Patents by Inventor Masahiro Tosa

Masahiro Tosa 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: 10495146
    Abstract: ZnO sputtering is performed while a rolling body is housed in a basket made of a metal wire and is rotated. By setting a ratio of a mesh size of the basket to a diameter of the rolling body in a range of 40 to 95%, fine and uniform ZnO coating can be formed on a surface of the rolling body. By using the rolling body with ZnO coating prepared in this manner in a bearing which is rotated at high speed in a high-load state, a friction coefficient can significantly be lowered in comparison with a case of no coating.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 25, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 3, 2019
    Assignee: NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR MATERIALS SCIENCE
    Inventors: Masahiro Goto, Michiko Sasaki, Akira Kasahara, Masahiro Tosa
  • Patent number: 10343893
    Abstract: Low friction coating of the present invention includes a boron-doped zinc oxide thin film, wherein piezoelectric polarization in a vertical direction perpendicular to a film surface and a lateral direction horizontal to the film surface occurs and a magnitude of the piezoelectric polarization in the vertical direction is within 150 pm and a magnitude of the piezoelectric polarization in the lateral direction is within 100 pm at 90% or more of measurement points. This makes it possible to greatly decrease the friction in a nanometer order.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 25, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 9, 2019
    Assignee: NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR MATERIALS SCIENCE
    Inventors: Michiko Sasaki, Masahiro Goto, Akira Kasahara, Masahiro Tosa
  • Publication number: 20190017549
    Abstract: ZnO sputtering is performed while a rolling body is housed in a basket made of a metal wire and is rotated. By setting a ratio of a mesh size of the basket to a diameter of the rolling body in a range of 40 to 95%, fine and uniform ZnO coating can be formed on a surface of the rolling body. By using the rolling body with ZnO coating prepared in this manner in a bearing which is rotated at high speed in a high-load state, a friction coefficient can significantly be lowered in comparison with a case of no coating.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 25, 2016
    Publication date: January 17, 2019
    Applicant: National Institute for Materials Science
    Inventors: Masahiro GOTO, Michiko SASAKI, Akira KASAHARA, Masahiro TOSA
  • Publication number: 20180155183
    Abstract: Low friction coating of the present invention includes a boron-doped zinc oxide thin film, wherein piezoelectric polarization in a vertical direction perpendicular to a film surface and a lateral direction horizontal to the film surface occurs and a magnitude of the piezoelectric polarization in the vertical direction is within 150 pm and a magnitude of the piezoelectric polarization in the lateral direction is within 100 pm at 90% or more of measurement points. This makes it possible to greatly decrease the friction in a nanometer order.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 25, 2016
    Publication date: June 7, 2018
    Applicant: NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR MATERIALS SCIENCE
    Inventors: Michiko SASAKI, Masahiro GOTO, Akira KASAHARA, Masahiro TOSA
  • Patent number: 9957371
    Abstract: Provided is a polymer nanowire which contains nanoparticles so as to have new functionalities. A thin film is formed on a substrate and includes functional nanoparticles and polymers, and further includes a photosensitive pigment as required. The thin film is irradiated with a pulsed laser. This causes a polymer nanowire containing the functional nanoparticles to grow from a surface of the thin film.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 1, 2018
    Assignee: NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR MATERIALS SCIENCE
    Inventors: Michiko Sasaki, Masahiro Goto, Akira Kasahara, Toyohiro Chikyo, Masahiro Tosa
  • Patent number: 9447286
    Abstract: [Problem to be Solved] To provide a ZnO coating having low friction not only in a vacuum but in a liquid such as oil. [Solution] The low-friction ZnO coating, comprising (002) and (103) planes, and further comprising (100), (101), (102), and (104) planes in lower proportions than those of the (002) and (103) planes, has been prepared by sputtering using a zinc target in a sputter gas environment, wherein the sputter gas comprises an inert gas and oxygen gas, and the oxygen gas ratio is controlled. This coating has a specifically good low friction coefficient due to the piezoelectric effect, and this friction reduction mechanism is maintained even in oil such as n-hexadecane. Thus, this coating has been found to have excellent low-friction properties.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2013
    Date of Patent: September 20, 2016
    Assignee: NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR MATERIALS SCIENCE
    Inventors: Masahiro Goto, Akira Kasahara, Masahiro Tosa
  • Publication number: 20150104662
    Abstract: Provided is a polymer nanowire which contains nanoparticles so as to have new functionalities. A thin film 103 is formed on a substrate 101 and includes functional nanoparticles and polymers, and further includes a photosensitive pigment as required. The thin film 103 is irradiated with a pulsed laser. This causes a polymer nanowire 109 containing the functional nanoparticles to grow from a surface of the thin film 103.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 13, 2012
    Publication date: April 16, 2015
    Applicant: NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR MATERIALS SCIENCE
    Inventors: Michiko Sasaki, Masahiro Goto, Akira Kasahara, Toyohiro Chikyo, Masahiro Tosa
  • Publication number: 20100242837
    Abstract: A combinatorial deposition method is characterized in that, in a method of performing thin-film coating onto a substrate disposed in a vacuum, two or more substrates are moved between a deposition position and a cooling position, sequentially only substrates to be coated is moved to the deposition position while substrates at the cooling position are cooled by a cooling mechanism, and substrates are respectively deposited under different deposition conditions in only one vacuum evacuation process. Various deposition conditions with regard to sputtering and the like are accurately controlled, so that coating films can be efficiently produced under different deposition conditions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 10, 2010
    Publication date: September 30, 2010
    Inventors: Masahiro GOTO, Akira Kasahara, Masahiro Tosa
  • Patent number: 7713635
    Abstract: A copper oxide thin film mainly containing CuO is formed by a plasma film-forming process on a substrate for film formation. The friction coefficient of the copper oxide thin film can be controlled remarkably low.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 23, 2004
    Date of Patent: May 11, 2010
    Assignee: National Institute for Materials Science
    Inventors: Masahiro Goto, Akira Kasahara, Masahiro Tosa, Kazuhiro Yoshihara
  • Publication number: 20100000854
    Abstract: A combinatorial deposition method is characterized in that, in a method of performing thin-film coating onto a substrate disposed in a vacuum, two or more substrates are moved between a deposition position and a cooling position, sequentially only substrates to be coated is moved to the deposition position while substrates at the cooling position are cooled by a cooling mechanism, and substrates are respectively deposited under different deposition conditions in only one vacuum evacuation process. Various deposition conditions with regard to sputtering and the like are accurately controlled, so that coating films can be efficiently produced under different deposition conditions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 4, 2009
    Publication date: January 7, 2010
    Inventors: Masahiro GOTO, Akira KASAHARA, Masahiro TOSA
  • Publication number: 20080113219
    Abstract: A copper oxide thin film mainly containing CuO is formed by a plasma film-forming process on a substrate for film formation. The friction coefficient of the copper oxide thin film can be controlled remarkably low.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 23, 2004
    Publication date: May 15, 2008
    Inventors: Masahiro Goto, Akira Kasahara, Tetsuo Oishi, Masahiro Tosa, Kazuhiro Yoshihara
  • Publication number: 20070111143
    Abstract: To make it possible to fix various organic molecules in an arbitrary configuration or arrangement on a micro/nano scale as a cheap and simple process by irradiating a photocurable resin containing an organic molecule on a substrate with light, thereby curing the photocurable resin in a given pattern and removing an uncured portion, thereby fixing the organic molecule in the given pattern on the substrate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 15, 2004
    Publication date: May 17, 2007
    Applicant: NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR MATERIALS SCIENCE
    Inventors: Tetsuo Oishi, Masahiro Goto, Akira Kasahara, Masahiro Tosa, Kazuhiro Yoshihara
  • Publication number: 20060118414
    Abstract: A combinatorial deposition method is characterized in that, in a method of performing thin-film coating onto a substrate disposed in a vacuum, two or more substrates are moved between a deposition position and a cooling position, sequentially only substrates to be coated is moved to the deposition position while substrates at the cooling position are cooled by a cooling mechanism, and substrates are respectively deposited under different deposition conditions in only one vacuum evacuation process. Various deposition conditions with regard to sputtering and the like are accurately controlled, so that coating films can be efficiently produced under different deposition conditions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 20, 2004
    Publication date: June 8, 2006
    Inventors: Masahiro Goto, Akira Kasahara, Masahiro Tosa
  • Patent number: 5192409
    Abstract: A material for high-vacuum vessels characterized by depositing a mixture film of stainless steel and boron nitride on the surface of a metal or an alloy through the sputtering process, and heating and precipitating hexagonal boron nitride onto the surface thereof.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 3, 1992
    Date of Patent: March 9, 1993
    Assignee: National Research Institute For Metals
    Inventors: Masahiro Tosa, Kazuhiro Yoshihara