Patents by Inventor Akira Sakai

Akira Sakai 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: 20200310201
    Abstract: The liquid crystal display panel includes a first substrate, a second substrate, and a liquid crystal layer provided between the first substrate and the second substrate. The first substrate includes a first dielectric substrate, a first electrode and a second electrode provided on the first dielectric substrate and capable of generating a horizontal electric field in the liquid crystal layer, and a first alignment film being in contact with the liquid crystal layer. The second substrate includes a second dielectric substrate and a second alignment film provided on the second dielectric substrate and being in contact with the liquid crystal layer. The first alignment film has an azimuthal anchoring strength lower than the second alignment film. The liquid crystal layer includes a nematic liquid crystal material and a polymer network.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 27, 2020
    Publication date: October 1, 2020
    Inventors: KOJI MURATA, KIYOSHI MINOURA, AKIRA SAKAI, YUICHI KAWAHIRA, KOHZOH NAKAMURA
  • Patent number: 10782556
    Abstract: A display device in which ambient light reflections, for example, from IPS or FFS type displays are reduced by a circular polariser (e.g., linear polariser combined with external quarter waveplate) to make the light circular polarized, as it traverses the multiple reflective layers between the polariser and LC layer, and then an internal quarter waveplate converts the light back to linear polarisation before it enters the LC, so the display can operate as normal, while the circular polariser absorbs unwanted reflections of ambient light from within the display.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 31, 2020
    Date of Patent: September 22, 2020
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Nathan James Smith, Kiyoshi Minoura, Akira Sakai, Yuichi Kawahira
  • Publication number: 20200286931
    Abstract: A scanning antenna (1000) in which antenna units (U) are arranged, the scanning antenna including: a first dielectric substrate (1); a TFT substrate (101) including TFTs, gate bus lines, source bus lines, and patch electrodes (15); a slot substrate (201) including a second dielectric substrate (51), and a slot electrode (55) formed on a first main surface of the second dielectric substrate; a liquid crystal layer (LC) provided between the TFT substrate and the slot substrate; and a reflective conductive plate (65) provided opposing a second main surface of the second dielectric substrate (51) opposite to the first main surface via a dielectric layer (54). The slot electrode includes slots arranged corresponding to each of the patch electrodes, and the second dielectric substrate (51) and the slot electrode (5) further include an adhesive layer (92) formed therebetween from a thermosetting type or photocurable type adhesive material.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 16, 2016
    Publication date: September 10, 2020
    Applicants: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA, SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: JUMPEI TAKAHASHI, MASANOBU MIZUSAKI, KIYOSHI MINOURA, AKIRA SAKAI
  • Patent number: 10744988
    Abstract: The reservoir tank includes a reservoir body which reserves a fluid in an inner portion thereof formed to be in a hollow box shape. The reservoir body includes a port extending outward, a reservoir chamber which reserves the fluid and a port chamber which volume is smaller than that of the reservoir chamber and is in fluid communication with the port and a first communication passage positioned at a portion lower than a changeable liquid surface of the fluid reserved in the reservoir chamber in a vertical direction and provided at the first partition portion to allow the fluid communication between the reservoir chamber and the port chamber and wherein the port chamber and the port are kept being a state in which they are filled with the fluid supplied from the reservoir chamber via the first communication passage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 19, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 18, 2020
    Assignees: ADVICS CO., LTD., TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yusuke Sekine, Ryosuke Sakakibara, Jun Matsushima, Akira Omizu, Koji Masuda, Akira Sakai, Hideki Sugawa
  • Publication number: 20200249532
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display panel performs displaying in the normally white mode. A first and a second polarizer are disposed so that the transmission axes thereof are perpendicular to each other. A liquid crystal layer is in a twisted alignment state in the absence of an applied voltage. A first substrate has a first electrode having a plurality of rectangular openings extending in parallel to each other, and a second electrode facing the first electrode with a dielectric layer interposed therebetween. The openings each independently have a width S of more than 0.6 ?m and not more than 1.4 ?m, and each pair of adjacent openings independently has a distance L therebetween of not less than 0.3 ?m and not more than 0.7 ?m. A first and a second horizontal alignment film each have an azimuthal anchoring energy of not more than 1×10?4J/m2.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 3, 2020
    Publication date: August 6, 2020
    Inventors: KOJI MURATA, KOHZOH NAKAMURA, KIYOSHI MINOURA, AKIRA SAKAI, YUICHI KAWAHIRA
  • Patent number: 10734900
    Abstract: A converter device includes a rectifier circuit to rectify an AC voltage output from an AC power supply, a booster circuit including a plurality of reactors, a plurality of switching elements, and a plurality of backflow prevention elements to boost an output voltage of the rectifier circuit, a smoothing capacitor to smooth an output voltage of the booster circuit, a bus-current detection circuit to detect a value of a current that flows between the rectifier circuit and the booster circuit, a first filter circuit having a first filter time constant, a second filter circuit having a second filter time constant shorter than the first filter time constant, and a control unit to control an operation of the switching elements as a current value detected by the bus-current detection circuit is input to the control unit via the first filter circuit and the second filter circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 2016
    Date of Patent: August 4, 2020
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Akito Tanaka, Satoru Ichiki, Tomohiro Kutsuki, Daisuke Suzuki, Akira Sakai
  • Patent number: 10725336
    Abstract: The liquid crystal display panel includes: a first polarizing plate; a first ?/4 plate; a first substrate; a second ?/4 plate; a liquid crystal layer; a second substrate; and a second polarizing plate, wherein the first substrate includes a black matrix but no photo spacer, the second substrate includes a photo spacer overlapping with the black matrix, liquid crystal molecules in the liquid crystal layer homogeneously align with no voltage application, the second ?/4 plate covers no side surface of the photo spacer, and the in-plane slow axis of the first ?/4 plate forms an angle of 45° with the transmission axis of the first polarizing plate and is orthogonal to the in-plane slow axis of the second ?/4 plate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 16, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 28, 2020
    Assignee: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yuichi Kawahira, Akira Sakai, Kozo Nakamura, Masahiro Hasegawa, Takako Koide, Koji Murata, Kiyoshi Minoura
  • Patent number: 10693377
    Abstract: The converter device includes a rectification circuit that receives, as an input, AC power from an AC power supply, and performs full-wave rectification on the AC power received, a booster circuit that boosts an output voltage from the rectification circuit, a smoothing capacitor that smooths an output voltage from the booster circuit, and outputs a voltage smoothed, to the load, and a controller that controls the booster circuit. The booster circuit includes a plurality of booster sections each of which includes a reactor, a switching element, and a reverse-blocking diode. The controller maintains, in an ON state, the switching element included in at least one of the plurality of booster sections for a predetermined time period to determine the presence or absence of a fault of the booster section.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 24, 2016
    Date of Patent: June 23, 2020
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Tomohiro Kutsuki, Akira Sakai, Daisuke Suzuki, Satoru Ichiki, Akito Tanaka
  • Publication number: 20200192165
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display device includes sequentially from a viewing surface side: a first polarizer; an out-cell retardation layer; a first substrate; an in-cell retardation layer; a horizontally aligned liquid crystal layer; a second substrate; and a second polarizer. The liquid crystal display device includes a viewing angle compensation film between the first polarizer and the out-cell retardation layer or between the second substrate and the second polarizer. The out-cell retardation layer is a laminate including sequentially from a viewing surface side: a first retardation layer having an NZ coefficient of 1.0-1.1 and an Re of 120 nm or greater and smaller than 137.5 nm; and a second retardation layer having an Re of 0-10 nm and an Rth of 80-150 nm. The in-cell retardation layer is a third retardation layer having an NZ coefficient of 0.7-1.4 and an Re of 120 nm or greater and smaller than 137.5 nm.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 5, 2019
    Publication date: June 18, 2020
    Inventors: MASAHIRO HASEGAWA, AKIRA SAKAI, TAKAKO KOIDE, YUICHI KAWAHIRA, KOJI MURATA, KIYOSHI MINOURA
  • Patent number: 10678087
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display panel includes a first ?/4 retardation layer, a first substrate, a color filter layer, a liquid crystal layer containing horizontally aligned liquid crystals, and a second ?/4 retardation layer that is formed from a different material from the first ?/4 retardation layer between the first substrate and the color filter layer or between the color filter layer and the liquid crystal layer. The second ?/4 retardation layer has a smaller thickness in a region overlapping the blue color filter than in a region overlapping the green color filter. The first ?/4 retardation layer provides a retardation Rout(?) to light having a wavelength of ? nm. The second ?/4 retardation layer provides a retardation Rin(?). The retardation Rout(?) and the retardation Rin(?) satisfy the following formula (1) in the region overlapping the blue color filter. ?1.0 nm<Rin(450)?Rout(450)<10.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 14, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 9, 2020
    Assignee: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Akira Sakai, Yuichi Kawahira, Koji Murata, Masahiro Hasegawa, Takako Koide, Kozo Nakamura, Kiyoshi Minoura
  • Publication number: 20200174316
    Abstract: The present invention provides a liquid crystal display device which has a high luminance and consumes less power by increasing the utilization efficiency of light. The liquid crystal display device includes: a first absorptive polarizing plate; a liquid crystal panel including a first substrate, a liquid crystal layer, and a second substrate in order from the first absorptive polarizing plate side; a second polarizing plate; and a backlight unit including a reflector in the stated order. The second substrate includes a reflective layer facing the second polarizing plate. A transmittance of polarized light vibrating in a direction parallel to a transmission axis of the second polarizing plate is greater than a transmittance of polarized light vibrating in a direction parallel to a transmission axis of the first absorptive polarizing plate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 1, 2018
    Publication date: June 4, 2020
    Inventors: HIROYUKI HAKOI, AKIRA SAKAI, KIYOSHI MINOURA
  • Patent number: 10670911
    Abstract: The liquid crystal display panel includes: a first polarizing plate; a first ?/4 plate; a first substrate; a second ?/4 plate; a liquid crystal layer; a second substrate; and a second polarizing plate, wherein the first substrate includes a black matrix, and a photo spacer overlapping with the black matrix, d crystal molecules in the liquid crystal layer homogeneously align with no voltage application, the second ?/4 plate is made of a self-assembling photo alignment material containing a photo functional group capable of causing at least one chemical reaction selected from the group consisting of photodimerization, photoisomerization, and photo-Fries rearrangement, and covers a side surface of the photo spacer, and the in-plane stow axis of the first ?/4 plate forms an angle of 45° with the transmission axis of the first polarizing plate and is orthogonal to the in-plane slow axis of the second ?/4 plate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 16, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 2, 2020
    Assignee: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yuichi Kawahira, Akira Sakai, Kozo Nakamura, Masahiro Hasegawa, Takako Koide, Koji Murata, Kiyoshi Minoura
  • Publication number: 20200166800
    Abstract: A display device in which ambient light reflections, for example, from IPS or FFS type displays are reduced by a circular polariser (e.g., linear polariser combined with external quarter waveplate) to make the light circular polarized, as it traverses the multiple reflective layers between the polariser and LC layer, and then an internal quarter waveplate converts the light back to linear polarisation before it enters the LC, so the display can operate as normal, while the circular polariser absorbs unwanted reflections of ambient light from within the display.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 31, 2020
    Publication date: May 28, 2020
    Inventors: Nathan James Smith, Kiyoshi Minoura, Akira Sakai, Yuichi Kawahira
  • Publication number: 20200159066
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display device includes a liquid crystal panel and a circularly polarizing plate disposed on a viewing side of the liquid crystal panel. The circularly polarizing plate sequentially includes, from a viewing side, a linearly polarizing plate and an out-cell retarder. The liquid crystal panel includes a thin-film transistor substrate, a color filter substrate facing the thin-film transistor substrate and including black matrix, a horizontal alignment liquid crystal layer disposed between the thin-film transistor substrate and the color filter substrate, and an in-cell retarder disposed in one substrate disposed on the viewing side selected from the thin-film transistor substrate and the color filter substrate. The in-cell retarder is disposed outside a region between the black matrix and the horizontal alignment liquid crystal layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 14, 2019
    Publication date: May 21, 2020
    Inventors: YUICHI KAWAHIRA, TAKAKO KOIDE, AKIRA SAKAI, KIYOSHI MINOURA
  • Patent number: 10656467
    Abstract: Provided is a liquid crystal module being excellent in durability and manufacturing cost and exhibiting reduced variations in peak luminance that are caused depending on an azimuth angle during black display when the polar angle is large. The liquid crystal module includes: a liquid crystal panel including a first polarizer, a first substrate, a liquid crystal layer, an in-cell retardation layer (?/4 plate of nx>ny=nz), a second substrate, an out-cell retardation layer (?/4 plate of nx>ny?nz), and a second polarizer, from a back side toward an observation side; and a backlight. The backlight includes a first prism sheet including a first ridge line, and a second prism sheet provided on a back side from the first prism sheet and including a second ridge line orthogonal to the first ridge line. The first ridge line is parallel to an azimuth at which the liquid crystal panel has a maximized transmittance in an oblique direction during black display.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 19, 2020
    Assignee: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Masahiro Hasegawa, Koji Murata, Yuichi Kawahira, Takako Koide, Akira Sakai, Kiyoshi Minoura
  • Publication number: 20200142249
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display panel includes a first polarizing plate; a first ?/4 layer; a first substrate; a second ?/4 layer; a liquid crystal layer; a second substrate; and a second polarizing plate. In an active region, the first substrate includes a plurality of color filter layers including an edge color filter layer located at an end portion of the active region. In an inactive region, the first substrate includes a black matrix and a dummy color filter layer which overlaps the black matrix and is adjacent to the edge color filter layer. A level difference between a surface of the edge color filter layer and a surface of the dummy color filter layer is 1.2 ?m or less. The second ?/4 layer overlaps a boundary between the edge color filter layer and the dummy color filter layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 24, 2018
    Publication date: May 7, 2020
    Inventors: YUICHI KAWAHIRA, KIYOSHI MINOURA, AKIRA SAKAI, TAKAKO KOIDE, MASAHIRO HASEGAWA, KOJI MURATA
  • Publication number: 20200132905
    Abstract: [Object] To provide an optical stack and so forth easily produced. [Solution] An resin layer (1), an optical compensation layer (4), a polarizer (6), and a hard coat layer (7) are stacked in this order from a panel side.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 29, 2019
    Publication date: April 30, 2020
    Inventors: Akira Sakai, Masahiro Hasegawa, Miho Yamada, Kiyoshi Minoura
  • Publication number: 20200103704
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display device includes: a liquid crystal panel; a backlight; an illuminance sensor; and a display controller. The liquid crystal panel includes, in order toward the backlight, an antireflection layer, a first linearly polarizing plate, a first ?/4 retardation layer, a first substrate, a second ?/4 retardation layer, a liquid crystal layer, a second substrate, and a second linearly polarizing plate. The liquid crystal panel has a reflectance within a predetermined range in irradiating the liquid crystal panel with light from an antireflection layer side. The liquid crystal display device satisfies a predetermined relation in the following X and Y, where X (unit: lx) is defined as an environmental illuminance detected by the illuminance sensor, and Y (unit: nit) is defined as a luminance of the backlight, adjusted by the display controller.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 27, 2019
    Publication date: April 2, 2020
    Inventors: YUICHI KAWAHIRA, KOJI MURATA, TAKAKO KOIDE, MASAHIRO HASEGAWA, AKIRA SAKAI, KIYOSHI MINOURA
  • Publication number: 20200103701
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display device of the present invention includes in the following order from a viewing surface side a first polarizer, a first positive A plate having an in-plane retardation of 120 nm or greater and 155 nm or smaller, a positive C plate having a thickness retardation of 80 nm or greater and 100 nm or smaller, a first substrate, a second positive A plate having an in-plane retardation of 120 nm or greater and 155 nm or smaller, a horizontally aligned liquid crystal layer, a second substrate, a viewing angle compensation layer, and a second polarizer. The device further includes between the first polarizer and the first positive A plate a positive C plate having a thickness retardation of 30 nm or greater and 80 nm or smaller.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 26, 2019
    Publication date: April 2, 2020
    Inventors: MASAHIRO HASEGAWA, AKIRA SAKAI, TAKAKO KOIDE, YUICHI KAWAHIRA, KOJI MURATA, KIYOSHI MINOURA
  • Patent number: 10591767
    Abstract: A display device in which ambient light reflections, for example, from IPS or FFS type displays are reduced by a circular polariser (e.g., linear polariser combined with external quarter waveplate) to make the light circular polarized, as it traverses the multiple reflective layers between the polariser and LC layer, and then an internal quarter waveplate converts the light back to linear polarisation before it enters the LC, so the display can operate as normal, while the circular polariser absorbs unwanted reflections of ambient light from within the display.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2020
    Assignee: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Nathan James Smith, Hywel Hopkin, Kiyoshi Minoura, Akira Sakai, Benjamin John Broughton