Patents Represented by Attorney, Agent or Law Firm Oblon, Spivak, McClelland, Maier & Neustadt, P.C.
  • Patent number: 7595800
    Abstract: A data processing apparatus and method, where the apparatus includes a region selecting unit configured to select a region corresponding to a pixel of interest, a frequency detector configured to detect a frequency corresponding to pixels belonging to the region, a continuity detector configured to detect data continuity of the image data, and a real world estimating unit configured to estimate the light signals by estimating the continuity of the real world light signals which have been lost.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 2, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2009
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Tetsujiro Kondo, Junichi Ishibashi, Takashi Sawao, Takahiro Nagano, Naoki Fujiwara, Toru Miyake, Seiji Wada
  • Patent number: 7595667
    Abstract: A drive circuit has a level shift circuit which outputs level-shifted on and off signals each for controlling a power semiconductor element in an on or off state, a first RS flip flop which is supplied with the on signal through a setting input terminal and supplied with the off signal through a resetting input terminal, and which outputs a drive signal to the power semiconductor element, and a logic filter circuit which is provided between the level shift circuit and the first RS flip flop, and which blocks transmission of the on and off signals during the time period from a time at which both the on and off signals become a first logic to a time at which both the on and off signal become a second logic.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 30, 2006
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2009
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventor: Xiaoguang Liang
  • Patent number: 7594938
    Abstract: A high-capacity enclosed nickel-zinc primary battery excellent in characteristics such as capacity maintenance factor, energy density, and high-efficient discharge characteristics, an anode using it, and a production method for them. An enclosed nickel-zinc primary battery which uses as an anode an anode active material of nickel hydroxide compound, such as nickel oxyhydroxide, particles and uses zinc alloy gel as a cathode material, wherein a ratio of anode theoretical capacity to cathode theoretical capacity is 1.0-1.6, and a ratio of alkali electrolyte to anode theoretical capacity is 1.0-1.6 ml/Ah.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 25, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2009
    Assignee: Toshiba Battery Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Kunihiko Miyamoto, Shuichiro Irie, Shinichi Miyamoto, Naomi Hadano, Teiji Okayama
  • Patent number: 7594560
    Abstract: A vehicle includes a sensor sensing external temperature, a 2WD/4WD switch operated to input an instruction to switch a two-wheel drive state and a four-wheel drive state, a transfer switching mechanical power transfer for the two-wheel drive state and that for the four-wheel drive state, an actuator actuating the transfer, and an ECU controlling the actuator. The ECU determines from a value detected by the sensor a current supplied to the actuator. Preferably, the transfer includes a synchronizer mechanism driven by power generated by the actuator to transfer a drive shaft's rotation to a driven shaft and engage the shafts together when they achieve synchronous rotation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 7, 2006
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2009
    Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Akinori Homan, Satoshi Munakata, Yoshiyuki Aoyama, Kazutaka Noguchi
  • Patent number: 7594320
    Abstract: A solder resist comprising a thermosetting resin is printed on a surface of an insulating board (7) having a conductor circuit (6). The solder resist is then heat-cured to form an insulating film (1) having a low thermal expansion coefficient. A laser beam (2) is then applied to the portion of the insulating film in which an opening is to be formed, to burn off the same portion for forming an opening (10), whereby the conductor circuit (6) is exposed. This opening may be formed as a hole for conduction by forming a metal plating film on an inner surface thereof. It is preferable that an external connecting pad be formed so as to cover the opening. The film of coating of a metal is formed by using an electric plating lead, which is preferably cut off by a laser beam after the electric plating has finished.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 27, 2005
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2009
    Assignee: IBIDEN Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Masaru Takada, Hiroyuki Kobayashi, Kenji Chihara, Hisashi Minoura, Kiyotaka Tsukada, Mitsuhiro Kondo
  • Patent number: 7595819
    Abstract: A signal processing unit subjects to signal processing first image signals, obtained as the output from a three-sensor-system sensor unit which uses CMOS sensors or the like, thereby obtaining high-image-quality second image signals. The three sensors are positioned at placement positions which are suitable for signal processing at the signal processing unit. The suitable placement positions have been obtained by learning performed beforehand. In one arrangement, the signal processing unit evaluates the second image signals, and controls the placement positions of the three sensors according to the evaluation results. In another arrangement, the first signals are evaluated in a predetermined region, and the capabilities of the sensors at the predetermined region are changed according to the evaluation results. In another arrangement, the sensor unit is controlled according to the level distribution of the first image signals. The present invention can be applied to still or video digital cameras.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 26, 2004
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2009
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventor: Tetsujiro Kondo
  • Patent number: 7595974
    Abstract: A multilayer ceramic capacitor having a high dielectric constant, a large capacitance and a high reliability can be obtained by controlling a value of residual stress in it.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 22, 2004
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2009
    Assignee: TDK Corporation
    Inventors: Yukie Nakano, Takeshi Nomura, Yasutaka Taguchi
  • Patent number: 7596015
    Abstract: A magnetoresistive element includes a free layer which contains a magnetic material and has an fct crystal structure with a (001) plane oriented, the free layer having a magnetization which is perpendicular to a film plane and has a direction to be changeable by spin-polarized electrons, a first nonmagnetic layer and a second nonmagnetic layer which sandwich the free layer and have one of a tetragonal crystal structure and a cubic crystal structure, and a fixed layer which is provided on only one side of the free layer and on a surface of the first nonmagnetic layer opposite to a surface with the free layer and contains a magnetic material, the fixed layer having a magnetization which is perpendicular to a film plane and has a fixed direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 1, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2009
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
    Inventors: Eiji Kitagawa, Toshihiko Nagase, Masatoshi Yoshikawa, Katsuya Nishiyama, Tatsuya Kishi, Hiroaki Yoda
  • Patent number: 7596423
    Abstract: The present invention includes a method of verifying a Site-Dependent (S-D) processing procedure, the method including receiving a plurality of wafers by a S-D transfer system, determining S-D wafer state data for each wafer; establishing a first set of verification wafers, determining a number of required verification sites for each verification wafer, determining a number of visited verification sites, determining a number of remaining verification sites for each verification wafer, establishing a first procedure-verification sequence, determining a first S-D verification procedure, transferring the first verification wafer to a first S-D processing element and delaying the first verification wafer for a first period of time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2009
    Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Mark Winkler, Thomas Winter
  • Patent number: 7595684
    Abstract: The voltage generation circuit is disclosed that has a standard voltage generation circuit, a minimum voltage setting circuit, a voltage setting circuit that gradually sets voltage by switching a plurality of the gate transistors to switch a combination of the resistive elements, a differential amplifier that has one input terminal connected to the reference voltage generated by the standard voltage generation circuit, another input terminal connected to the minimum voltage setting circuit and the voltage setting circuit having resistive elements and gate transistors connected to the resistive elements, and the output node showing the result of the difference voltage of these inputs, a pump control circuit that outputs a control signal controlling a charge-pump motion, based on the differential voltage, and a charge pump circuit that sets up and outputs the voltage by the control signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 13, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2009
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
    Inventor: Hiroshi Maejima
  • Patent number: 7596075
    Abstract: Second digital information serving as copyright protection information can be stably and reliably read without any effect of a defect or pit missing on a disk-shaped recording medium. Second digital information is recorded onto a disk-shaped recording medium by wobbling a pit sequence recorded as a first signal. The second digital information is recorded so that a plurality of bits constituting the second digital information are allocated in a unit period of an identical sync signal contained in the first signal. During playback, the plurality of bits constituting the recorded second digital information are read a plurality of times every unit period of the sync signal, and information of the read bits is then integrated. Thus, information from a large number of wobbled pits across unit periods of a plurality of sync signals can be integrated to determine the bit values.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2009
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Seiji Kobayashi, Jin Pan
  • Patent number: 7595134
    Abstract: A lithium-titanium composite oxide includes a crystallite diameter not larger than 6.9×102 ?, and includes a rutile type TiO2, an anatase type TiO2, Li2TiO3 and a lithium titanate having a spinel structure. The rutile type TiO2, the anatase type TiO2 and Li2TiO3 each has a main peak intensity not larger than 7 on the basis that a main peak intensity of the lithium titanate as determined by the X-ray diffractometry is set at 100.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 19, 2005
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2009
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
    Inventors: Hiroki Inagaki, Norio Takami
  • Patent number: 7595005
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for removing residue, such as etch reside, from a substrate with substantially reduced damage to the substrate in a plasma processing system is described. A plasma ashing process comprising carbon dioxide (CO2) and optionally a passivation gas, such as a hydrocarbon gas, i.e., CxHy, wherein x, y represent integers greater than or equal to unity, is used to remove residue while reducing damage to underlying dielectric layers. Additionally, the process chemistry can further comprise the addition of an inert gas, such as a Noble gas (i.e., He, Ne, Ar, Kr, Xe, Rn).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 11, 2006
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2009
    Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventor: Vaidyanathan Balasubramaniam
  • Patent number: 7595116
    Abstract: A process for improving the durability, dimensional stability and surface hardness of a wood body is described, in which an untreated wood body is impregnated with an aqueous solution of A) an impregnating agent from the group consisting of 1,3-bis(hydroxymethyl)-4,5-dihydroxyimidazolidin-2-one, 1,3-bis(hydroxymethyl)-4,5-dihydroxyimidazolidin-2-one modified with a C1-5-alcohol, a polyol or mixtures thereof, 1,3-dimethyl-4,5-dihydroxyimidazolidin-2-one, dimethylolurea, bis(methoxymethyl)urea, tetramethylolacetylenediurea, 1,3-bis(hydroxymethyl)imidazolidin-2-one, methylolmethylurea or mixtures thereof and B) a catalyst from the group consisting of metal or ammonium salts, organic or inorganic acids and mixtures thereof, and wood and impregnating agent are then caused to react while maintaining humid conditions at elevated temperature.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 1, 2003
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2009
    Assignee: BASF Aktiengesellschaft
    Inventors: Andreas Krause, Holger Militz
  • Patent number: 7592732
    Abstract: Sub core sections are arranged at the end portions and the center portion of a stator core, and strand conductors are twisted and transposed by 360 degrees continuously toward the extending direction of winding slot. The length corresponding to transposition pitch 180 degrees of the strand conductors of the stator core is set as one core unit area, the sub core sections including portions whose space factors are different are arranged such that the sum of voltages in the strands induced in the strand conductors in the odd-numbered core unit area from one end portion of the stator core offsets the sum of voltages in the strands induced in the strand conductors in the even-numbered core unit area from the end portion of the core.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 22, 2009
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
    Inventors: Masafumi Fujita, Tadashi Tokumasu, Yasuo Kabata, Masanori Arata, Mikio Kakiuchi, Susumu Nagano
  • Patent number: 7593823
    Abstract: Coefficients A and B are calculated from the measured temperature and the measured state of charge. Next, a response voltage Vc is calculated by substituting the measured internal impedance X into a response-voltage correlation equation. Besides, by comparing the response voltage Vc with a predetermined threshold V0, if Vc is bigger than or equal to V0, the battery is determined as normal. By substituting the measured values of internal impedance, temperature, and SOC into the internal impedance calculation formula, a final internal impedance calculation formula is determined by calculating the value of C by an iterating operation. Next, in the case of determining SOH of a battery, by substituting a standard temperature and a standard SOC into the final internal impedance calculation formula, the internal impedance to determine the SOH is calculated. By comparing the internal impedance with SOH determination threshold, the SOH of the battery is determined.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 5, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 22, 2009
    Assignee: The Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd
    Inventors: Noriyasu Iwane, Keiko Chikazawa, Keisuke Morii
  • Patent number: 7591348
    Abstract: A destination floor registering apparatus that can at any time and appropriately afford information on each floor to elevator users. For this purpose, a floor information display is provided for each destination button so that the contents of displays of the floor information display become visible from an operation surface of each of the destination buttons which a user operates in registering a desired destination floor, and the contents of displays of the floor information display are changed at any time according to operation conditions. Furthermore, information is displayed by a continuous change in colors, characters, or graphics to positively communicate the contents of displays of the floor information display to the user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 30, 2004
    Date of Patent: September 22, 2009
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Nobukazu Takeuchi
  • Patent number: 7593195
    Abstract: A magnetoresistance effect element comprises a magnetoresistance effect film and a pair of electrode. The magnetoresistance effect film having a first magnetic layer whose direction of magnetization is substantially pinned in one direction; a second magnetic layer whose direction of magnetization changes in response to an external magnetic field; a nonmagnetic intermediate layer located between the first and second magnetic layers; and a film provided in the first magnetic layer, in the second magnetic layer, at a interface between the first magnetic layer and the nonmagnetic intermediate layer, and/or at a interface between the second magnetic layer and the nonmagnetic intermediate layer, the film having a thickness not larger than 3 nanometers, and the film has as least one selected from the group consisting of nitride, oxinitride, phosphide, and fluoride.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 2006
    Date of Patent: September 22, 2009
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
    Inventors: Hideaki Fukuzawa, Hiromi Yuasa, Hiromi Fuke, Hitoshi Iwasaki, Masashi Sahashi
  • Patent number: 7592061
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is a hard coating film of laminate type which comprises more than one layer of a first kind, which has a composition represented by the formula (1a) below and a thickness of 1 to 80 nm, and more than one layer of a second kind, which has a composition represented by the formula (2a) below and a thickness of 1 to 80 nm, the layers being placed alternately one over another. (Cr(1-a)Ala)(C(1-x)Nx)??(1a) (Zr(1-k)Hfk)(C(1-y)Ny)??(2a) where each subscript denotes the atomic ratio specified below. 0.2?a?0.8 0.7?x?1 0?k?1 0.5?y?1 The hard coating film has outstanding high-temperature characteristics.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 15, 2009
    Date of Patent: September 22, 2009
    Assignee: Kobe Steel, Ltd.
    Inventor: Kenji Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 7591600
    Abstract: A method for monitoring photolithography processing includes monitoring application of a light sensitive material to the surface of each of a plurality of substrates and detecting that a supply of the light sensitive material applied to the substrates has changed from a first batch of light sensitive material to a second batch light sensitive material. A change in photolithography process results caused by the change from the first batch to the second batch of light sensitive material is determined. Also included is initiating corrective action based on the change in photolithography process results.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 23, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 22, 2009
    Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: David Dixon, Bryan Swain