Patents by Inventor Satoru Katagami

Satoru Katagami 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: 20100073450
    Abstract: A target supporting apparatus includes a first supporting member having a plurality of first suction holes open to the front surface of the member and the rear surface thereof; a second supporting member having a plurality of second suction holes formed therein and being stacked on and fixed to the first supporting member, the cross-sectional area of each of the plurality of second suction holes being smaller than the cross-sectional area of each of the plurality of first suction holes; and a sucking unit that sucks in the plurality of first suction holes and hence sucks in the plurality of second suction holes communicating with the plurality of first suction holes. Here, a target which is supported in order for a liquid to be adhered thereto is sucked and held onto a supporting face of the second supporting member due to the driving of the sucking unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 18, 2009
    Publication date: March 25, 2010
    Applicant: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Satoru KATAGAMI, Jun YAMADA, Motoharu HABATA
  • Publication number: 20100055324
    Abstract: A liquid discharge method is a method for depositing liquid on a plurality of target discharge partitioned areas formed on a substrate as the liquid is selectively discharged from a plurality of discharge nozzles while the substrate and the discharge nozzles are moved relative to each other. The liquid discharge method includes setting an arrangement pattern according to shapes and positions of the target discharge partitioned areas so that a number of the discharge nozzles selected to be used among the discharge nozzles capable of depositing the liquid in the target discharge partitioned areas is the same in each discharge timing.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 18, 2009
    Publication date: March 4, 2010
    Applicant: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Takeshi ITO, Kazumi ARUGA, Satoru KATAGAMI, Sadaharu KOMORI
  • Publication number: 20100053266
    Abstract: An electro-optical device includes a substrate having a plurality of film-formation regions configured and arranged to receive a liquid material discharged from a plurality of nozzles of a nozzle row while the substrate and the nozzle row are moved relative to each other in a primary scanning direction. Each of the film-formation regions includes a plurality of landing positions in which the liquid material lands with the landing positions being set by a nozzle interval in a direction of the nozzle row and a discharge interval in the primary scanning direction. At least two or more of the film-formation regions include a portion in which a total number of the landing positions in the at least two or more of the film-formation regions that simultaneously face the nozzles is the same in the primary scanning direction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 18, 2009
    Publication date: March 4, 2010
    Applicant: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Takeshi ITO, Kazumi ARUGA, Satoru KATAGAMI, Sadaharu KOMORI
  • Patent number: 7671527
    Abstract: A substrate having color elements includes a base member; a bank formed over the base member, the bank defining a plurality of color element areas; and color element films formed of liquid materials of a plurality of colors deposited in the color element areas. The bank has a different-color separation bank portion positioned between color element films of different colors, and a same-color separation bank portion positioned between color element films of the same color. A height of the different-color separation bank portion is greater than a height of the same-color separation bank portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 12, 2006
    Date of Patent: March 2, 2010
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Satoru Katagami, Atsushi Fukuda
  • Publication number: 20090207201
    Abstract: A method for setting up a condition for a drive signal in a liquid ejection head that includes a plurality of linearly-arranged nozzles and driving elements provided for each of the nozzles, includes: calculating an average value or a median value of ejection rates for each nozzle relating to a supply of the drive signal under a plurality of conditions; classifying the plurality of nozzles into a plurality of groups based on the average value or the median value of the ejection rates; calculating a proper condition for the drive signal corresponding to each group based on a statistical value of the ejection rate relating to the group; and selecting one proper condition among proper conditions corresponding to the groups so as to set the selected proper condition for each nozzle.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 11, 2009
    Publication date: August 20, 2009
    Applicant: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Sadaharu KOMORI, Takeshi ITO, Kei HIRUMA, Satoru KATAGAMI, Takahiro IMAI, Toru IGARASHI
  • Publication number: 20090201326
    Abstract: A method for setting up a condition for a drive signal in a liquid ejection head that includes a plurality of linearly-arranged nozzles and driving elements provided for each of the nozzles, includes: calculating an ejection rate for each nozzle relating to a supply of the drive signal under a predetermined condition by using a moving average; classifying the plurality of nozzles into a plurality of groups based on the ejection rate calculated by using the moving average of each nozzle; calculating a proper condition for the drive signal corresponding to each group based on a statistical value of the ejection rate relating to the group; and selecting one proper condition among proper conditions corresponding to the groups so as to set the selected proper condition for each nozzle.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 5, 2009
    Publication date: August 13, 2009
    Applicant: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Sadaharu KOMORI, Takeshi ITO, Kei HIRUMA, Satoru KATAGAMI, Takahiro IMAI, Toru IGARASHI
  • Publication number: 20090191326
    Abstract: A method for forming a thin film by discharging a liquid including a material for forming the thin film, the material being dissolved or dispersed in a solvent, from a plurality of nozzles so as to dispose the liquid into a plurality of predetermined areas included in an effective area set on a substrate to form the thin film while the plurality of nozzles and the substrate are relatively scanned, includes: (a) forming a plurality of reception parts surrounded by a plurality of partitions and bottoms of the predetermined areas, the partitions being provided around the predetermined areas; and (b) forming a plurality of thin films by disposing the liquid from the nozzles into the reception parts. In step (a), a plan view area of at least one of the reception parts in a peripheral area of the effective area is made smaller than a plan view area of the reception part in a central area of the effective area.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 11, 2008
    Publication date: July 30, 2009
    Applicant: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hirotaka ISHIZUKA, Satoru KATAGAMI
  • Publication number: 20090160890
    Abstract: Provided herein is a head unit arrangement method for arranging a plurality of head units in a liquid droplet ejection device that plots an image in a matrix form with functional liquid droplets in a number n of colors by performing the number n of primary scans and a number (n?1) of secondary scans. The head unit arrangement method includes evaluating liquid droplet ejection performance of each of the head units based on an inspection result of a volume of liquid droplet ejection from each of the functional liquid droplet ejection heads to arrange two of the head units that exhibit the lowest liquid droplet ejection performance at both ends in the Y-axis direction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 11, 2008
    Publication date: June 25, 2009
    Applicant: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Satoru KATAGAMI, Hirofumi KOBAYASHI, Sadaharu KOMORI
  • Patent number: 7542111
    Abstract: A method of manufacturing a color filter substrate includes providing a base, forming a reflective film over the base, forming a plurality of banks on the reflective film between such that at least one of the banks has a transmissive portion and a non-transmissive portion, and forming a plurality of coloring elements by depositing prescribed fluid in a plurality of deposit portions that are defined by the banks such that the coloring elements have at least two different colors and are disposed so as to form a prescribed pattern.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 24, 2006
    Date of Patent: June 2, 2009
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Satoru Katagami, Kunio Maruyama, Keiji Takizawa, Hisashi Aruga
  • Patent number: 7514187
    Abstract: The color filter of the present invention comprises ink films colored by ink drops 140 inside openings 111 enclosed by banks 112 demarcated and formed on a substrate 110. The banks 112 have a laminar structure comprising a metal film 120 and a photosensitive organic thin film 130 from the substrate 110 side. The inks should contain a solvent having a high boiling point. The bank layer may also be configured so that the peripheral edges of the bottom surface thereof are positioned inside from the peripheral edges of the light blocking layers, so that the light blocking layers have exposed surfaces on the upper surface thereof where the bank layer is not superimposed. Thus color filters can be provided which exhibit outstanding contrast without coloring irregularities.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2006
    Date of Patent: April 7, 2009
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Hiroshi Kiguchi, Natsuo Fujimori, Satoru Katagami, Masaharu Shimizu, Keiji Takizawa, Tadaaki Kuno
  • Publication number: 20090068351
    Abstract: The invention provides a method for suppressing insufficient spread of droplets or mixing of the droplets in neighboring regions when a liquid material is disposed in the regions on a substrate by ejecting the droplets composed of the liquid material. In addition, for a display device, the structure in which insufficient spread of droplets or mixing of the droplets in neighboring regions can be suppressed and the manufacturing method therefor are provided. To accomplish the above, substantially square regions can be formed by a partition provided on a substrate. In each region, among internal surfaces and of the partition surrounding this region, the internal surfaces forming the long sides of the region have irregularities. In addition, the distance between parts of the partition opposing each other with one of regions provided therebetween is increased and decreased along the long side of the region. Furthermore, along the long side of the region, the width of the partition will be increased and decreased.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 25, 2008
    Publication date: March 12, 2009
    Applicant: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Tatsuya Ito, Satoru Katagami, Tomomi Kawase
  • Patent number: 7481515
    Abstract: The invention makes uniform, in a plane, optical properties of optical members, such as the distribution properties of light transmission of a color filter, the color display properties of a liquid crystal device, and the light emission properties of an EL luminescent plane. During main scanning of color filter formation areas of a board in the X direction with an ink jet head having a nozzle row formed of a plurality of nozzles arranged in a row, a filter material is selectively discharged from the plurality of the nozzles to each of filer element areas arranged in a dot matrix to form filter elements, producing a color filter. First, the nozzle row is moved to positions “a” and “b” by main scanning in the X direction to enhance wettability of the surface of the areas and then main scanning is executed at each of the positions while successively moving the nozzle row to positions “c” through “k” by sub-scanning, thereby repeatedly discharging ink in the same portion of the areas.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 26, 2004
    Date of Patent: January 27, 2009
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Tomomi Kawase, Hisashi Aruga, Satoru Katagami, Masaharu Shimizu, Hiroshi Kiguchi
  • Publication number: 20080303989
    Abstract: A color filter has a light-transmissive substrate, a reflecting layer formed on the back substrate and provided with openings, boundary layers and formed on the reflecting layer, and a plurality of coloring layers enclosed by the boundary layers. A transparent coat layer is provided between the reflecting layer and the boundary layers. A step is formed between the openings and the transparent coat layer. The coloring layers are formed by applying the droplets of colored fluid to the openings first, and then to the transparent coat layer. The difference in color saturation of the color filter in a reflective display mode and a transmissive display mode is reduced. Also, a liquid material is appropriately applied to the color filter, to enhance color balance.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 25, 2007
    Publication date: December 11, 2008
    Applicant: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Satoru Katagami, Toshihiro Ushiyama, Hisashi Aruga
  • Patent number: 7459322
    Abstract: The invention provides a method for suppressing insufficient spread of droplets or mixing of the droplets in neighboring regions when a liquid material is disposed in the regions on a substrate by ejecting the droplets composed of the liquid material. In addition, for a display device, the structure in which insufficient spread of droplets or mixing of the droplets in neighboring regions can be suppressed and the manufacturing method therefor are provided. To accomplish the above, substantially square regions can be formed by a partition provided on a substrate. In each region, among internal surfaces and of the partition surrounding this region, the internal surfaces forming the long sides of the region have irregularities. In addition, the distance between parts of the partition opposing each other with one of regions provided therebetween is increased and decreased along the long side of the region. Furthermore, along the long side of the region, the width of the partition will be increased and decreased.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 28, 2003
    Date of Patent: December 2, 2008
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Tatsuya Ito, Satoru Katagami, Tomomi Kawase
  • Patent number: 7430029
    Abstract: A color filter substrate includes first and second layers having openings, a filter layer located in the openings, a reflecting component, and a transmitting component. The reflecting component is provided at least partially on a second side of the filter layer such that first light rays that are incident on the filter layer from a first side are reflected to the first side, where the first side is an opposite side of the second side. The transmitting component is provided at least partially on the second side of the filter layer, such that second light rays that are incident on the filter layer from the second side are emitted to the first side. The present invention provides a color filter substrate, a liquid crystal display device, and an electronic device having a structure that allows good coating with a liquid material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 1, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 30, 2008
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Satoru Katagami, Toshihiro Ushiyama, Hisashi Aruga
  • Publication number: 20080210944
    Abstract: In an ink jet apparatus for manufacturing a color filter 1, ink jet heads 22 having a plurality of nozzle 27 are disposed in a linear manner. Filter element member is ejected to a motherboard 12 from a plurality of nozzles 27 four times so as to form the filter element 3 in a predetermined thickness. By doing this, it is possible to prevent difference in the thickness in a plurality of the filter elements 3 and to equalize light transparency in planar manner. Thus, in an ejecting apparatus, a color filter can be formed in more common way at low cost and more efficiently. Also, it is possible to provide an ejecting apparatus which can equalize factors such as electrooptical characteristics of the electrooptical members, color displaying characteristics by the liquid crystal apparatuses, and illuminating characteristics by an EL surface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 5, 2008
    Publication date: September 4, 2008
    Applicant: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Shinichi Nakamura, Yoshiaki Yamada, Tsuyoshi Kitahara, Satoru Katagami
  • Publication number: 20080131603
    Abstract: The invention provides a color display substrate having plural color display elements arranged in a matrix pattern, and a manufacturing method to efficiently obtain a color filter substrate and color luminescent substrate, for example. A manufacturing method of a color display substrate includes the step of forming plural color dots by selectively ejecting liquid droplets from nozzles in accordance with input data. The plural color dots constitute plural pixels, which constitute plural color filter elements arranged in a matrix pattern. The plural color dots have a first dot pitch in a direction perpendicular to a first base line. Each of the plural color dots is formed to lie at a distance of at least substantially an integral multiple of the first dot pitch from the first base line.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 31, 2007
    Publication date: June 5, 2008
    Applicant: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Hisashi Aruga, Satoru Katagami, Yoshiaki Yamada, Hiroshi Kiguchi
  • Patent number: 7378790
    Abstract: The invention provides a color display substrate having plural color display elements arranged in a matrix pattern, and a manufacturing method to efficiently obtain a color filter substrate and color luminescent substrate, for example. A manufacturing method of a color display substrate includes the step of forming plural color dots by selectively ejecting liquid droplets from nozzles in accordance with input data. The plural color dots constitute plural pixels, which constitute plural color filter elements arranged in a matrix pattern. The plural color dots have a first dot pitch in a direction perpendicular to a first base line. Each of the plural color dots is formed to lie at a distance of at least substantially an integral multiple of the first dot pitch from the first base line.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 25, 2002
    Date of Patent: May 27, 2008
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Hisashi Aruga, Satoru Katagami, Yoshiaki Yamada, Hiroshi Kiguchi
  • Patent number: 7368149
    Abstract: A device and a method are provided to form a film by discharging a liquid material with a liquid discharge head or the like, such as an ink jet head, and which can reduce the unevenness resulting from variation of the amount of the discharged liquid material. To provide a device and a method to form a film by discharging a liquid material and which can increase process efficiency while suppressing the increase of costs, even if the liquid material is discharged onto various objects. When a color filter is manufactured, nozzles of a liquid discharge head discharge filter element materials onto filter-element-forming regions. In this instance, one color of the filter element materials is discharged while the liquid discharge head is swept in the longitudinal direction of a mother substrate. The other colors are discharged while the liquid discharge head is swept in the width direction of the mother substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 8, 2005
    Date of Patent: May 6, 2008
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Satoru Katagami, Tomomi Kawase, Tatsuya Ito
  • Patent number: 7336327
    Abstract: A transflective color filter substrate is provided. The transflective color filter substrate comprises a transmissive color filter portion and a reflective color filter portion in one dot region. An area of the color filter colored portion is set to be less than the area of one dot region in the transflective color filter substrate, and an uncolored reflection region, which is capable of reflecting an uncolored light of high brightness without being influenced by the color filter, is formed by a partition layer. Since the pigment density of the coloring layer is set such that the transmitted light has the optimum chroma in the transmissive display mode, it is possible to obtain a displayed image having sufficient chroma in the transmissive display mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 7, 2003
    Date of Patent: February 26, 2008
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Yoshihiro Otagiri, Satoru Katagami, Tatsuya Ito