Patents Examined by James Phan
  • Patent number: 9607557
    Abstract: An electrowetting display apparatus includes a first substrate including a first electrode that receives a gray-scale voltage and a second electrode insulated from the first electrode and receiving a reference voltage, a second substrate, a fluid layer, and a color filter. The color filter has a first thickness in an area corresponding to the first electrode and a second thickness in an area corresponding to the second electrode, and the first thickness is larger than the second thickness. Accordingly, a cell gap of the electrowetting display apparatus is reduced, and color reproducibility of the electrowetting display apparatus is improved without sacrificing brightness.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 18, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2017
    Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Sanghyun Lee, Yungkyung Park, Dohyoung Kwon, Gichang Park, Jongseo Lee, Andrea Giraldo, Nicolas Bergeron
  • Patent number: 9606349
    Abstract: Electromechanical light modulators and backlight providing efficient, low cost and high performance displays.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 5, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2017
    Inventor: Edward Pakhchyan
  • Patent number: 9599757
    Abstract: Tooling and optic elements for a retro-imaging system may be formed on order near atomic level of accuracy by making use of either etching or growth techniques of a cubic crystal lattice, such as silicon. The elements may be formed directly using selective etching or epitaxial growth by coating and clear resin lamination, or replicated to avoid shrinkage and curvature by use of low shrinkage resins or double-fill molding techniques. Through the use of these highly accurate reflection/diffraction elements, floating images may be formed with relatively high resolution in retro-reflective imaging systems, for example.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 11, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 21, 2017
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Karlton Powell, John Lutian
  • Patent number: 9599811
    Abstract: An optical device includes: an optical section that includes a light-incident surface on which light is incident; a moving section that supports the optical section; a shaft section that swingably supports the moving section around a swing axis; a permanent magnet that is provided in the moving section; an air core coil that is provided so as to face the moving section, and generates an electric field acting on the permanent magnet; and a coil holding member that is provided on a side opposite to the permanent magnet of the air core coil, and holds the air core coil, wherein the coil holding member includes a window section, and wherein an edge section of the air core coil is viewable through the window section.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 21, 2017
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Yasushi Mizoguchi
  • Patent number: 9602790
    Abstract: An optical device includes: an optical unit that is configured as a plate and includes a light incidence face on which light is incident; a support unit that includes a recessed arrangement portion in which the optical unit is arranged; and a first shaft portion and a second shaft portion that support the support unit in a manner which enables the support unit to oscillate, wherein a side face of the arrangement portion is separated from the optical unit between the optical unit and the first shaft portion and between the optical unit and the second shaft portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 21, 2017
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Yasushi Mizoguchi
  • Patent number: 9588347
    Abstract: A device for generating a virtual light image. The device includes a real light source, a curved retroreflector surface, and a semi-transparent mirror. The retroreflector surface is situated so that the light of the real light source transmitted through the semi-transparent mirror does not reach the retroreflector surface. A shape of the retroreflector surface for a given visibility range, at least in a subregion of the area that is essential for the image in the visibility range, is determined by the fact that at each point of the subregion, the pair of a reflection angle A and an optical distance between this point of the subregion of the retroreflector surface and the virtual light image is Pareto-minimal, provided that the subregion of the retroreflector surface does not interrupt primary beams from the real light source to the semi-transparent mirror.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 5, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 7, 2017
    Inventors: Igor Nikitin, Martin Göbel, Gernot Heisenberg
  • Patent number: 9575225
    Abstract: A step prismatic retro-reflector includes a main reflective corner having a shared reflective surface of a geometric single plane, a virtual step surface coming into contact with the shared reflective surface at a right angle, and a plurality of sub reflective corners. Each reflective corner has a pair of independent reflective surfaces coming into contact with each other at a right angle, and arranged along the step surface, wherein the retro-reflector elements are arranged to be alternated such that a corner ratio (l/w) of the sub reflective corners is 1.5 or more, a corner orientation of the main reflective corner deviates at an angle of 10 degrees or more with respect to a point of tangency of an incident plane, a reflection orientation thereof deviates at an angle within 10 degrees, and the corner orientations thereof deviate in the opposite direction to each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 23, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 21, 2017
    Inventor: Hyeonsik Kim
  • Patent number: 9575312
    Abstract: A light deflector includes a mirror unit having a light reflection plane, a base, a pair of elastic supporting members each having one end attached to the mirror unit and the other end attached to the base and configured to support the mirror unit in a rotatable and oscillatable manner, and a pair of drive bars each having one end attached to another end of a corresponding one of the elastic supporting members and the other end attached to the base in a cantilevered state. The mirror unit rotates and oscillates about a center of rotation as deformation of the drive bars is transmitted to the mirror unit through the elastic supporting members. The center of rotation of the mirror unit is within a range of ?0.05×D to ?0.01×D, where D denotes a diameter of the mirror unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 2, 2015
    Date of Patent: February 21, 2017
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventor: Goichi Akanuma
  • Patent number: 9568708
    Abstract: A lens assembly for a smartphone and a method of use is disclosed. In a first aspect, a lens assembly comprises a rotatable wheel; wherein the wheel includes at least two lenses. The lens assembly includes a skin portion coupled to the rotatable wheel, wherein the skin portion is adjustable to cover a smartphone. The at least two lenses of the wheel are positioned such that when one of the lens of the assembly is properly positioned it covers the lens of a camera on the smartphone. In a second aspect the method comprises providing a lens assembly over a camera lens of a smartphone chassis. The lens assembly includes a plurality of lenses that are rotatable. The method includes ensuring that the center of the smartphone lens is congruent with the center of the selected lens of the plurality of lens by referencing at least two surfaces of the smartphone chassis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 14, 2017
    Assignee: AppBANC, LLC
    Inventor: Gilbert Springer
  • Patent number: 9568357
    Abstract: The number of detection channels of detecting sections is increased and the detecting sections are replaced easily and at low cost while suppressing loss in the quantity of returning light. Provided is a detection unit (5A) including a detector entrance port (75A) through which light in a predetermined optical form enters, a detector (57A) that detects at least a portion of the light entering through the detector entrance port (75A), and a detector exit port (65A) through which at least another portion of the light entering through the detector entrance port (75A) can exit in the same optical form.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 12, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 14, 2017
    Assignee: OLYMPUS CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yusuke Amano, Masaharu Tomioka
  • Patent number: 9557559
    Abstract: The present invention provides an anti-peeping device comprising: a plate-shaped substrate; a magnetic field generating device disposed on the plate-shaped substrate for generating a magnetic field; a plurality of light blocking walls deflectably connected to the plate-shaped substrate and configured to be changeable in its deflecting direction and/or deflecting angle in response to a change in a direction and/or an intensity of the magnetic field; a magnetic field control device; and a user input device for receiving an instruction from a user. The magnetic field control device is configured to control the magnetic field generating device to adjust the direction and/or the intensity of the magnetic field based on an instruction received from the user input device, so as to change the deflecting direction and/or the deflecting angle of the light blocking walls. The present invention further comprises a control method for an anti-peeping device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 4, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2017
    Assignee: BOE Technology Group Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Xinan Wang, Wenbo Li
  • Patent number: 9551866
    Abstract: In an optical scanning system, each of plural light beams is reflected at a point on a deflector in a sub-scanning cross section, a point of reflection on the deflector of the principal ray of each beam in the case that the principal ray is incident normally to a scanning surface in a main scanning cross section is designated as a fiducial point, distance from the fiducial point to the scanning surface is designated as L, distance from the center of curvature of the exit surface of one of the second scanning lenses for a light beam i to the scanning surface is designated as BFi, refractive powers of the first scanning lens and one of the second scanning lenses are designated as ?1si and ?2si, and then the following expressions are satisfied. 0.15?BFi/L?0.2??(1) 0.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 27, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 24, 2017
    Assignee: NALUX CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Tomohito Kuwagaito
  • Patent number: 9547171
    Abstract: An optical scanning system includes a variable-focus element, an imaging lens and a deflector, wherein the reciprocal of the focal length f of the variable-focus element is changed from 1/fMIN to 1/fMAX, and for the case that the equation 1/f={(1/fMAX)+(1/fMIN)}/2 holds, a beam which has passed through the variable-focus element is a divergent beam, and x 2 + x 2 2 x 1 > x 3 ( 1 ) is satisfied, where x1 represents a distance from a virtual image point of the divergent beam to the principal point on the entry side of the variable-focus element, x2 represents a distance from the principal point on the exit side of the variable-focus element to the principal point on the entry side of the imaging lens, and x3 represents a distance from the principal point on the exit side of the imaging lens to an image point.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 1, 2015
    Date of Patent: January 17, 2017
    Assignee: NALUX CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Daisuke Seki, Takatoshi Suzuki, Tomohito Kuwagaito
  • Patent number: 9547152
    Abstract: A plastic optical element for an optical system of an optical scanner includes a plurality of optical effective portions through which a plurality of light beams transmit, respectively, formed on at least one of an incidence surface and an exit surface in a sub scan direction, and an optical ineffective portion formed between neighboring optical effective portions not to allow the light beams to transmit therethrough, and including an area in which a local contraction occurs at a time of resin molding.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 14, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 17, 2017
    Assignee: RICOH COMPANY, LTD.
    Inventors: Chieko Hatashita, Eiichi Hayashi, Go Takahashi
  • Patent number: 9541757
    Abstract: A light flux diameter-expanding element (pupil expanding element) which is used in a retina scanning type display apparatus includes a first diffraction grating having a grating pattern extending in a first direction X, a second diffraction grating, a third diffraction grating, and a fourth diffraction grating, and expands a diameter of the incident light flux in a second direction Y so as to emit the light. In addition, the light flux diameter-expanding element includes a fifth diffraction grating having a grating pattern extending in the second direction Y, a sixth diffraction grating, a seventh diffraction grating, and an eighth diffraction grating, and expands a diameter of the incident light flux in the first direction X so as to emit the light.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 10, 2015
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2017
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Osamu Yokoyama, Masatoshi Yonekubo
  • Patent number: 9541729
    Abstract: An electro-optical apparatus has an element substrate that is provided with a mirror and a sealing member which seals the mirror, and the sealing member includes a light-transmitting cover which faces the mirror opposite from the element substrate. An infrared cut filter is laminated on the light-transmitting cover.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 8, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2017
    Assignee: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventor: Manabu Kondo
  • Patent number: 9544573
    Abstract: A mirror micromechanical structure has a mobile mass carrying a mirror element. The mass is drivable in rotation for reflecting an incident light beam with a desired angular range. The mobile mass is suspended above a cavity obtained in a supporting body. The cavity is shaped so that the supporting body does not hinder the reflected light beam within the desired angular range. In particular, the cavity extends as far as a first side edge wall of the supporting body of the mirror micromechanical structure. The cavity is open towards, and in communication with, the outside of the mirror micromechanical structure at the first side edge wall.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 9, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2017
    Assignee: STMicroelectronics S.r.l.
    Inventors: Roberto Carminati, Sebastiano Conti, Sonia Costantini
  • Patent number: 9529125
    Abstract: One aspect of the present disclosure provides microprismatic retroreflective film that includes a substrate and metalized microprisms located on the substrate. At least a portion of the metalized microprisms are forward-tilted microprisms, and at least a portion of the forward-tilted microprisms are aligned with the plane of optical axis tilting aligned at an angle ranging from about 10 to 80 degrees with an edge of the microprismatic retroreflective film.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 27, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 27, 2016
    Assignee: Aura Optical Systems, LP
    Inventor: Drew J Buoni
  • Patent number: 9515533
    Abstract: The rotary body driving apparatus comprises: a rotary body having reflective surfaces; a motor having a rotor shaft; a rotor being attached to one end part of the rotor shaft together with the rotary body; a stator housing having a bearing section, which rotatably holds the rotor shaft; a motor substrate for detecting a rotational position of the rotor, the motor substrate being provided to the stator housing; a magnetized section for frequency generation, the magnetized section being formed into a ring shape and provided to an end surface of the rotary body facing the motor substrate; and a circular frequency generation pattern, which faces the magnetized section, being provided to the motor substrate and disposed close to the magnetized section.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 13, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 6, 2016
    Assignee: SHINANO KENSHI KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Masayuki Kodani, Nobuchika Maruyama
  • Patent number: 9513476
    Abstract: A micro-electromechanical component includes: an electrically conductive substrate having an upper side and an underside; a structured electrically conductive first functional layer fashioned on the upper side of the substrate; an elastically deflectable actuator device suspended via a spring device fashioned in the first functional layer; a movable first electrode device extending vertically through the substrate and connected to the actuator device; and a stationary second electrode device extending vertically through the substrate, at a distance from the first electrode device, the actuator device being configured to be deflected through the application of an electrical voltage between the first and the second electrode device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 11, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 6, 2016
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventor: Jochen Reinmuth