Patents by Inventor Tomoaki Otani
Tomoaki Otani 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).
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Patent number: 9862301Abstract: A vehicular rear panel with a new configuration is provided. The vehicular rear panel according to an aspect of the present disclosure is made of a resin material and disposed on a rear vehicle body part. The vehicular rear panel includes a light guiding unit configured to guide light from the light source along an extending direction of the vehicular rear panel and a light emitting unit configured to emit light in the light guiding unit to a rear side of a vehicle.Type: GrantFiled: July 22, 2015Date of Patent: January 9, 2018Assignee: Koito Manufacturing Co., Ltd.Inventors: Kenji Yamada, Masaaki Nakabayashi, Koji Uchino, Manabu Maeda, Noriaki Ito, Norimasa Yamamoto, Asami Nakada, Yuji Sakurai, Hiroya Koizumi, Tsukasa Tokida, Takao Muramatsu, Tomoaki Otani, Motohiro Komatsu, Akihiro Matsumoto, Takashi Terayama, Hiroki Ishibashi
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Patent number: 9340147Abstract: A vehicle lamp includes a light emitting element and a light transmissive member disposed closer to a front side of the lamp than the light emitting element. The light transmissive member includes a front surface formed into a flat plane and a rear surface having a light entering area and an annular area situated on an outer circumferential side of the light entering area. The annular area has a plurality of curved planes and a reflecting film formed thereon. The light transmissive member has a lens portion provided on one of the front surface or the rear surface of the light transmissive member and configured to cause part of the light which is emitted from the light emitting element and enters the light transmissive member to be emitted towards the front side of the lamp as direct emitted light that is upwardly oriented.Type: GrantFiled: November 29, 2012Date of Patent: May 17, 2016Assignee: KOITO MANUFACTURING CO., LTD.Inventors: Tomoaki Otani, Naoki Uchida, Hiroki Kawai
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Patent number: 9329374Abstract: A projection lens includes a rear face through which light emitted from a light source enters, and a front face from which the light is emitted in front of a vehicle in a predetermined light distribution pattern. The projection lens is configured such that, upon entering the projection lens, an incoming wavefront emitted from the light source is internally reflected by a first reflection region of the front face, a first intermediate wavefront generated by the internal reflection by the first reflection region is internally reflected by a second reflection region of the rear face, a second intermediate wavefront generated by the internal reflection by the second reflection region is refracted by a refraction region of the front face, and the refracted wavefront is emitted as an outgoing wavefront. The second reflection region is an optical surface determined based on the first intermediate wavefront and the second intermediate wavefront.Type: GrantFiled: January 29, 2014Date of Patent: May 3, 2016Assignee: KOITO MANUFACTURING CO., LTD.Inventors: Tomoaki Otani, Naoki Uchida, Noriko Sato
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Publication number: 20150321599Abstract: A vehicular rear panel with a new configuration is provided. The vehicular rear panel according to an aspect of the present disclosure is made of a resin material and disposed on a rear vehicle body part. The vehicular rear panel includes a light guiding unit configured to guide light from the light source along an extending direction of the vehicular rear panel and a light emitting unit configured to emit light in the light guiding unit to a rear side of a vehicle.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 22, 2015Publication date: November 12, 2015Inventors: Kenji YAMADA, Masaaki NAKABAYASHI, Koji UCHINO, Manabu MAEDA, Noriaki ITO, Norimasa YAMAMOTO, Asami NAKADA, Yuji SAKURAI, Hiroya KOIZUMI, Tsukasa TOKIDA, Takao MURAMATSU, Tomoaki OTANI, Motohiro KOMATSU, Akihiro MATSUMOTO, Takashi TERAYAMA, Hiroki ISHIBASHI
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Publication number: 20140218937Abstract: A projection lens includes a rear face through which light emitted from a light source enters, and a front face from which the light is emitted in front of a vehicle in a predetermined light distribution pattern. The projection lens is configured such that, upon entering the projection lens, an incoming wavefront emitted from the light source is internally reflected by a first reflection region of the front face, a first intermediate wavefront generated by the internal reflection by the first reflection region is internally reflected by a second reflection region of the rear face, a second intermediate wavefront generated by the internal reflection by the second reflection region is refracted by a refraction region of the front face, and the refracted wavefront is emitted as an outgoing wavefront. The second reflection region is an optical surface determined based on the first intermediate wavefront and the second intermediate wavefront.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 29, 2014Publication date: August 7, 2014Applicant: KOITO MANUFACTURING CO., LTD.Inventors: Tomoaki OTANI, Naoki UCHIDA, Noriko SATO
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Patent number: 8757846Abstract: A lamp unit for forming a light distribution pattern having a given cutoff line in an upper end portion thereof includes a light source, a transparent member which receives light from the light source from rearward and projects the light distribution pattern forward, and a light shade which is provided between the light source and the transparent member and which shades a part of the light emitted by the light source. The transparent member is configured to reflect, by a front surface of the transparent member, the light that enters the transparent member from rearward thereof, then to reflect again the light to forward thereof by a rear surface of the transparent member, and then to radiate the light from the front surface. The light shade is configured to shade the light going from the light source directly toward the rear surface.Type: GrantFiled: February 7, 2012Date of Patent: June 24, 2014Assignee: Koito Manufacturing Co., Ltd.Inventor: Tomoaki Otani
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Publication number: 20140003075Abstract: A vehicular rear panel with a new configuration is provided. The vehicular rear panel according to an aspect of the present disclosure is made of a resin material and disposed on a rear vehicle body part. The vehicular rear panel includes a light guiding unit configured to guide light from the light source along an extending direction of the vehicular rear panel and a light emitting unit configured to emit light in the light guiding unit to a rear side of a vehicle.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 26, 2013Publication date: January 2, 2014Inventors: Kenji YAMADA, Masaaki NAKABAYASHI, Koji UCHINO, Manabu MAEDA, Noriaki ITO, Norimasa YAMAMOTO, Asami NAKADA, Yuji SAKURAI, Hiroya KOIZUMI, Tsukasa TOKIDA, Takao MURAMATSU, Tomoaki OTANI, Motohiro KOMATSU, Akihiro MATSUMOTO, Takashi TERAYAMA, Hiroki ISHIBASHI
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Publication number: 20140003072Abstract: A vehicular rear panel having a new configuration is provided. The vehicular rear panel according to an aspect of the present disclosure is made of a resin material and disposed on the rear vehicle body part. The vehicular rear panel includes: a light source which is at least partially disposed in the inside of the vehicular rear panel, a circuit which is at least partially provided in the vehicular rear panel to supply electric power to the light source, and a light emitting unit configured to emit light source light to the rear of the vehicle.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 26, 2013Publication date: January 2, 2014Inventors: Hideaki YAMAMOTO, Daisuke MOCHIZUKI, Takanori NAMBA, Naoki SUGIURA, Tomoaki OTANI, Seiichiro YAGI, Koji UCHINO, Hiromi NAKAMURA, Masaaki NAKABAYASHI
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Patent number: 8591082Abstract: A vehicle lamp unit has a light emitting device disposed adjacent to a base point on an optical axis extending in a front-rear direction of a vehicle on which the vehicle lamp unit is mounted, and a transparent member disposed in front of the light emitting device. The light emitting device has a light emitting surface arranged to face forward. The transparent member is configured such that light emitted by the light emitting device enters the transparent member and is internally reflected by a front surface of the transparent member, and such that the light reflected by the front surface is internally reflected again by a rear surface of the transparent member and emitted from the front surface of the transparent member. The front surface has a flat surface facing obliquely upward.Type: GrantFiled: July 7, 2011Date of Patent: November 26, 2013Assignee: Koito Manufacturing Co., Ltd.Inventor: Tomoaki Otani
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Publication number: 20130135887Abstract: A vehicle lamp includes a light emitting element and a light transmissive member disposed closer to a front side of the lamp than the light emitting element. The light transmissive member includes a front surface formed into a flat plane and a rear surface having a light entering area and an annular area situated on an outer circumferential side of the light entering area. The annular area has a plurality of curved planes and a reflecting film formed thereon.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 29, 2012Publication date: May 30, 2013Inventors: Tomoaki Otani, Naoki Uchida, Hiroki Kawai
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Patent number: 8360624Abstract: A vehicle headlamp includes a light emitting device disposed adjacent to a base point on an optical axis extending in a front-rear direction of the vehicle headlamp, and a transparent member disposed in front of the light emitting device. The light emitting device has a light emitting surface arranged to face forward. The transparent member is configured such that light emitted by the light emitting device enters the transparent member and is internally reflected by a front surface of the transparent member, and such that the light reflected by the front surface is internally reflected again by a rear surface of the transparent member and emitted from the front surface of the transparent member. The rear surface of the transparent member is configured to form horizontal and oblique cutoff lines.Type: GrantFiled: July 7, 2011Date of Patent: January 29, 2013Assignee: Koito Manufacturing Co., Ltd.Inventors: Tomoaki Otani, Naoki Uchida
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Publication number: 20120201033Abstract: A lamp unit for forming a light distribution pattern having a given cutoff line in an upper end portion thereof includes a light source, a transparent member which receives light from the light source from rearward and projects the light distribution pattern forward, and a light shade which is provided between the light source and the transparent member and which shades a part of the light emitted by the light source. The transparent member is configured to reflect, by a front surface of the transparent member, the light that enters the transparent member from rearward thereof, then to reflect again the light to forward thereof by a rear surface of the transparent member, and then to radiate the light from the front surface. The light shade is configured to shade the light going from the light source directly toward the rear surface.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 7, 2012Publication date: August 9, 2012Applicant: KOITO MANUFACTURING CO., LTD.Inventor: Tomoaki Otani
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Publication number: 20120008334Abstract: A vehicle headlamp includes a light emitting device disposed adjacent to a base point on an optical axis extending in a front-rear direction of the vehicle headlamp, and a transparent member disposed in front of the light emitting device. The light emitting device has a light emitting surface arranged to face forward. The transparent member is configured such that light emitted by the light emitting device enters the transparent member and is internally reflected by a front surface of the transparent member, and such that the light reflected by the front surface is internally reflected again by a rear surface of the transparent member and emitted from the front surface of the transparent member. The rear surface of the transparent member is configured to form horizontal and oblique cutoff lines.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 7, 2011Publication date: January 12, 2012Applicant: KOITO MANUFACTURING CO., LTD.Inventors: Tomoaki Otani, Naoki Uchida
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Publication number: 20120008333Abstract: A vehicle lamp unit has a light emitting device disposed adjacent to a base point on an optical axis extending in a front-rear direction of a vehicle on which the vehicle lamp unit is mounted, and a transparent member disposed in front of the light emitting device. The light emitting device has a light emitting surface arranged to face forward. The transparent member is configured such that light emitted by the light emitting device enters the transparent member and is internally reflected by a front surface of the transparent member, and such that the light reflected by the front surface is internally reflected again by a rear surface of the transparent member and emitted from the front surface of the transparent member. The front surface has a flat surface facing obliquely upward.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 7, 2011Publication date: January 12, 2012Applicant: KOITO MANUFACTURING CO., LTD.Inventor: Tomoaki Otani