Patents Assigned to NUVOTON TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION JAPAN
  • Patent number: 11965933
    Abstract: A battery monitoring device includes: a pair of terminals for measuring voltage or current of a battery, and to which a filter unit including a capacitive element is connected; an AD converter that measures a waveform of voltage between the terminals during charging or discharging of the capacitive element; and a time constant calculation unit that calculates a time constant of the filter unit based on the waveform measured. The AD converter is, for example, a first AD converter or a second AD converter. The filter unit is, for example, a first filter unit or a second filter unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: NUVOTON TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION JAPAN
    Inventors: Kazuo Matsukawa, Yu Okada, Yosuke Goto, Hitoshi Kobayashi, Keiichi Fujii
  • Patent number: 11967797
    Abstract: A puncture forming method is a method of forming punctures in a sample by irradiating a surface of the sample with a light beam. The puncture forming method includes: forming a first puncture by irradiating a first position on the surface of the sample with a first pulse of the light beam; and after the forming of the first puncture, forming a second puncture which at least partially overlaps the first puncture by irradiating, with a second pulse of the light beam, a second position on the surface of the sample positioned away from the first position in a first direction. The second puncture has a tip which is positioned inside the sample and which is bent in a direction opposite to the first direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 2, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: NUVOTON TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION JAPAN
    Inventors: Daisuke Ikeda, Hideo Kitagawa, Hiroshi Asaka, Masayuki Ono
  • Patent number: 11949413
    Abstract: A semiconductor device according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes: a plurality of line layers; a first line; and a second line that is not connected to the first line and is redundantly provided to transfer a signal having a level same as a level of a signal transferred through the first line. The first line and the second line are included in different layers out of the plurality of line layers, and a distance between the first line and the second line is longer than an interlayer distance between line layers next to each other out of the plurality of line layers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2024
    Assignee: NUVOTON TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION JAPAN
    Inventors: Kazuyuki Nakanishi, Akio Hirata
  • Patent number: 11950005
    Abstract: A solid-state imaging device includes: a photoelectric conversion element that is disposed on a semiconductor substrate and generates signal charges by photoelectric conversion; a first diffusion layer that holds signal charges transferred from the photoelectric conversion element; a capacitive element that holds signal charges overflowing from the photoelectric conversion element; an amplifier transistor that outputs a signal according to the signal charges in the first diffusion layer; a first contact that is connected to the first diffusion layer; a second contact that is connected to a gate of the amplifier transistor; and a first wire that connects the first contact and the second contact. A shortest distance between the semiconductor substrate and the first wire is less than a shortest distance between the semiconductor substrate and the capacitive element.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 19, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2024
    Assignee: NUVOTON TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION JAPAN
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Amikawa, Makoto Ikuma, Kazutoshi Onozawa
  • Patent number: 11942911
    Abstract: A radio-frequency power amplifier device includes: a carrier amplifier semiconductor device and a peak amplifier semiconductor device on a multilayer submount substrate; a bias power supply semiconductor device; second radio-frequency signal wiring that transmits a radio-frequency signal to the carrier amplifier semiconductor device and the peak amplifier semiconductor device; and carrier-amplifier bias power supply wiring that is wired in a third wiring layer and supplies a bias power supply voltage. The second radio-frequency signal wiring and the carrier-amplifier bias power supply wiring intersect in a plan view. The radio-frequency power amplifier device includes: a shield pattern that is located in a second wiring layer between a first wiring layer and the third wiring layer; and one or more connection vias disposed in an extension direction of the carrier-amplifier bias power supply wiring. The one or more connection vias are connected to the shield pattern.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 17, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2024
    Assignee: NUVOTON TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION JAPAN
    Inventors: Kazuhiko Ohhashi, Masatoshi Kamitani
  • Patent number: 11933752
    Abstract: A gas sensor includes: a gas-sensitive body layer disposed above a substrate and including a metal oxide layer; a first electrode on the gas-sensitive body layer; and a second electrode on the gas-sensitive body layer, being apart from the first electrode by a gap. The gas-sensitive body layer has a resistance change characteristic that reversibly transitions to a high-resistance state and a low-resistance state on basis of a voltage applied across the first electrode and the second electrode. At least a part of the gas-sensitive body layer is exposed to the gap. The gas-sensitive body layer has a resistance that decreases when gas containing a hydrogen atom is in contact with the second electrode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 23, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2024
    Assignee: NUVOTON TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION JAPAN
    Inventors: Satoru Fujii, Zhiqiang Wei, Kazunari Homma, Shinichi Yoneda, Yasuhisa Naito, Hisashi Shima, Hiroyuki Akinaga
  • Patent number: 11933854
    Abstract: A battery management circuit includes: a reference signal generator that generates a first reference frequency signal and a second reference frequency signal having a phase different from a phase of the first reference frequency signal; an alternating-current superimposer that superimposes an alternating current on the secondary battery, the alternating current having a frequency component of the first reference frequency signal; a voltage measurer that measures a voltage of the secondary battery by performing sampling using a frequency; a current measurer that measures a current of the secondary battery by performing sampling using a frequency; and a converter that converts each of results of measurements by the voltage measurer and the current measurer into a complex voltage and a complex current, by multiplying the result of the measurement by the first reference frequency signal and the second reference frequency signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2021
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2024
    Assignee: NUVOTON TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION JAPAN
    Inventors: Yu Okada, Hitoshi Kobayashi, Keiichi Fujii
  • Patent number: 11929353
    Abstract: A white light emitting device includes: first light-emitting units to which a first current is applied; and second light-emitting units to which a second current which is different from the first current is applied. When the first current is applied to the first light-emitting units and the second current is applied to the second light-emitting units, an average emission chromaticity of the first light-emitting units and an average emission chromaticity of the second light-emitting units are identical colors. When the same current is applied to both the first light-emitting units and the second light-emitting units, the average emission chromaticity of the first light-emitting units and the average emission chromaticity of the second light-emitting units are non-identical colors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 16, 2020
    Date of Patent: March 12, 2024
    Assignee: NUVOTON TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION JAPAN
    Inventors: Hidesato Hisanaga, Tetsuya Kamada, Shigeo Hayashi, Takashi Kuwaharada
  • Patent number: 11904869
    Abstract: A monitoring system includes an arithmetic processor. The arithmetic processor receives captured image information representing a captured image obtained by capturing an image of a subject and generates notification information representing a particular notification content depending on a condition of the subject. The arithmetic processor includes a first arithmetic processor and a second arithmetic processor. The first arithmetic processor obtains a condition quantity by quantifying the condition of the subject by reference to the captured image information and based on a parameter about a human activity status. The second arithmetic processor selects, according to the condition quantity, the particular notification content from contents of notification classified into N stages, where N is an integer equal to or greater than three.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 12, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 20, 2024
    Assignee: Nuvoton Technology Corporation Japan
    Inventors: Yasuyuki Shimizu, Seiji Matsui, Naoya Tomoda, Fumihito Nakajima, Tomohiko Kanemitsu, Takuya Asano, Norihiro Imanaka, Seigo Suguta, Masanori Hirofuji
  • Patent number: 11906669
    Abstract: A distance information acquisition device includes: a light emitter which emits light according to an emission pulse indicating emission; a solid-state imaging element which performs exposure according to an exposure pulse indicating exposure; an emission/exposure controller which generates a timing signal indicating a plurality of pairs of the emission pulse and the exposure pulse having a time difference that is different in each of the plurality of pairs; and a multipath detector which obtains a sequence of received light signals from the solid-state imaging element by the emission and the exposure that correspond to each of the plurality of pairs, compares the obtained sequence of received light signals and reference data created in advance as a model of a sequence of received light signals in a multipath-free environment, and determines the presence or absence of multipath according to a difference in a comparison result.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 20, 2024
    Assignee: NUVOTON TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION JAPAN
    Inventor: Megumi Nagata
  • Patent number: 11894456
    Abstract: A face-down mountable chip-size package semiconductor device includes a semiconductor layer and N (N is an integer greater than or equal to three) vertical MOS transistors in the semiconductor layer. Each of the N vertical MOS transistors includes, on an upper surface of the semiconductor layer, a gate pad electrically connected to a gate electrode of the vertical MOS transistor and one or more source pads electrically connected to a source electrode of the vertical MOS transistor. The semiconductor layer includes a semiconductor substrate. The semiconductor substrate functions as a common drain region for the N vertical MOS transistors. For each of the N vertical MOS transistors, a surface area of the vertical MOS transistor in a plan view of the semiconductor layer increases with an increase in a maximum specified current of the vertical MOS transistor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2023
    Date of Patent: February 6, 2024
    Assignee: NUVOTON TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION JAPAN
    Inventors: Kouki Yamamoto, Haruhisa Takata
  • Patent number: 11889776
    Abstract: A variable resistance non-volatile memory element includes first and second electrodes and a variable resistance layer between the electrodes. The layer has a resistance value reversibly variable based on an electrical signal. The layer includes a first variable resistance layer that includes an oxygen deficient first metal oxide containing a first metal element and oxygen, and a second variable resistance layer that includes a composite oxide containing the first metal element, a second metal element different from the first metal element, and oxygen, and having a different degree of oxygen deficiency from the first metal oxide. The composite oxide has a lower degree of oxygen deficiency than the first metal oxide. At room temperature, the composite oxide has a smaller oxygen diffusion coefficient than a second metal oxide containing the first metal element and oxygen, and having the degree of oxygen deficiency equal to that of the composite oxide.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 23, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2024
    Assignee: Nuvoton Technology Corporation Japan
    Inventors: Ryutaro Yasuhara, Satoru Fujii, Takumi Mikawa, Atsushi Himeno, Kengo Nishio, Takehide Miyazaki, Hiroyuki Akinaga, Yasuhisa Naitoh, Hisashi Shima
  • Patent number: 11888494
    Abstract: A semiconductor circuit includes: an analog circuit that inputs a measured signal; and a digital circuit that outputs a digital output signal. The analog circuit includes: a correction element group including one or more correction elements each for correcting an offset that is an amount of shift caused by a variation in characteristics of the analog circuit to occur in a path for transmitting the measured signal; and a test element group including one or more test elements for testing the one or more correction elements. The digital circuit tests the correction element group using the test element group.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2024
    Assignee: Nuvoton Technology Corporation Japan
    Inventors: Masao Iriguchi, Yosuke Goto
  • Patent number: 11876120
    Abstract: A semiconductor device includes: a channel layer not containing Al; a barrier layer above the channel layer containing Al; a recess; and an ohmic electrode in the recess, which is in ohmic contact with a two-dimensional electron gas layer. An Al composition ratio distribution of the barrier layer has a maximum point at a first position. The semiconductor device includes: a first inclined surface of the barrier layer which includes the first position and is in contact with the ohmic electrode; and a second inclined surface of the barrier layer which intersects the first inclined surface on a lower side of the first inclined surface, and is in contact with the ohmic electrode. To the surface of the substrate, an angle of the second inclined surface is smaller than an angle of the first inclined surface. A position of the first intersection line is lower than the first position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 24, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 16, 2024
    Assignee: Nuvoton Technology Corporation Japan
    Inventors: Yusuke Kanda, Kenichi Miyajima
  • Patent number: 11824326
    Abstract: A semiconductor laser element that includes a semiconductor layer including a waveguide formed in an intra-layer direction of the semiconductor layer and a window region formed in a front-side end face of the waveguide, has a current-laser optical output characteristic in which, at an operating temperature of 25° C.±3° C., a laser optical output has a maximum value at a first driving current value and the laser optical output is at most 20% of the maximum value at a second driving current value greater than the first driving current value, and is not damaged at the second driving current value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 26, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 21, 2023
    Assignee: NUVOTON TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION JAPAN
    Inventors: Kazumasa Nagano, Hiroki Nagai
  • Patent number: 11824390
    Abstract: A battery control system is provided with battery monitoring control circuits for measuring an output voltage of an individual or secondary battery cells, which are connected in an assembled battery divided into blocks; and a control circuit for controlling the battery monitoring control circuits. Each of the batter monitoring control circuits includes a communication interface for communications between the battery monitoring control circuits or communications with the control circuit; a power converter for converting a start-up signal into a DC voltage; and a start-up circuit that receives the DC voltage and generates a start-up control signal for starting the battery monitoring control circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 16, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 21, 2023
    Assignee: NUVOTON TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION JAPAN
    Inventor: Hitoshi Kobayashi
  • Patent number: 11812173
    Abstract: An imaging apparatus includes a light emitter, a pixel section, and a signal processor which calculates distance information of a subject. The pixel section includes a photoelectric converter, first and second read-out gates, and a plurality of charge accumulators including a first charge accumulator and a second charge accumulator. The first read-out gate is activated in a first period and deactivated in a second period. The second read-out gate is activated in the first period and the second period. The signal processor calculates the distance information based on a total amount of signal charges accumulated in the charge accumulators in the first period and the second period and a difference between an amount of signal charges accumulated in the second charge accumulator in the first period and the second period and an amount of the signal charge accumulated in the first charge accumulator in the first period.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 11, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 7, 2023
    Assignee: NUVOTON TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION JAPAN
    Inventors: Keiichi Mori, Junichi Matsuo, Mitsuhiko Otani, Mayu Ogawa
  • Patent number: 11800255
    Abstract: A solid-state imaging device includes: pixels disposed in a matrix of pixel rows and pixel columns; control wires provided for the pixel rows or the pixel columns, and each connected to at least two pixels out of the pixels, the at least two pixels being included in one of the pixel rows or the pixel columns for which the control wire is provided; drive circuits that are provided for the control wires, each include buffer elements in at least two stages, and each output a control signal to one of the control wires for which the drive circuit is provided, the buffer elements in the at least two stages being connected in series; and a first wire that short-circuits output wires of the buffer elements in one of the at least two stages in at least two of the plurality of drive circuits.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2022
    Date of Patent: October 24, 2023
    Assignee: NUVOTON TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION JAPAN
    Inventor: Yosuke Higashi
  • Patent number: 11798986
    Abstract: A semiconductor device that is a chip-size-package-type semiconductor device that is facedown mountable includes: a semiconductor layer including a semiconductor substrate and a low-concentration impurity layer in contact with an upper surface of the semiconductor substrate; a metal layer having a thickness of at least 10 ?m; a first vertical MOS transistor in the semiconductor layer; and a second vertical MOS transistor in the semiconductor layer. A side surface of the metal layer includes roughness forming vertical stripes in a direction perpendicular to the metal layer, and has a maximum height of profile greater than 1.0 ?m. In a plan view of the semiconductor device, an area occupancy of a formation containing metal in the metal layer is at most 5% in a 10-?m square region located at least 13 ?m inward from an outer edge of the semiconductor device, within an upper surface of the semiconductor device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 11, 2021
    Date of Patent: October 24, 2023
    Assignee: NUVOTON TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION JAPAN
    Inventors: Yoshihiro Matsushima, Yoshihiko Kawakami, Shinya Oda, Takeshi Harada
  • Patent number: 11788999
    Abstract: A gas monitoring system includes at least one sensor device that detects gas and outputs a detection result; and a gateway that receives the detection result. The at least one sensor device includes a sensor module having a gas sensor that detects gas; an analog-to-digital (A/D) converter that processes the detection result outputted from the gas sensor; a communication module that communicates with the sensor module and transmits information processed by the A/D converter exteriorly of the at least one sensor device; a power source that is an electric power source of the sensor module; and a power source that is an electric power source of the communication module.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 17, 2023
    Assignee: NUVOTON TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION JAPAN
    Inventors: Zhiqiang Wei, Shinichi Yoneda, Ryoichi Suzuki, Shunsaku Muraoka