Patents by Inventor Akihiro Watanabe

Akihiro Watanabe 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).

  • Publication number: 20230022432
    Abstract: A development device includes a development container, a first conveying member, a second conveying member, a toner concentration sensor, and a developer carrier. The toner concentration sensor is arranged at a wall portion of the first conveying chamber in which the first conveying member is arranged. The first and second conveying members are equal to each other in outer diameter and shaft diameter, the outer diameter being 2.3 times the shaft diameter or more but 3.0 times the shaft diameter or less. Where D represents the shaft diameter of the first conveying member, L represents an axial length of the first conveying member, and K represents a distance of a center position of a sensing surface of the toner concentration sensor from a downstream end of the first conveying chamber in the first direction, formula (1) is satisfied: 500<(L2×K)/D4<2500 (1).
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 12, 2022
    Publication date: January 26, 2023
    Applicant: KYOCERA Document Solutions Inc.
    Inventors: Eiji GYOTOKU, Akihiro WATANABE
  • Publication number: 20230024111
    Abstract: A development device includes a development container, a first conveying member, a second conveying member, a toner concentration sensor, and a developer carrier. The first and second conveying members are equal to each other in outer diameter and shaft diameter, the outer diameter being 1.3 times the shaft diameter or more but 1.6 times the shaft diameter or less. Where L represents an axial length of the first conveying member, K represents a distance of a center position of the sensing surface of the toner concentration sensor from a downstream end of a first conveying chamber of the development container in the first direction, P represents a pitch of the conveying blade of the first conveying member, and R represents a rotational speed of the first conveying member, formula (1) is satisfied: 30000<(P×R×L)/K<45000 (1).
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 12, 2022
    Publication date: January 26, 2023
    Applicant: KYOCERA Document Solutions Inc.
    Inventors: Eiji GYOTOKU, Akihiro WATANABE
  • Publication number: 20220105936
    Abstract: A vehicle travel control apparatus includes an outside recognition device, a traveling environment recognition section, a steering control unit, and an engine control unit. The outside recognition device acquires traveling-environment image data that is image data of a traveling environment in front of an own vehicle that is applied with the apparatus. The traveling environment recognition section performs, on the basis of the traveling-environment image data, a detection of lane lines each provided between lanes, lighting of a brake lamp of another vehicle, and blinking of a turn signal lamp of the other vehicle. The steering control unit operates a driving source of a steering mechanism provided in the own vehicle. The engine control unit controls the own vehicle to travel along a target traveling course, by controlling the steering control unit on the basis of a result of the detection performed by the traveling environment recognition section.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 1, 2021
    Publication date: April 7, 2022
    Applicant: SUBARU CORPORATION
    Inventors: Akihiro WATANABE, Shinya KATAKAI, Atsushi IMAI, Kazumasa FUKUCHI
  • Publication number: 20220077956
    Abstract: According to one embodiment, an electronic communication device includes a controller that changes an upper limit value capable of correcting an error of bit data in which an error occurs in packet data transferred by serial communication.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 9, 2021
    Publication date: March 10, 2022
    Inventors: Akihiro WATANABE, Kenji YOSHIDA
  • Patent number: 11142198
    Abstract: A lane keep control apparatus includes a first calculator. The first calculator includes a first determiner, a second determiner, a third determiner, and a second calculator. The first determiner is configured to determine whether a preceding vehicle travels on a traveling lane of an own vehicle. The second determiner is configured to determine whether a blinker of the preceding vehicle blinks. The third determiner is configured to determine whether widening of one or both of lane lines is present. The second calculator is configured to set, on a condition that the blinker of the preceding vehicle is determined as blinking and the widening is determined as being present, a target traveling course on the basis of one of the lane lines positioned on opposite side of the other of the lane lines that is positioned on a side on which the blinker of the preceding vehicle is determined as blinking.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 12, 2021
    Assignee: SUBARU CORPORATION
    Inventor: Akihiro Watanabe
  • Publication number: 20210305886
    Abstract: The continuous wires respectively have U-shaped parts and straight parts. The method includes: a transposition shape forming step of forming transposition shapes in each of which, among at least the two continuous wires belonging to an identical phase, the U-shaped part of one of the continuous wires is disposed inside the U-shaped part of the other one of the continuous wires; an inclined part forming step of causing the pairs of straight parts of the continuous wires respectively formed with the transposition shapes to be offset to form inclined parts on the continuous wires; and a folding step of folding the continuous wires formed with the inclined parts to form the turning parts and the slot disposition parts. The inclined part forming step and the folding step are alternately performed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 24, 2021
    Publication date: September 30, 2021
    Inventors: Takahiro IDE, Akihiro WATANABE
  • Patent number: 11114095
    Abstract: Provided is an information processing device that includes a reception unit that receives inquiry information, an acquisition unit that acquires answer information in response to the inquiry information from at least one or more acquisition destination candidates determined on a basis of the inquiry information, and a sending unit that sends response information that is generated on a basis of the answer information. The acquisition unit sends a request using a common data format to the at least one or more acquisition destination candidates, and acquires the answer information using a common data format based on the request.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 20, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 7, 2021
    Assignee: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventor: Akihiro Watanabe
  • Patent number: 11087146
    Abstract: A lane-line recognizing apparatus includes an acquiring unit, an extractor, and an identifier including a storage and an estimator. The acquiring unit acquires a traveling environment information on a traveling environment in front of an own vehicle. The extractor extracts feature quantities of lane-line components of lane lines from each frame image on a basis of the traveling environment information acquired by the acquiring unit. The identifier identifies the lane lines on the basis of the feature quantities extracted by the extractor. The storage stores the feature quantities extracted by the extractor. When the feature quantities are extracted again after a transition from a condition where the lane lines are identifiable to a condition where the lane lines are unidentifiable, the estimator estimates, on the basis of the feature quantities stored in the storage, the lane lines after the transition to the condition where the lane lines are unidentifiable.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 17, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 10, 2021
    Assignee: SUBARU CORPORATION
    Inventor: Akihiro Watanabe
  • Patent number: 11010618
    Abstract: An apparatus for identifying a line marking on a road surface. In the apparatus, an extractor extracts a paint candidate that is a candidate for road surface paint used to identify a line marking in an image captured by a camera mounted on a vehicle to capture an image of an area including a road surface ahead of the vehicle. A determiner determines whether or not the paint candidate has at least one predefined flare feature. A line marking identifier identifies a line marking using the paint candidate which meets an identification condition used to identify a line marking. The line marking identifier sets the identification condition to be more stringent for a flare paint candidate that is the paint candidate determined by the determiner to have the at least one predefined flare feature than for the paint candidate determined by the determiner to have no predefined flare feature.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 17, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 18, 2021
    Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Taiki Kawano, Shunsuke Suzuki, Shunya Kumano, Akihiro Watanabe
  • Publication number: 20210132153
    Abstract: A battery management system includes a control device and a storage. The storage stores at least one trained neural network. The trained neural network includes an input layer that accepts input data that represents a numeric value for each pixel in an image where a prescribed CCV waveform (a CCV charging waveform or a CCV discharging waveform) of a secondary battery is drawn in a region constituted of a predetermined number of pixels, and when input data is input to the input layer, the trained neural network outputs a full charge capacity of the secondary battery. The control device estimates the full charge capacity of a target battery by inputting input data obtained for the target battery into the input layer of the trained neural network.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 30, 2020
    Publication date: May 6, 2021
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Junta IZUMI, Akihiro WATANABE, Toshiki HORI, Misato BABA
  • Patent number: 10914614
    Abstract: Provided is an encoder apparatus including: a scale provided to a rotation shaft of a drive apparatus and having a predetermined pattern; a detector that detects the predetermined pattern; a rotation information calculator that calculates rotation information on the rotation shaft by using detection results of the detector; an eccentricity information calculator; and a corrector that corrects the rotation information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 15, 2016
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2021
    Assignee: NIKON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Taiyo Takahashi, Akihiro Watanabe
  • Publication number: 20210023697
    Abstract: An encoder device including a position detection unit for detecting position information of a moving part; a magnet having a plurality of polarities along a moving direction of the moving part; and an electric signal generation unit for generating an electric signal, based on a magnetic characteristic of a magnetosensitive part, the electric signal generation unit having the magnetosensitive part whose magnetic characteristic is changed by a change in magnetic field associated with relative movement to the magnet, wherein the magnetosensitive part is disposed so that the magnetosensitive part is spaced apart from a side surface of the magnet in a direction orthogonal to the moving direction and a length direction of the magnetosensitive part is orthogonal to tangential directions of at least some of magnetic field lines of the magnet.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 9, 2019
    Publication date: January 28, 2021
    Applicant: NIKON CORPORATION
    Inventor: Akihiro WATANABE
  • Patent number: 10881723
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a vaccine containing fixed virus particles, wherein a summed fever response of three rabbits to the fixed virus particles in a pyrogen test is less than 80% based on a summed fever response of three rabbits to original virus particles of the fixed virus particles or corresponding inactivated virus particles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 10, 2017
    Date of Patent: January 5, 2021
    Assignee: KM BIOLOGICS CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Hiroto Onuma, Yukari Tsurudome, Kazuyuki Ikeda, Ryo Yamaue, Kazuhiko Kimachi, Motoharu Abe, Akihiro Watanabe, Yuki Ohara
  • Publication number: 20200370927
    Abstract: A calibrator includes: a position calculator which calculates a relative position between a first detector and a second detector on the basis of detection signals acquired respectively from the first detector, the second detector, and a third detector positioned with respect to a scale attached to a rotating body; and an error calculator which calculates error information on rotational position information of the rotating body on the basis of the relative position calculated by the position calculator as well as the detection signals.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 12, 2018
    Publication date: November 26, 2020
    Applicant: Nikon Corporation
    Inventors: Akihiro WATANABE, Masahisa TAKASAKI
  • Publication number: 20200320989
    Abstract: [Object] To realize dynamic and flexible dialogue in response to an inquiry from a user. [Solution] Provided is an information processing device including: a reception unit that receives inquiry information; an acquisition unit that acquires answer information in response to the inquiry information from at least one or more acquisition destination candidates determined on a basis of the inquiry information; and a sending unit that sends response information that is generated on a basis of the answer information. The acquisition unit sends a request using a common data format to the at least one or more acquisition destination candidates, and acquires the answer information using a common data format based on the request.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 20, 2017
    Publication date: October 8, 2020
    Inventor: AKIHIRO WATANABE
  • Patent number: 10656561
    Abstract: A toner conveying device includes a toner conveying portion having vertical and horizontal conveying portions, a conveying member arranged in the horizontal conveying portion, a toner loosening member, and first and second magnetic members. The toner loosening member is arranged in the vertical conveying portion to be movable vertically. The first magnetic member is attached to the bottom end of the toner loosening member. The second magnetic member is attached to a part of the conveying member facing the toner loosening member. The magnetic pole of the first magnetic member on its side facing the conveying member is the same as the magnetic pole of the second magnetic member on its side facing the toner loosening member. The toner loosening member vertically reciprocates as the repulsive magnetic field between the first and the second magnetic members changes periodically with the rotation of the conveying member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 19, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 19, 2020
    Assignee: KYOCERA DOCUMENT SOLUTIONS INC.
    Inventor: Akihiro Watanabe
  • Publication number: 20200142334
    Abstract: A toner conveying device includes a toner conveying portion having vertical and horizontal conveying portions, a conveying member arranged in the horizontal conveying portion, a toner loosening member, and first and second magnetic members. The toner loosening member is arranged in the vertical conveying portion to be movable vertically. The first magnetic member is attached to the bottom end of the toner loosening member. The second magnetic member is attached to a part of the conveying member facing the toner loosening member. The magnetic pole of the first magnetic member on its side facing the conveying member is the same as the magnetic pole of the second magnetic member on its side facing the toner loosening member. The toner loosening member vertically reciprocates as the repulsive magnetic field between the first and the second magnetic members changes periodically with the rotation of the conveying member.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 19, 2019
    Publication date: May 7, 2020
    Applicant: KYOCERA Document Solutions Inc.
    Inventor: Akihiro WATANABE
  • Patent number: 10635911
    Abstract: In an apparatus for recognizing a travel lane of a vehicle, a deviation determiner is configured to, if two or more shape change points are extracted by a shape change point extractor and the second derivative value of curvature of an extracted boundary line at at least one of the two or more shape change points is inverted in sign, determine whether or not the extracted boundary line and an estimated boundary line estimated from travel lane parameters estimated by a travel lane parameter estimator are deviating from each other beyond a predetermined allowable range. A driving aid is configured to, if it is determined that the extracted boundary line and the estimated boundary line are deviating from each other beyond the predetermined allowable range, perform control upon deviation to prevent occurrence of undesirable situations that may be caused by deviation between the extracted boundary line and the estimated boundary line.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 15, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2020
    Assignees: DENSO CORPORATION, SOKEN, INC.
    Inventors: Shunya Kumano, Naoki Nitanda, Akihiro Watanabe
  • Patent number: 10623835
    Abstract: There is provided an information processing apparatus to allow a user to use a device network by a natural and simple operation by automatically selecting a device for providing a response to a request, the information processing apparatus including: a request acquiring part configured to acquire a request to a system; a response determining part configured to determine a response to the request; a device selecting part configured to select, on the basis of at least an attribute of the response, a device that provides the response among devices included in the system; and a device controller configured to perform control that causes the selected device to provide the response.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 19, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 14, 2020
    Assignee: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Akihiro Watanabe, Motoki Tsunokawa
  • Publication number: 20200104608
    Abstract: A lane-line recognizing apparatus includes an acquiring unit, an extractor, and an identifier including a storage and an estimator. The acquiring unit acquires a traveling environment information on a traveling environment in front of an own vehicle. The extractor extracts feature quantities of lane-line components of lane lines from each frame image on a basis of the traveling environment information acquired by the acquiring unit. The identifier identifies the lane lines on the basis of the feature quantities extracted by the extractor. The storage stores the feature quantities extracted by the extractor. When the feature quantities are extracted again after a transition from a condition where the lane lines are identifiable to a condition where the lane lines are unidentifiable, the estimator estimates, on the basis of the feature quantities stored in the storage, the lane lines after the transition to the condition where the lane lines are unidentifiable.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 17, 2019
    Publication date: April 2, 2020
    Inventor: Akihiro WATANABE