Patents by Inventor Shinichi Yoshizawa

Shinichi Yoshizawa 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: 11345298
    Abstract: A driver monitoring device includes a detector that detects a posture of a driver in a driver's seat of a vehicle based on an image captured by an image capturing device, a determination controller that determines whether an irregular posture can impede the vehicle from traveling safely based on a condition concerning traveling of the vehicle acquired from the vehicle and the posture of the driver detected by the detector, and one or more notifiers that provide a notification concerning the irregular posture in accordance with a result of a determination made by the determination controller. The one or more notifiers refrain from providing the notification concerning the irregular posture when the result of the determination indicates that the irregular posture does not impede the vehicle from traveling safely.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 16, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 31, 2022
    Assignee: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Shinichi Yoshizawa
  • Publication number: 20210197747
    Abstract: A driver monitoring device includes a detector that detects a posture of a driver in a driver's seat of a vehicle based on an image captured by an image capturing device, a determination controller that determines whether an irregular posture can impede the vehicle from traveling safely based on a condition concerning traveling of the vehicle acquired from the vehicle and the posture of the driver detected by the detector, and one or more notifiers that provide a notification concerning the irregular posture in accordance with a result of a determination made by the determination controller. The one or more notifiers refrain from providing the notification concerning the irregular posture when the result of the determination indicates that the irregular posture does not impede the vehicle from traveling safely.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 16, 2020
    Publication date: July 1, 2021
    Applicant: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Shinichi YOSHIZAWA
  • Publication number: 20210188162
    Abstract: A vehicle state alert apparatus is used in a vehicle including a vehicle exterior alert apparatus capable of making an alert to a person outside the vehicle, and includes: a state determiner that determines a state of a driver of the vehicle and a state of the vehicle; and an alert controller that causes the vehicle exterior alert apparatus to make a state alert for communicating the states determined by the state determiner. The states determined by the state determiner include a first state in which an emergency situation is likely to occur and a second state in which the first state is likely to occur, and the alert controller controls a travel state of the vehicle in accordance with the states determined by the state determiner.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 16, 2020
    Publication date: June 24, 2021
    Applicant: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Shinichi YOSHIZAWA
  • Patent number: 9432789
    Abstract: A sound separation device includes: a signal obtainment unit which obtains a plurality of acoustic signals including a first acoustic signal and a second acoustic signal; a differential signal generation unit which generates a differential signal that is a signal representing a difference in a time domain between the first acoustic signal and the second acoustic signal; an acoustic signal generation unit which generates, using at least one acoustic signal among the acoustic signals, a third acoustic signal; and an extraction unit which generates a frequency signal by subtracting, from a signal obtained by transforming the third acoustic signal into a frequency domain, a signal obtained by transforming the differential signal into a frequency domain, and generates a separated acoustic signal by transforming the generated frequency signal into a time domain.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 12, 2014
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2016
    Assignee: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Shinichi Yoshizawa, Keizo Matsumoto, Aiko Kawanaka
  • Patent number: 9414177
    Abstract: An audio signal processing method includes: obtaining an L signal including a sound localized closer to the left as a major component and an R signal including a sound localized closer to the right as a major component; extracting a first signal which is a component of a sound included in the L signal and localized closer to the right and a second signal which is a component of a sound included in the R signal and localized closer to the left; generating a first output signal by subtracting the first signal from the L signal and adding the second signal to the L signal and a second output signal by subtracting the second signal from the R signal and adding the first signal to the R signal; and outputting the first output signal and the second output signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 25, 2014
    Date of Patent: August 9, 2016
    Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Shinichi Yoshizawa
  • Patent number: 9205787
    Abstract: A vehicle counting device including: a frequency analysis unit that analyzes a frequency of a surrounding sound detected by a vehicle sound detection microphone; a vehicle sound candidate selection unit that selects, as one or more vehicle sound candidates, one or more sounds included in the surrounding sound, based on the analysis by the frequency analysis unit, each of the one or more sounds being in a frequency band where a sound pressure is greater than or equal to a predetermined threshold value; a phase curve calculation unit that calculates, for each of the one or more vehicle sound candidates, a phase curve; and a vehicle count determination unit that classifies the one or more phase curves into at least one group, based on shapes of the one or more phase curves, and determines a total number of the at least one group as the number of the nearby vehicles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 28, 2012
    Date of Patent: December 8, 2015
    Assignee: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Mototaka Yoshioka, Shinichi Yoshizawa
  • Patent number: 9147347
    Abstract: A vehicle direction identification device includes: a frequency analysis unit which analyzes phase of the surrounding sound in each analysis section specified by predetermined frequency regions and time intervals; a sound source direction identification unit which identifies a sound source direction indicating a direction of a sound included in the vehicle sound for each analysis section; a reflection information storage unit which stores (i) state information relating to rates of occurrence each of which are a count of the analysis sections of a corresponding one of the sound source directions, and (ii) reflection patterns each of which includes an estimated vehicle direction which is a vehicle direction associated with a set of the state information; and a vehicle direction identification unit which identifies a vehicle direction by checking the rates of occurrence obtained from an identification result by the sound source direction identification unit against one of the reflection patterns.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 11, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2015
    Assignee: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Mototaka Yoshioka, Shinichi Yoshizawa
  • Publication number: 20150146897
    Abstract: An audio signal processing method includes: obtaining an L signal including a sound localized closer to the left as a major component and an R signal including a sound localized closer to the right as a major component; extracting a first signal which is a component of a sound included in the L signal and localized closer to the right and a second signal which is a component of a sound included in the R signal and localized closer to the left; generating a first output signal by subtracting the first signal from the L signal and adding the second signal to the L signal and a second output signal by subtracting the second signal from the R signal and adding the first signal to the R signal; and outputting the first output signal and the second output signal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 25, 2014
    Publication date: May 28, 2015
    Inventor: Shinichi YOSHIZAWA
  • Patent number: 9024788
    Abstract: A vehicle direction identification device includes: a frequency analysis unit which analyzes amplitude or phase of surrounding sound in each analysis section; a sound source direction identification unit which identifies a sound source direction included in the surrounding sound for each analysis section; a vehicle identification information storage unit which stores first vehicle identification information including a first threshold value; a first vehicle identification unit which calculates a rate of occurrence of each sound source direction and identifies the sound source direction whose rate of occurrence is equal to or exceeds the first threshold value; a second vehicle identification information calculation unit which calculates second vehicle identification information including a second threshold value smaller than the first threshold value; and a second vehicle identification unit which identifies the sound source direction whose rate of occurrence is equal to or exceeds the second threshold value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 12, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 5, 2015
    Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Mototaka Yoshioka, Shinichi Yoshizawa
  • Patent number: 8935120
    Abstract: An acceleration-deceleration determination device includes: a DFT analysis unit which calculate, from an engine sound, a frequency signal at a predetermined frequency for each of predetermined time periods; and an acceleration-deceleration determination unit which determines whether the number of engine revolutions is increasing or decreasing, by determining whether a phase of the frequency signal is increasing at an accelerating rate over time or decreasing at an accelerating rate over time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 20, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 13, 2015
    Assignee: Panasonic Corporation
    Inventors: Mototaka Yoshioka, Shinichi Yoshizawa
  • Publication number: 20140247947
    Abstract: A sound separation device includes: a signal obtainment unit which obtains a plurality of acoustic signals including a first acoustic signal and a second acoustic signal; a differential signal generation unit which generates a differential signal that is a signal representing a difference in a time domain between the first acoustic signal and the second acoustic signal; an acoustic signal generation unit which generates, using at least one acoustic signal among the acoustic signals, a third acoustic signal; and an extraction unit which generates a frequency signal by subtracting, from a signal obtained by transforming the third acoustic signal into a frequency domain, a signal obtained by transforming the differential signal into a frequency domain, and generates a separated acoustic signal by transforming the generated frequency signal into a time domain.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 12, 2014
    Publication date: September 4, 2014
    Applicant: PANASONIC CORPORATION
    Inventors: Shinichi YOSHIZAWA, Keizo MATSUMOTO, Aiko KAWANAKA
  • Patent number: 8798905
    Abstract: The vehicle location detection device includes: a sound source location specifying unit which calculates an attenuation amount of a sound pressure of a vehicle sound by subtracting a sound pressure detected by a sound pressure detecting unit from a sound pressure indicated by vehicle sound pressure information stored in a sound pressure information storage unit, and specifies a location where another vehicle emitting a vehicle sound is predicted to be present, by specifying a sound source location of a sound diffracted by an obstacle which is specified by a diffraction location specifying unit and serves as a diffraction point, based on the calculated attenuation amount, a rule indicating an attenuation amount dependent on a propagation distance of the sound, and a relationship indicated by diffraction information stored in a diffraction information storage unit; and a presentation unit which presents the specified location.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2011
    Date of Patent: August 5, 2014
    Assignee: Panasonic Corporation
    Inventors: Mototaka Yoshioka, Shinichi Yoshizawa
  • Patent number: 8525654
    Abstract: A vehicle-in-blind-spot detecting apparatus detects a vehicle positioned in a blind spot by mounting the apparatus on an operator's vehicle. The vehicle-in-blind-spot includes a presenting unit which presents information; at least one microphone which detects a sound; a vehicle sound extracting unit which extracts a vehicle sound from the sound detected by the microphone; and a sound source direction detecting unit which detects a sound source direction of the vehicle sound extracted by the vehicle sound extracting unit. A vehicle-in-blind-spot determining unit causes the presenting unit to present the information indicating that a vehicle is found in a blind spot in the case where the sound source direction of the vehicle sound detected by the sound source direction detecting unit is a first direction representing above the vehicle-in-blind-spot detecting apparatus with respect to a ground.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 5, 2010
    Date of Patent: September 3, 2013
    Assignee: Panasonic Corporation
    Inventors: Shinichi Yoshizawa, Yoshihisa Nakatoh
  • Publication number: 20130010980
    Abstract: A vehicle direction identification device includes: a frequency analysis unit which analyzes phase of the surrounding sound in each analysis section specified by predetermined frequency regions and time intervals; a sound source direction identification unit which identifies a sound source direction indicating a direction of a sound included in the vehicle sound for each analysis section; a reflection information storage unit which stores (i) state information relating to rates of occurrence each of which are a count of the analysis sections of a corresponding one of the sound source directions, and (ii) reflection patterns each of which includes an estimated vehicle direction which is a vehicle direction associated with a set of the state information; and a vehicle direction identification unit which identifies a vehicle direction by checking the rates of occurrence obtained from an identification result by the sound source direction identification unit against one of the reflection patterns.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 11, 2012
    Publication date: January 10, 2013
    Inventors: Mototaka YOSHIOKA, Shinichi YOSHIZAWA
  • Publication number: 20130009791
    Abstract: A vehicle direction identification device includes: a frequency analysis unit which analyzes amplitude or phase of surrounding sound in each analysis section; a sound source direction identification unit which identifies a sound source direction included in the surrounding sound for each analysis section; a vehicle identification information storage unit which stores first vehicle identification information including a first threshold value; a first vehicle identification unit which calculates a rate of occurrence of each sound source direction and identifies the sound source direction whose rate of occurrence is equal to or exceeds the first threshold value; a second vehicle identification information calculation unit which calculates second vehicle identification information including a second threshold value smaller than the first threshold value; and a second vehicle identification unit which identifies the sound source direction whose rate of occurrence is equal to or exceeds the second threshold value.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 12, 2012
    Publication date: January 10, 2013
    Inventors: Mototaka Yoshioka, Shinichi Yoshizawa
  • Patent number: 8352274
    Abstract: A sound determination device (100) includes: an FFT unit (2402) which receives a mixed sound including a to-be-extracted sound and a noise, and obtains a frequency signal of the mixed sound for each of a plurality of times included in a predetermined duration; and a to-be-extracted sound determination unit (101 (j)) which determines, when the number of the frequency signals at the plurality of times included in the predetermined duration is equal to or larger than a first threshold value and a phase distance between the frequency signals out of the frequency signals at the plurality of times is equal to or smaller than a second threshold value, each of the frequency signals with the phase distance as a frequency signal of the to-be-extracted sound. The phase distance is a distance between phases of the frequency signals when a phase of a frequency signal at a time t is ?(t) (radian) and the phase is represented by ??(t)=mod 2?(?(t)?2?ft) (where f is an analysis-target frequency).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 25, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 8, 2013
    Assignee: Panasonic Corporation
    Inventors: Shinichi Yoshizawa, Yoshihisa Nakatoh
  • Publication number: 20120323532
    Abstract: A vehicle counting device including: a frequency analysis unit that analyzes a frequency of a surrounding sound detected by a vehicle sound detection microphone; a vehicle sound candidate selection unit that selects, as one or more vehicle sound candidates, one or more sounds included in the surrounding sound, based on the analysis by the frequency analysis unit, each of the one or more sounds being in a frequency band where a sound pressure is greater than or equal to a predetermined threshold value; a phase curve calculation unit that calculates, for each of the one or more vehicle sound candidates, a phase curve; and a vehicle count determination unit that classifies the one or more phase curves into at least one group, based on shapes of the one or more phase curves, and determines a total number of the at least one group as the number of the nearby vehicles.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 28, 2012
    Publication date: December 20, 2012
    Inventors: Mototaka Yoshioka, Shinichi Yoshizawa
  • Patent number: 8223978
    Abstract: A target sound analysis apparatus capable of distinguishing between a sound having the same fundamental period as a target sound but which differs therefrom and the target sound and analyzing whether or not the target sound is contained in an evaluation sound is an target sound analysis apparatus that analyzes whether or not a target sound is included in an evaluation sound, and includes: a target sound preparation unit that prepares a target sound that is an analysis waveform to be used for analyzing a fundamental period; an evaluation sound preparation unit that prepares an evaluation sound that is an analyzed waveform in which its fundamental period will be analyzed; and an analysis unit that temporally shifts the target sound with respect to the evaluation sound to sequentially calculate differential values of the evaluation sound and the target sound at corresponding points in time, calculate an iterative interval between the points in time where the differential value is equal to or lower than a predete
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 2007
    Date of Patent: July 17, 2012
    Assignee: Panasonic Corporation
    Inventors: Shinichi Yoshizawa, Yoshihisa Nakatoh, Tetsu Suzuki
  • Patent number: 8184827
    Abstract: Provided is a sound source localization device which can detect a source location of an extraction sound, including at least two microphones; an analysis unit (103) which (i) analyze frequencies of the mixed sound including the noise and received by each microphone, and (ii) generates frequency signals; and an extraction unit (105) which, for each source location candidate, (a) adjusts time axes of the frequency signals corresponding to the microphones, so that there is no time difference between when the mixed sound reaches one microphone from the source location candidate and when the mixed sound reaches another microphone from the source location candidate, and (b) determines frequency signals having a difference distance equal to or smaller than a threshold value, from among the frequency signals corresponding to the microphones with the time axis having been adjusted, the difference distance representing a degree of a difference in the frequency signals between the microphones, and (c) extracts the sourc
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 6, 2007
    Date of Patent: May 22, 2012
    Assignee: Panasonic Corporation
    Inventors: Shinichi Yoshizawa, Yoshihisa Nakatoh
  • Patent number: 8155346
    Abstract: A sound source direction detector comprises FFT analysis sections (103(1) to 103(3)) for generating a frequency spectrum in at least one frequency band of acoustic signals for each of the acoustic signals collected by two or more microphones arranged apart from one another, detection sound identifying sections (104(1) to 104(3)) for identifying a time portion of the frequency spectrum of a detection sound which obtains a sound source direction from the frequency spectrum in the frequency band, and a direction detecting section (105) for obtaining the difference between the times at which the detection sound reaches the microphones, obtaining the sound source direction from the time difference, the distance between the microphones, and the sound velocity, and outputting it depending on the degree of coincidence between the microphones of the frequency spectrum in the time portion identified by the detection sound identifying sections (104(1) to 104(3)) in a time interval which is the time unit to detect the so
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 10, 2008
    Date of Patent: April 10, 2012
    Assignee: Panasonic Corpration
    Inventors: Shinichi Yoshizawa, Yoshihisa Nakatoh