Patents by Inventor Akinobu Sawada
Akinobu Sawada 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: 20230358792Abstract: A zero-crossing detection circuit includes a logic unit and an input stop detection unit. The logic unit is configured to estimate a zero cross of an AC signal in accordance with at least one of a first monitoring target signal and a second monitoring target signal, respectively input through diodes from a first node and a second node between which the AC signal is applied, so as to generate a zero-crossing detection signal. The input stop detection unit is configured to compare the first monitoring target signal with the second monitoring target signal after giving an offset to one of them so as to generate an input stop detection signal. The logic unit is configured to fix a logic level of the zero-crossing detection signal in accordance with the input stop detection signal.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 7, 2023Publication date: November 9, 2023Inventors: Satoru Nate, Akinobu Sawada, Natsuki Yamamoto
-
Patent number: 11733275Abstract: A zero-crossing detection circuit includes a zero-crossing detection unit arranged to compare a first monitoring target signal and a second monitoring target signal respectively input through diodes from a first node and a second node between which an AC signal is applied, so as to generate a first comparison signal, and a logic unit arranged to estimate a zero cross of the AC signal from the first comparison signal so as to generate a zero-crossing detection signal. The zero-crossing detection circuit preferably includes a monitoring unit arranged to adjust the first monitoring target signal and the second monitoring target signal to be suitable for input to the zero-crossing detection unit. The logic unit preferably counts a period of the first comparison signal and estimates a zero cross of the AC signal using a count value thereof.Type: GrantFiled: October 12, 2021Date of Patent: August 22, 2023Assignee: Rohm Co., Ltd.Inventors: Satoru Nate, Akinobu Sawada, Natsuki Yamamoto
-
Publication number: 20220190725Abstract: The present disclosure provides a buck converter for achieving a high output and reducing cost. The buck converter includes: a MOSFET, including a first side connected to an application end of an input voltage; a rectifying element, connected to a second side of the MOSFET by a first connection node; a coil, having a first terminal connected to the first connection node; and an output capacitor, connected to a second terminal of the coil. The MOSFET is a super-junction MOSFET.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 8, 2021Publication date: June 16, 2022Inventor: Akinobu SAWADA
-
Publication number: 20220034946Abstract: A zero-crossing detection circuit includes a zero-crossing detection unit arranged to compare a first monitoring target signal and a second monitoring target signal respectively input through diodes from a first node and a second node between which an AC signal is applied, so as to generate a first comparison signal, and a logic unit arranged to estimate a zero cross of the AC signal from the first comparison signal so as to generate a zero-crossing detection signal. The zero-crossing detection circuit preferably includes a monitoring unit arranged to adjust the first monitoring target signal and the second monitoring target signal to be suitable for input to the zero-crossing detection unit. The logic unit preferably counts a period of the first comparison signal and estimates a zero cross of the AC signal using a count value thereof.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 12, 2021Publication date: February 3, 2022Applicant: Rohm Co., Ltd.Inventors: Satoru Nate, Akinobu Sawada, Natsuki Yamamoto
-
Patent number: 11181562Abstract: A zero-crossing detection circuit includes a zero-crossing detection unit arranged to compare a first monitoring target signal and a second monitoring target signal respectively input through diodes from a first node and a second node between which an AC signal is applied, so as to generate a first comparison signal, and a logic unit arranged to estimate a zero cross of the AC signal from the first comparison signal so as to generate a zero-crossing detection signal. The zero-crossing detection circuit preferably includes a monitoring unit arranged to adjust the first monitoring target signal and the second monitoring target signal to be suitable for input to the zero-crossing detection unit. The logic unit preferably counts a period of the first comparison signal and estimates a zero cross of the AC signal using a count value thereof.Type: GrantFiled: July 25, 2018Date of Patent: November 23, 2021Assignee: Rohm Co., Ltd.Inventors: Satoru Nate, Akinobu Sawada, Natsuki Yamamoto
-
Patent number: 11011969Abstract: There is provided a configuration of a switching control circuit for use with a switching power supply which generates an output voltage from an input voltage, the switching control circuit having an intermittent operation mode where an operation period in which a switching element of the switching power supply is switched and a pause period in which the switching element is not switched are repeated. The switching control circuit includes a prohibition part configured to prohibit starting a next operation period until a predetermined period of time elapses from a time that a current operation period starts, in the intermittent operation mode.Type: GrantFiled: March 18, 2019Date of Patent: May 18, 2021Assignee: Rohm Co., Ltd.Inventor: Akinobu Sawada
-
Publication number: 20200158766Abstract: A zero-crossing detection circuit includes a zero-crossing detection unit arranged to compare a first monitoring target signal and a second monitoring target signal respectively input through diodes from a first node and a second node between which an AC signal is applied, so as to generate a first comparison signal, and a logic unit arranged to estimate a zero cross of the AC signal from the first comparison signal so as to generate a zero-crossing detection signal. The zero-crossing detection circuit preferably includes a monitoring unit arranged to adjust the first monitoring target signal and the second monitoring target signal to be suitable for input to the zero-crossing detection unit. The logic unit preferably counts a period of the first comparison signal and estimates a zero cross of the AC signal using a count value thereof.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 25, 2018Publication date: May 21, 2020Applicant: Rohm Co., Ltd.Inventors: Satoru Nate, Akinobu Sawada, Natsuki Yamamoto
-
Publication number: 20190319527Abstract: There is provided a configuration of a switching control circuit for use with a switching power supply which generates an output voltage from an input voltage, the switching control circuit having an intermittent operation mode where an operation period in which a switching element of the switching power supply is switched and a pause period in which the switching element is not switched are repeated. The switching control circuit includes a prohibition part configured to prohibit starting a next operation period until a predetermined period of time elapses from a time that a current operation period starts, in the intermittent operation mode.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 18, 2019Publication date: October 17, 2019Applicant: Rohm Co., Ltd.Inventor: Akinobu Sawada
-
Patent number: 9844108Abstract: A dimming circuit (A11) incorporated in a light-emitting-load driving device includes a pre-comparator (CMP21) arranged to compare a dimming signal (S20) with a threshold voltage (VthCMP) lower than an input buffer (A113x) of a dimming microcomputer (A113) so as to generate a comparison signal (S20y), and to transmit the comparison signal (S20y) instead of the dimming signal (S20) to the dimming microcomputer (A113).Type: GrantFiled: March 12, 2015Date of Patent: December 12, 2017Assignee: Rohm Co., Ltd.Inventor: Akinobu Sawada
-
Publication number: 20170215240Abstract: A dimming circuit (A11) incorporated in a light-emitting-load driving device includes a pre-comparator (CMP21) arranged to compare a dimming signal (S20) with a threshold voltage (VthCMP) lower than an input buffer (A113x) of a dimming microcomputer (A113) so as to generate a comparison signal (S20y), and to transmit the comparison signal (S20y) instead of the dimming signal (S20) to the dimming microcomputer (A113).Type: ApplicationFiled: March 12, 2015Publication date: July 27, 2017Applicant: Rohm Co., Ltd.Inventor: Akinobu Sawada
-
Patent number: 9581655Abstract: A lighting apparatus of the present invention includes: a light source; a power source unit arranged to power the light source; a detector unit arranged to detect the deterioration of ability of the power source unit to power the light source; and a determination unit arranged to determine the life of the power source unit in response to the detector unit.Type: GrantFiled: March 18, 2014Date of Patent: February 28, 2017Assignee: Rohm Co., Ltd.Inventors: Masahide Tanaka, Mitsunori Nagashima, Akinobu Sawada
-
Patent number: 9553480Abstract: Disclosed is an electric power system including a first unit (for example, a unit 201) equipped with a first power source (for example, a solar panel (201b)), a first rechargeable battery (for example, a unit storage battery (201c)) to which an output of the first power source is input, and a first power consuming portion (not shown) to which an output of the first rechargeable battery is input; a second rechargeable battery (for example, a shared storage battery (202)); and an electric power line (for example, a shared electric power line (203)) for sharing electric power between the first rechargeable battery and the second rechargeable battery.Type: GrantFiled: December 16, 2010Date of Patent: January 24, 2017Assignee: Rohm Co., Ltd.Inventors: Akinobu Sawada, Kenichi Niiyama, Masahide Tanaka
-
Patent number: 9420659Abstract: An LED power supply device disclosed in the present specification includes a DC dimmer circuit that performs dimming control of an LED such that the higher a reference voltage variably controlled according to a dimmer signal is, the smaller a current flowing in the LED is. This configuration makes it possible to achieve fine dimming control.Type: GrantFiled: January 19, 2016Date of Patent: August 16, 2016Assignee: Rohm Co., Ltd.Inventors: Kotaro Shibata, Akinobu Sawada
-
Patent number: 9374083Abstract: The switching current control circuit includes a switching pulse supply circuit, a comparator circuit, and analog circuit unit, a digital circuit unit, etc. The A/D converter (2) detects a load current in an ON period of a switching pulse as a detected current, and converts it into digital data. The arithmetic control circuit (3) calculates a lower limit of the detected current for providing a timing of switching from OFF to ON of the switching pulse, based on the converted data. Continuation/discontinuous modes are determined whether the lower limit is equal to or greater than 0.Type: GrantFiled: March 5, 2012Date of Patent: June 21, 2016Assignee: Rohm Co., Ltd.Inventor: Akinobu Sawada
-
Publication number: 20160150613Abstract: An LED power supply device disclosed in the present specification includes a DC dimmer circuit that performs dimming control of an LED such that the higher a reference voltage variably controlled according to a dimmer signal is, the smaller a current flowing in the LED is. This configuration makes it possible to achieve fine dimming control.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 19, 2016Publication date: May 26, 2016Inventors: Kotaro Shibata, Akinobu Sawada
-
Patent number: 9271365Abstract: An LED power supply device disclosed in the present specification includes a DC dimmer circuit that performs dimming control of an LED such that the higher a reference voltage variably controlled according to a dimmer signal is, the smaller a current flowing in the LED is. This configuration makes it possible to achieve fine dimming control.Type: GrantFiled: September 29, 2014Date of Patent: February 23, 2016Assignee: Rohm Co., Ltd.Inventors: Kotaro Shibata, Akinobu Sawada
-
Patent number: 9101011Abstract: A lighting system has a solar power generation section, a control section which generates a control signal based on the output of the solar power generation section, a power conversion section which converts a direct-current electric power input thereto to output a direct-current electric power, and a lighting section which is driven by the direct-current electric power output from the power conversion section.Type: GrantFiled: February 2, 2011Date of Patent: August 4, 2015Assignee: Rohm Co., Ltd.Inventors: Akinobu Sawada, Koji Taniuchi
-
Patent number: 9101008Abstract: A light emitter driving device has a decoder portion which monitors a rectified voltage and generates a dimming signal, and a drive current control portion which controls a drive current to a light emitter according to the dimming signal. The decoder portion has a comparator which compares the rectified voltage with a predetermined threshold voltage to generate a comparison signal, a sampling counter which measures high-level and low-level periods of the comparison signal, a duty calculation portion which calculates the duty of the rectified voltage based on the output of the sampling counter, a filter calculation portion which excludes sporadic variation in duty by applying digital filtering to the output of the duty calculation portion, and a dimming signal generation portion which generates the dimming signal based on the output of the filter calculation portion.Type: GrantFiled: November 12, 2014Date of Patent: August 4, 2015Assignee: Rohm Co., Ltd.Inventors: Takeshi Sumitani, Akinobu Sawada
-
Patent number: 9066384Abstract: The light emitting device control circuit device 100 in accordance with the disclosure includes a power source V1, a transistor TR1, a light emitting unit EU1, switches S1 to S17, constant current sources CC1 to CC17, and a controller 110. A switching voltage Vs1 is supplied from the controller 110 to turn ON or turn OFF the transistor TR intermittently, a pulse voltage is supplied to a pulse voltage supplying line Y1 connected to a drain terminal D of the transistor TR1. The driving signals SP1 to SP17 are sequentially supplied to the switches S1 to S17 to turn ON or turn OFF them (i.e., time division drive). The light emitting devices A1 to A17 are driven sequentially by a pulse current (i.e., time division drive) when a high voltage is supplied to the pulse voltage supplying line Y1 and when the driving signals SP1 to SP17 are turned ON.Type: GrantFiled: October 2, 2013Date of Patent: June 23, 2015Assignee: Rohm Co., Ltd.Inventors: Hidekazu Kikuchi, Akinobu Sawada
-
Publication number: 20150137687Abstract: An LED power supply device disclosed in the present specification includes a DC dimmer circuit that performs dimming control of an LED such that the higher a reference voltage variably controlled according to a dimmer signal is, the smaller a current flowing in the LED is. This configuration makes it possible to achieve fine dimming control.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 29, 2014Publication date: May 21, 2015Inventors: Kotaro Shibata, Akinobu Sawada