position of a circle pattern that appears on the screen after the distal end of the lens. The transmitted light is centered in the circle pattern for centered alignment or positioned at calculate distance from the center of the circle pattern for off-axis alignment.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 9, 2015
    Publication date: June 15, 2017
    Inventors: Jeffrey Chen, Kenji Yamazoe
  • Patent number: 9678441
    Abstract: In a method for generating, with a computer, a pattern of a mask, a pattern on an object plane of a projection optical system is set, shifted plural pupil functions are generated, a matrix containing the generated plural pupil functions is defined, an image of the pattern on the object plane is calculated by generating a vector obtained by transposing and complex-conjugating a vector containing, as components, values of the pupil functions at origin coordinates on a pupil plane from among components of the matrix, and performing convolution integral between the pattern on the object plane and a Fourier transform of a product of the vector and the matrix, an assist pattern for the pattern on the object plane is generated using the calculated image, and a pattern of the mask including the pattern on the object plane and the assist pattern is generated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 10, 2014
    Date of Patent: June 13, 2017
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Kenji Yamazoe, Ryo Nakayama, Hiroyuki Ishii
  • Publication number: 20170035281
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides apparatuses and methods for color imaging and an increased field of view using spectrally encoded endoscopy techniques. At least one of the apparatuses includes an illumination unit having two or more spectrally dispersive gratings positioned, for example, on different planes or on the same plane but having grating vectors at an angle to each other such that bands of spectrally dispersed light propagating from the gratings propagate on different planes.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 5, 2016
    Publication date: February 9, 2017
    Inventors: Seiji TAKEUCHI, Jacob Schieffelin BRAUER, Anderson T. MACH, Badr ELMAANAOUI, Sarika VERMA, Kenji YAMAZOE, Toshiyuki SUDO, Michio ISHIKAWA
  • Patent number: 9507253
    Abstract: A method for generating a pattern of a mask used for an exposure apparatus through a calculation by a processor includes applying, to a target main pattern, a reference map of a characteristic value of an image of a representative main pattern with respect to a position of a representative auxiliary pattern calculated for each of a plurality of positions while the position of the representative auxiliary pattern with respect to the representative main pattern is changed and calculating a map of the characteristic value of the image of the target main pattern with respect to a position of an auxiliary pattern, and determining the position of the auxiliary pattern by using data of the map of the characteristic value of the image of the target main pattern and generating a pattern of a mask including the target main pattern and the determined auxiliary pattern.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 5, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 29, 2016
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Ishii, Kenji Yamazoe
  • Publication number: 20160341951
    Abstract: Exemplary apparatus, systems, methods of making, and methods of using a configuration in an optical arrangement for forward viewing spectrally encoded endoscopy (SEE) probe can be provided. For example, the probe can comprise a light focusing component, a light guiding component, a light reflecting component, and a grating component.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 30, 2015
    Publication date: November 24, 2016
    Inventors: Guillermo J. Tearney, Dongkyun Kang, Mitsuhiro Ikuta, Kenji Yamazoe, Anderson Thi Mach, Jacob Schieffelin Brauer
  • Patent number: 9228921
    Abstract: An aberration estimating method using a steepest descent method is configured to estimate, as an aberration of a test optical system, an aberration when a predetermined evaluation function becomes less than or equal to a permissible value. The aberration estimating method comprising the step of updating the aberration with a sum of a current aberration and a first derivative of the evaluation function by the aberration when the evaluation function is larger than the permissible value. The aberration is an aberration of an entire pupil plane of the test optical system. The updating step includes calculating the first derivative by Fourier-transforming the difference instead of an integration at coordinates of respective points on an image plane of the test optical system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 9, 2013
    Date of Patent: January 5, 2016
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Kenji Yamazoe
  • Publication number: 20150131066
    Abstract: In a method for generating, with a computer, a pattern of a mask, a pattern on an object plane of a projection optical system is set, shifted plural pupil functions are generated, a matrix containing the generated plural pupil functions is defined, an image of the pattern on the object plane is calculated by generating a vector obtained by transposing and complex-conjugating a vector containing, as components, values of the pupil functions at origin coordinates on a pupil plane from among components of the matrix, and performing convolution integral between the pattern on the object plane and a Fourier transform of a product of the vector and the matrix, an assist pattern for the pattern on the object plane is generated using the calculated image, and a pattern of the mask including the pattern on the object plane and the assist pattern is generated.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 10, 2014
    Publication date: May 14, 2015
    Inventors: Kenji Yamazoe, Ryo Nakayama, Hiroyuki Ishii
  • Publication number: 20150070669
    Abstract: A generation method of generating, by a computer, data of a pattern of a mask used for an exposure apparatus including a projection optical system. The method includes dividing an effective light source formed on a pupil plane of the projection optical system into a plurality of point sources; generating a plurality of shifted pupil functions by shifting a pupil function corresponding to each of the plurality of point sources by a shift amount in accordance with a position of each point source; defining a matrix by arranging each of the plurality of shifted pupil functions in each row or each column of the matrix; calculating an eigenvalue and an eigenfunction by performing singular value decomposition of the matrix; calculating a map representing, when elements of a target pattern are inserted on an object plane of the projection optical system, an influence the elements inflict on each other.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 14, 2014
    Publication date: March 12, 2015
    Inventor: Kenji Yamazoe
  • Publication number: 20140365985
    Abstract: A method for generating a pattern of a mask used for an exposure apparatus through a calculation by a processor includes applying, to a target main pattern, a reference map of a characteristic value of an image of a representative main pattern with respect to a position of a representative auxiliary pattern calculated for each of a plurality of positions while the position of the representative auxiliary pattern with respect to the representative main pattern is changed and calculating a map of the characteristic value of the image of the target main pattern with respect to a position of an auxiliary pattern, and determining the position of the auxiliary pattern by using data of the map of the characteristic value of the image of the target main pattern and generating a pattern of a mask including the target main pattern and the determined auxiliary pattern.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 5, 2014
    Publication date: December 11, 2014
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Ishii, Kenji Yamazoe
  • Patent number: 8908153
    Abstract: A computer-implemented calculation method of calculating a transmission cross coefficient in an apparatus which projects an image of an object onto an image plane via a projection optical system includes: a division step of dividing an effective light source formed on a pupil plane of the projection optical system into a plurality of point sources, a defining step of defining a matrix by arranging each of the plurality of pupil functions generated in the generation step in each row or each column of the matrix, and a calculation step of calculating the transmission cross coefficient based on the matrix defined in the defining step.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2011
    Date of Patent: December 9, 2014
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Kenji Yamazoe
  • Patent number: 8843337
    Abstract: An apparatus includes a measurement unit and a calculation unit, wherein the calculation unit expresses a measurement error of each measurement as a polynomial including a term that has a coefficient whose value is dependent on setting of the measurement area and a term that has a coefficient whose value is not dependent on the setting of the measurement area, obtains a matrix equation with respect to the coefficients of the polynomial by applying a least-squares method to each of the measurement data items for the overlapping region, assigns data about the terms of the polynomial and each of the measurement data items for the overlapping region to the matrix equation, calculates the coefficients of the polynomial from a singular value decomposition of the matrix equation to which the data has been assigned, and corrects each of the measurement data items for the measurement areas by using the coefficients.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 2010
    Date of Patent: September 23, 2014
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Kenji Yamazoe
  • Publication number: 20140071261
    Abstract: An aberration estimating method using a steepest descent method is configured to estimate, as an aberration of a test optical system, an aberration when a predetermined evaluation function becomes less than or equal to a permissible value. The aberration estimating method comprising the step of updating the aberration with a sum of a current aberration and a first derivative of the evaluation function by the aberration when the evaluation function is larger than the permissible value. The aberration is an aberration of an entire pupil plane of the test optical system. The updating step includes calculating the first derivative by Fourier-transforming the difference instead of an integration at coordinates of respective points on an image plane of the test optical system.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 9, 2013
    Publication date: March 13, 2014
    Applicant: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Kenji Yamazoe