Patents by Inventor Yasufumi Aihara

Yasufumi Aihara 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: 6416889
    Abstract: An anti-corrosion ceramic member having a substrate made of a ceramic material, a surface layer made of a fluoride and formed on the substrate, and an intermediate layer formed between the substrate and the surface layer and having the ceramic material of the substrate and the fluoride.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 19, 1999
    Date of Patent: July 9, 2002
    Assignee: NGK Insulators, Ltd.
    Inventors: Yasufumi Aihara, Keiichiro Watanabe, Shinji Kawasaki, Akira Narukawa
  • Patent number: 6406799
    Abstract: A base member made of a metal in which aluminum is included, ceramics in which an aluminum element is included, or a composition member constructed by a metal in which aluminum and ceramics are included, is provided in a container in which a solid fluorine compound such as NaHF2 is filled. Then, the container is heated at a temperature higher than a decomposition temperature of the solid fluorine compound. After that, the base member is subjected to a heat treatment with the decomposed gas of the solid fluorine compound to form a fluoride layer on a surface of the base member. In this manner, it is possible to obtain an anti-corrosion member which shows a high corrosion property with respect to the corrosion gas of halogen series and its plasma, particularly with respect to chlorine gas and its plasma.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 31, 2000
    Date of Patent: June 18, 2002
    Assignee: NGK Insulators, Ltd.
    Inventors: Yasufumi Aihara, Keiichiro Watanabe, Kiyoshi Araki
  • Patent number: 6365460
    Abstract: A method for producing a silicon carbide body, includes the steps of forming a silicon carbide mass by chemical vapor deposition, and thermally treating the silicon carbide mass under vacuum or in an inert gas atmosphere at a temperature not less than 2000° C., the silicon carbide article having an electric resistivity higher than that of the silicon carbide mass having not been thermally treated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 1999
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2002
    Assignee: NGK Insulators, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hirotake Yamada, Makoto Murai, Hiroshi Furukubo, Yasufumi Aihara, Tsuneaki Ohashi
  • Publication number: 20010051289
    Abstract: An anti-corrosion ceramic member having a substrate made of a ceramic material, a surface layer made of a fluoride and formed on the substrate, and an intermediate layer formed between the substrate and the surface layer and having the ceramic material of the substrate and the fluoride.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 19, 1999
    Publication date: December 13, 2001
    Inventors: YASUFUMI AIHARA, KEIICHIRO WATANABE, SHINJI KAWASAKI, AKIRA NARUKAWA
  • Patent number: 6258440
    Abstract: A sintered ceramic part to be exposed to a corrosive gas, a surface of said ceramic part being machined, wherein each of grains exposed to the machined surface of the ceramic part is formed with a machined surface, and en edge of the machined surface of each of these grains is made round by material transfer. A process for producing such a sintered ceramic part includes the steps of: obtaining a machined body having a given shape by at least grinding a surface of a ceramic sintered body, and annealing the machined body.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 2, 1997
    Date of Patent: July 10, 2001
    Assignee: NGK Insulators, Ltd.
    Inventors: Yasufumi Aihara, Shinji Kawasaki
  • Patent number: 6200516
    Abstract: A process is disclosed for producing a corrosion-resistant ceramic member, which process includes the steps of preparing a sintered body made of a ceramic material containing at least aluminum, immersing the ceramic sintered body in hydrofluoric acid, and forming a film of aluminum fluoride at a surface layer portion of the ceramic sintered body by heating the ceramic sintered body.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 8, 1999
    Date of Patent: March 13, 2001
    Assignee: NGK Insulators, Ltd.
    Inventors: Yasufumi Aihara, Akira Narukawa, Keiichiro Watanabe, Shinji Kawasaki
  • Patent number: 6099794
    Abstract: A silicon nitride sintered material includes silicon nitride and rare earth element compounds. Y and Yb are contained as the rare earth elements in a total amount of 5-7 mole % in terms of oxides, Yb/Y is 4/6 to 9/1 in terms of molar ratio of oxides, and the crystal phases of grain boundary contain a H phase and a J phase with the proportion of the H phase being larger than that of the J phase. A process for producing a silicon nitride sintered material includes the steps of mixing a Si.sub.3 N.sub.4 powder with Y.sub.2 O.sub.3 and Yb.sub.2 O.sub.3 both as a sintering aid, the total amount of Y.sub.2 O.sub.3 and Yb.sub.2 O.sub.3 being 5-7 mole % and the molar ratio of Yb.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Y.sub.2 O.sub.3 being 4/6 to 9/1, molding the resulting mixture, sintering the molded material in a nitrogen atmosphere at 1,850-1,950.degree. C., and heat-treating the sintered material in air at 1,000-1,500.degree. C. for 0.5-10 hours.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 28, 1999
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2000
    Assignee: NGK Insulators, Ltd.
    Inventors: Yasufumi Aihara, Katsuhiro Inoue
  • Patent number: 6063514
    Abstract: A gas-tight article includes a sintered body composed mainly of a silicon carbide, and a film of silicon carbide formed on a surface of the sintered body by chemical vapor deposition and covering said surface of the sintered body, wherein cracks are formed in the film of the silicon carbide, and the cracks are filled with metallic silicon.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 25, 1998
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2000
    Assignee: NGK Insulators, Ltd.
    Inventors: Masao Nishioka, Yasufumi Aihara, Keiichiro Watanabe
  • Patent number: 6054187
    Abstract: A method of forming a film of boron carbide on a substrate is provided, which comprises the steps of forming the boron carbide film on a surface of a substrate by plasma spraying, and heating the film at 1100.about.2400.degree. C. in a non-oxidizing atmosphere, whereby boron oxide contained in the boron carbide film is removed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 11, 1998
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2000
    Assignee: NGK Insulators, Ltd.
    Inventors: Yasufumi Aihara, Shinji Kawasaki, Shigenori Ito
  • Patent number: 5945363
    Abstract: A silicon nitride sintered material includes silicon nitride and rare earth element compounds. Y and Yb are contained as the rare earth elements in a total amount of 5-7 mole % in terms of oxides, Yb/Y is 4/6 to 9/1 in terms of molar ratio of oxides, and the crystal phases of grain boundary contain a H phase and a J phase with the proportion of the H phase being larger than that of the J phase. A process for producing a silicon nitride sintered material includes the steps of mixing a Si.sub.3 N.sub.4 powder with Y.sub.2 O.sub.3 and Yb.sub.2 O.sub.3 both as a sintering aid, the total amount of Y.sub.2 O.sub.3 and Yb.sub.2 O.sub.3 being 5-7 mole % and the molar ratio of Yb.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Y.sub.2 O.sub.3 being 4/6 to 9/1, molding the resulting mixture, sintering the molded material in a nitrogen atmosphere at 1,850-1,950.degree. C., and heat-treating the sintered material in air at 1,000-1,500.degree. C. for 0.5-10 hours.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 18, 1997
    Date of Patent: August 31, 1999
    Assignee: NGK Insulators, Ltd.
    Inventors: Yasufumi Aihara, Katsuhiro Inoue
  • Patent number: 5332598
    Abstract: A process for the production of a lanthanum chromite film, including the steps of preparing a plasma spray powder by mixing 1-15 parts by weight of powdery chromium oxide powder to 100 parts by weight of powdery lanthanum chromite, this lanthanum chromite having a composition ratio of A sites to B-sites being in a range of 1:1 to 1:0.9, forming a plasma sprayed film by plasma spraying the plasma spray powder onto a substrate, and forming the lanthanum chromite film by heat treating the resulting plasma sprayed film. The plasma spray powder may be produced by preparing a mixed powder by adding 1-15 parts by weight of powdery chromium oxide to 100 parts by weight of a synthesis powder capable of producing the lanthanum chromite film by heat treatment, the synthesis powder containing at least chromium oxide and lanthanum chromite and the lanthanum chromite film having a composition ratio of A-sites to B-sites being in a range of 1:1 to 1:0.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 2, 1992
    Date of Patent: July 26, 1994
    Assignee: NGK Insulators, Ltd.
    Inventors: Shinji Kawasaki, Makoto Murai, Yasufumi Aihara