Patents by Inventor Masato Yoshino

Masato Yoshino 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).

  • Publication number: 20010024062
    Abstract: A coordinated regenerative brake system controls total brake torque to brake a vehicle in accordance with brake pedal operation and achieve deceleration intended by the driver's operation of the brakes when the accelerator is not depressed. In a vehicle speed range below specific speed V1, engine brake equivalent torque Ta is set to decrease gradually to zero in accordance with vehicle speed V. When brake operation starts at a vehicle speed exceeding V1, the desired total brake torque Tq working on the vehicle is the sum of brake torque Tb corresponding to brake operation, and engine brake equivalent torque Ta, until vehicle speed reaches specific speed V1. When vehicle speed is V1 or less, brake torque is controlled using as desired total brake torque Tq the sum of brake torque Tb corresponding to brake operation, and first engine brake equivalent torque Ta1, if brake operation amount Sb is greater than or equal to a first brake operation amount Sb1.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 13, 2001
    Publication date: September 27, 2001
    Applicant: SUMITOMO (SEI) BRAKE SYSTEMS, INC.
    Inventor: Masato Yoshino
  • Patent number: 5695260
    Abstract: A control apparatus is provided for a fluid pressure circuit in a motor vehicle. The control apparatus may include a first fluid pressure detector that detects a fluid pressure in an accumulator, and that switches between two states when the detected fluid pressure reaches a first fluid pressure setting P1. A second fluid pressure detector may also be provided that switches between two states when the detected fluid pressure reaches a second fluid pressure setting P2 that is lower than the first fluid pressure setting P1.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 1, 1995
    Date of Patent: December 9, 1997
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hirohisa Tanaka, Masato Yoshino
  • Patent number: 5480223
    Abstract: A fluid pressure control device comprising: an inlet valve which is provided in a supply path for connecting a fluid pressure apparatus and a fluid pressure source and is opened so as to increase fluid pressure of the fluid pressure apparatus; and an outlet valve which is provided in a discharge path for discharging working fluid from the fluid pressure apparatus and is opened so as to reduce the fluid pressure of the fluid pressure apparatus; wherein the inlet valve is formed by a solenoid selector valve effecting only a fully open operation and a fully closed operation; wherein the outlet valve is formed by a flow control valve in which one-to-one correspondence exists between quantity of drive current applied thereto and flow rate of the working fluid flowing therethrough.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 26, 1994
    Date of Patent: January 2, 1996
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
    Inventors: Koichi Hashida, Masato Yoshino
  • Patent number: 5477878
    Abstract: A flow control valve having a housing having a first port and a second port and a spool mounted in the housing. A first fluid chamber and a second fluid chamber which impart a fluid pressure to both ends of the spool communicate with each other through a fluid passage formed with an orifice. As the spool moves, thrust to the spool produced by a difference in pressure at both ends of a spool balances with a biasing force produced by the biasing mechanism. The flow control valve is provided with an annular seal made of an elastic material together with a seal member. When the edge of the land portion on the outer periphery of the spool is brought into contact with the annular seal, the first port is completely shut off from the second fluid chamber. Thus, leakage will become zero when the valve portion is closed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 16, 1994
    Date of Patent: December 26, 1995
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
    Inventors: Koichi Hashida, Masato Yoshino
  • Patent number: 5414628
    Abstract: An apparatus for calculating an estimated vehicle speed. The estimated vehicle speed is based upon the wheel speed of a wheel associated with a brake of the vehicle that has been applied, in order to obtain an estimated vehicle speed that closely approximates the true vehicle speed. The present invention is especially applicable to vehicles having an antilock control system, in that the antilock brake control can be more accurately controlled to be operated when the wheel speed of the vehicle exceeds a predetermined amount less than the true vehicle speed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 7, 1992
    Date of Patent: May 9, 1995
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
    Inventor: Masato Yoshino
  • Patent number: 5378052
    Abstract: An electronic brake pedal adjustment apparatus has an apparatus for setting braking characteristics by which the driver can enter the relationship between the desired brake fluid pressure with respect to a given brake pedal effort, a detector for detecting an actual brake pedal pressure; and a computer for calculating a desired brake fluid pressure based on the set braking characteristics for the detected brake pedal effort. A brake fluid pressure control device is also provided so as to make the actual brake fluid pressure commensurate with the calculated brake fluid pressure. The relationship between the desired brake fluid pressure and the given brake pedal effort is shown on a display.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 22, 1993
    Date of Patent: January 3, 1995
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
    Inventor: Masato Yoshino
  • Patent number: 5375506
    Abstract: A hydraulic pressure control apparatus comprising: an introducing valve provided on a supply duct connecting to each other a hydraulic source and a control chamber for controlling a fluid-operated equipment or increasing or decreasing the hydraulic pressure of the fluid-operated equipment; and a discharge valve provided on a discharge duct discharging hydraulic fluid from the fluid-operated equipment or the control chamber. The introducing valve and/or the discharge valve are disposed in series on the supply duct or the discharge duct; at least one of a plurality of the introducing valves and/or the discharge valves consists of a flow rate-variable valve capable of changing the flow rate of the hydraulic fluid continuously according to the intensity of electric current; and the other introducing valves and/or discharge valves consist of electromagnetic change-over valves fully opened or fully closed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 9, 1993
    Date of Patent: December 27, 1994
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
    Inventors: Koichi Hashida, Masato Yoshino
  • Patent number: 5374112
    Abstract: A brake fluid pressure control device has a wheel brake fluid pressure control valve having a discharge valve and provided in a main fluid passage extending from a master cylinder to wheel brakes. A discharged fluid reservoir is provided to temporarily store the brake fluid discharged from the discharge valve. A pump is provided to pump the brake fluid out of the discharged fluid reservoir and return it to the main fluid passage. A fluid supply passage branches from the main fluid passage at a point upstream of a flow return point from the pump and extends to the discharged fluid reservoir. A traction control changeover valve is provided to checking a fluid flow from the flow return point toward the master cylinder during traction control. A shutoff valve is provided to check a fluid flow from the fluid supply passage to the discharged fluid reservoir while the pressure in the master cylinder is being applied.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 27, 1993
    Date of Patent: December 20, 1994
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
    Inventors: Koji Takata, Masato Yoshino
  • Patent number: 5289452
    Abstract: A multifunction electronic analog timepiece includes a face and a plurality of indicators positioned on the face for displaying at least two time keeping functions. At least two step motors are provided for driving the plurality of time keeping function indicators. The time keeping function indicators are arbitrarily disposed about the face dependent upon the number of step motors and position of step motors required to drive the indicators. A microcomputer is provided and includes a program memory for storing software instructions for controlling the step motors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 22, 1993
    Date of Patent: February 22, 1994
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Kenji Sakamoto, Akihiko Maruyama, Tatsuo Moriya, Hiroshi Yabe, Takashi Kawaguchi, Masato Yoshino
  • Patent number: 5281011
    Abstract: An antilock control device for the brake assembly of a motor vehicle having the function of detecting ON and OFF signals supplied from a brake lamp switch and representative of the operative and inoperative positions of the brake pedal. When the signal changes from OFF to ON, which means that the brake pedal has been trodden, the antilock control function is disabled so that the pressure generated in the master cylinder will be directly applied to the wheel cylinders. This state continues until the antilock device detects a locking tendency of any wheel. In addition to the brake lamp switch signals, signals representative of the ON and OFF positions of the accelerator pedal may be supplied to the antilock control device so that the antilock control function will be disabled when either the accelerator pedal position signal changes from OFF to ON or the brake pedal position signal changes from ON to OFF.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 7, 1992
    Date of Patent: January 25, 1994
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
    Inventors: Masato Yoshino, Shunsuke Kawasaki, Fumio Kageyama, Shinji Umehira
  • Patent number: 5271667
    Abstract: A brake fluid pressure control device has a wheel brake fluid pressure control valve including a discharge valve provided in a main fluid passage extending from a master cylinder to wheel brakes. A discharged fluid reservoir is provided to temporarily store the brake fluid discharged from the discharge valve. A pump is provided to pump the brake fluid out of the discharged fluid reservoir to return it to the main passage. A fluid supply passage branches from the main passage at a point upstream of a flow return point from the pump and extends to the discharged fluid reservoir. A traction control changeover valve is provided to check a fluid flow from the flow return point toward the master cylinder during traction control. A shutoff valve is provided to check a fluid flow from the master cylinder to the discharged fluid reservoir through the fluid supply passage while the master cylinder is pressurized.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 29, 1992
    Date of Patent: December 21, 1993
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
    Inventors: Koji Takata, Masato Yoshino
  • Patent number: 5246278
    Abstract: A wheel slip ratio correction apparatus is disclosed which includes a calculation unit for calculating a slip ratio of each wheel when the brakes are not applied to either a front wheel or a rear wheel of a mobile vehicle such as a motorcycle. The calculation unit calculates a difference between a front wheel slip ratio and a rear wheel slip ratio, and changes in the slip ratio difference, which occur within a predetermined time period, are monitored by detecting if the slip ratio difference is stable and is within a predetermined range for a predetermined period of time. If the slip ratio difference is stable and is within the predetermined range for the predetermined period of time, a correction value, dependent upon the slip ratio difference, is subtracted from the greater of the front wheel slip ratio and rear wheel slip ratio so that any undesirable difference between the front and rear wheel slip ratios may be eliminated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 10, 1991
    Date of Patent: September 21, 1993
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Inc.
    Inventors: Masato Yoshino, Yoshio Katayama
  • Patent number: 5240313
    Abstract: An estimated vehicle speed detection apparatus for motorcycles calculates an estimated vehicle speed based on a front wheel speed and a rear wheel speed and applies antilock brake control to each of front and rear wheels based on a calculated estimated vehicle speed. The apparatus includes a memory for storing the estimated vehicle speed at the time an application of antilock brake control to either the front or rear wheel is started, or an application of brakes to either the front or rear wheel starts. The apparatus further includes a calculation unit for comparing the front wheel speed and the rear wheel speed to calculate the estimated vehicle speed based on the higher of the front wheel speed or the rear wheel speed, while antilock brake control is applied to the front or rear wheel or either a front brake or a rear brake is applied. In this case, the rear wheel speed does not exceed the estimated vehicle speed previously stored in the memory.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 13, 1991
    Date of Patent: August 31, 1993
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
    Inventors: Masato Yoshino, Yoshio Katayama
  • Patent number: 5199770
    Abstract: A brake switch abnormality detection device is provided for use in a motorcycle. The device includes brake switches for producing brake signals indicative of the respective operations of the brake switches, an estimated vehicle speed calculation, unit, a brake signal detector for detecting the presence or absence of the brake signals, a comparator for comparing the estimated vehicle speed with a first predetermined speed and a second predetermined speed which is smaller than the first predetermined speed, and an abnormality detector. The abnormality detector detects abnormalities and produces an abnormality signal when the estimated vehicle speed is reduced from the first predetermined speed to the second predetermined speed without any detection of the brake signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 12, 1991
    Date of Patent: April 6, 1993
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd
    Inventors: Masato Yoshino, Yoshio Katayama
  • Patent number: 5138556
    Abstract: An antiskid control device including a wheel speed detecting member, an antiskid processor member for performing arithmetic operation on the basis of a wheel speed signal from the wheel speed detecting member and issuing to a hydraulic circuit, first and second commands of reducing and increasing a braking pressure upon detection of trends of wheels towards locking and towards recovery from locking, respectively, a solenoid driving member for driving a solenoid for a pressure control valve of the hydraulic circuit in accordance with the first and second commands and a decision member for deciding that the wheel speed detecting member is malfunctioning when a state that the arithmetic and locking state detecting member does not issue the first command to the hydraulic circuit during a first predetermined time period has not been detected at all during a second predetermined time period.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 1, 1990
    Date of Patent: August 11, 1992
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
    Inventor: Masato Yoshino
  • Patent number: 5113381
    Abstract: A multifunction electronic analog timepiece includes a face and a plurality of indicators positioned on the face for displaying at least two time keeping functions. At least two step motors are provided for driving the plurality of time keeping function indicators. The time keeping function indicators are arbitrarily disposed about the face dependent upon the number of step motors and position of step motors required to drive the indicators. A microcomputer is provided and includes a program memory for storing software instructions for controlling the step motors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 1991
    Date of Patent: May 12, 1992
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Kenji Sakamoto, Akihiko Maruyama, Tatsuo Moriya, Hiroshi Yabe, Takashi Kawaguchi, Masato Yoshino
  • Patent number: 5102204
    Abstract: An antilock control device for the brake assembly of a motor vehicle having the function of detecting ON and OFF signals supplied from a brake lamp switch and representative of the operative and inoperative positions of the brake pedal. When the signal changes from OFF to ON, which means that the brake pedal has been trodden, the antilock control function is disabled so that the pressure generated in the master cylinder will be directly applied to the wheel cylinders. This state continues until the antilock device detects a locking tendency of any wheel. In addition to the brake lamp switch signals, signals representative of the ON and OFF positions of the accelerator pedal may be supplied to the antilock control device so that the antilock control function will be disabled when either the accelerator pedal position signal changes from OFF to ON or the brake pedal position signal changes from ON to OFF.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 8, 1989
    Date of Patent: April 7, 1992
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
    Inventors: Masato Yoshino, Shunsuke Kawasaki, Fumio Kageyama, Shinji Umehira
  • Patent number: 5043898
    Abstract: An antilock brake control device controls the brake pressure of first and second rear wheels in accordance with one of a select-low mode and an independent mode. The select-low mode is carried out when the sum of the slip rates of the first and second rear wheels exceeds a predetermined value, and the independent mode is carried out when the sum of the slip rates of the first and second rear wheels is less than the predetermined value. In the select-low mode, control of the brake pressure applied to the first and second rear wheels is carried out in accordance with the rotation of the one of the first and second rear wheels having the slower wheel speed. In the independent mode, the braking control of each of the first and second rear wheels is independently carried out in accordance with the rotation of the first and second rear wheels, respectively.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 22, 1989
    Date of Patent: August 27, 1991
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
    Inventor: Masato Yoshino
  • Patent number: 5043897
    Abstract: An antilock control device includes a brake operation detecting unit, a wheel speed detecting unit, a control unit which detects a request for antilock control on the basis of a brake operation signal from the brake operation detecting unit and wheel speed signals from the wheel speed detecting unit and outputs a brake pressure control signal, and a brake pressure control circuit operative in response to said brake pressure control signal. The control unit has a judging function for detecting a request for starting antilock control while the vehicle speed is between a relatively low first predetermined speed and a higher second predetermined speed and the brake operation signal is OFF and a function of deciding whether to permit or prohibit the execution of antilock control. More specifically, if no request for starting antilock is detected, permission to execute antilock control is given while the vehicle speed is higher than the first predetermined value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 16, 1990
    Date of Patent: August 27, 1991
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
    Inventor: Masato Yoshino
  • Patent number: 5020863
    Abstract: An antilock control device is controlled according to first and second control modes. In the first control mode, first and second pressure control signals applied to the braking devices of the right and left front wheels are determined independently from one another. In the second control mode, both of the first and second pressure control signals are determined based on a locking tendency of the one of the right and left front wheels having a higher wheel speed than the other. A time duration is measured in which the first and second pressure control signals are each for continuously reducing, or alternately reducing and maintaining, the braking pressure of the right and left front wheels, respectively. The first control mode is selected when the time duration is less than a predetermined value, and the second control mode is selected when the time duration is more than a predetermined value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 26, 1989
    Date of Patent: June 4, 1991
    Assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
    Inventor: Masato Yoshino