Patents by Inventor Chihiro Kato
Chihiro Kato 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).
-
Patent number: 8789949Abstract: A cornea imaging apparatus including: a collimation axis holding mechanism; an imaging mechanism; a Z-direction actuating means; an X-direction actuating means and a Y-direction actuating means; an inclination angle changing means that changes an inclination angle of an imaging center axis of the imaging mechanism against a collimation axis of an eye under examination; an endothelial configuration computing means that determines a corneal endothelial configuration; and a normal vector computing means that determines a normal vector direction at a given imaging position of the corneal endothelial configuration, wherein at the imaging position, the inclination angle and positions in the Z and X directions are set adjusted so as to align the imaging center axis of the imaging mechanism with the normal vector direction determined by the normal vector computing means.Type: GrantFiled: April 5, 2013Date of Patent: July 29, 2014Assignee: Tomey CorporationInventor: Chihiro Kato
-
Patent number: 8758625Abstract: Use of a porous hollow fiber membrane for producing a clarified biomedical culture medium by a method including a filtration step of distributing a biomedical culture medium over the porous hollow fiber membrane, a tube wall of the hollow fiber membrane being constituted of a blend of a hydrophobic polymer and polyvinylpyrrolidone. A content of the polyvinylpyrrolidone is not lower than 0.2% by mass and not higher than 3% by mass relative to a total mass of the porous hollow fiber membrane, and, when the tube wall is divided in a membrane-thickness direction equally into three regions, a content of the polyvinylpyrrolidone in an outer circumferential region including an outer face is higher than a content of the polyvinylpyrrolidone in an inner circumferential region including an inner face, and an average pore size in the inner face is larger than an average pore size in the outer face.Type: GrantFiled: September 25, 2009Date of Patent: June 24, 2014Assignees: Asahi Kasei Chemicals Corporation, Asahi Kasei Medical Co., Ltd.Inventors: Chihiro Kato, Yuukou Seki, Satoshi Shiki
-
Publication number: 20130278898Abstract: A cornea imaging apparatus including: a collimation axis holding mechanism; an imaging mechanism; a Z-direction actuating means; an X-direction actuating means and a Y-direction actuating means; an inclination angle changing means that changes an inclination angle of an imaging center axis of the imaging mechanism against a collimation axis of an eye under examination; an endothelial configuration computing means that determines a corneal endothelial configuration; and a normal vector computing means that determines a normal vector direction at a given imaging position of the corneal endothelial configuration, wherein at the imaging position, the inclination angle and positions in the Z and X directions are set adjusted so as to align the imaging center axis of the imaging mechanism with the normal vector direction determined by the normal vector computing means.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 5, 2013Publication date: October 24, 2013Applicant: TOMEY CORPORATIONInventor: Chihiro KATO
-
Publication number: 20130229627Abstract: An ophthalmic apparatus is provided with a light source, an optical measurement system, an optical reference system, an optical calibration system, a light receiving element, and a processor. The light receiving element receives an interference light for measurement produced by both the reflected light guided by the optical measurement system and the reference light guided by the optical reference system, and also receives an interference light for calibration produced by the calibration light guided by the optical calibration system and the reference light guided by the optical reference system. The processor determines a position of a measuring portion inside an eye to be examined by Fourier-analyzing the interference light for measurement and the interference light for calibration.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 1, 2013Publication date: September 5, 2013Applicant: TOMEY CORPORATIONInventors: Chihiro Kato, Yuji Nozawa
-
Patent number: 8265735Abstract: An optical coherence tomography (OCT) anterior eye part imaging apparatus includes a tomographic image obtaining unit obtaining a tomographic image of an anterior eye part of subject's eye in a depth direction by optical coherence tomography, an imaging unit imaging a frontal image of subject's eye, a display unit displaying the image of subject's eye, a corneal apex location detecting unit detecting a location of subject's eye, an alignment unit moving an apparatus body relative to the holder so that the location of corneal apex corresponds with a predetermined image obtaining location, a designating unit designating an area or a location where the tomographic image is obtained on subject's frontal image displayed on the display unit, and a scan line setting unit setting a scan line in the tomographic image obtaining unit on a straight line passing the corneal apex according to the designated area or location.Type: GrantFiled: December 10, 2008Date of Patent: September 11, 2012Assignee: Tomey CorporationInventors: Chihiro Kato, Keiichiro Okamoto, Kenichi Hayashi, Hiromu Watanabe
-
Publication number: 20120200827Abstract: An ophthalmologic apparatus comprises a light source 12, an optical measurement system 13 that radiates first light from the light source to inside an eye to be examined and guides first reflected light from the eye, an optical reference system (24, 22) that radiates second light from the light source to a reference surface and guides second reflected light from the reference surface, a photo detector 26 that detects interfering light between the first reflected light from the optical measurement system and the second reflected light from the optical reference system, and a processor that determines a position of a measuring portion of the inside of the eye based on the detected interfering light. The optical measurement system comprises an incident angle changing member 46 that changes an incident angle of the first light radiated to the eye within a predetermined angular range relative to an axis of vision of the eye.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 23, 2012Publication date: August 9, 2012Inventors: Chihiro Kato, Tsutomu Ohmori, Yuji Nozawa
-
Publication number: 20110210067Abstract: Use of a porous hollow fiber membrane for producing a clarified biomedical culture medium by a method including a filtration step of distributing a biomedical culture medium over the porous hollow fiber membrane, a tube wall of the hollow fiber membrane being constituted of a blend of a hydrophobic polymer and polyvinylpyrrolidone. A content of the polyvinylpyrrolidone is not lower than 0.2% by mass and not higher than 3% by mass relative to a total mass of the porous hollow fiber membrane, and, when the tube wall is divided in a membrane-thickness direction equally into three regions, a content of the polyvinylpyrrolidone in an outer circumferential region including an outer face is higher than a content of the polyvinylpyrrolidone in an inner circumferential region including an inner face, and an average pore size in the inner face is larger than an average pore size in the outer face.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 25, 2009Publication date: September 1, 2011Applicants: ASAHI KASEI CHEMICALS CORPORATION, ASAHI KASEI MEDICAL CO., LTD.Inventors: Chihiro Kato, Yuukou Seki, Satoshi Shiki
-
Patent number: 7661820Abstract: The present invention provides an ophthalmologic apparatus that can noninvasively measure the state of the lacrimal layer formed on the cornea surface and that can quantitatively measure the state of the lacrimal layer without utilizing a reflection image from the retina. The ophthalmologic apparatus according to the present invention comprises an optical projection system for projecting light of a specified pattern onto a cornea surface, and an imaging device for photographing a reflection image of the projected light from the cornea surface. An operating unit calculates the degree of distortion of the reflection image on the basis of the density value distribution of the image photographed by the imaging device. The operating unit can determine the state of the lacrimal layer using the calculated degree of distortion.Type: GrantFiled: January 18, 2006Date of Patent: February 16, 2010Assignee: Tomey CorporationInventors: Naoko Hara, Hisashi Kataoka, Chihiro Kato
-
Publication number: 20090149742Abstract: An optical coherence tomography (OCT) anterior eye part imaging apparatus includes a tomographic image obtaining unit obtaining a tomographic image of an anterior eye part of subject's eye in a depth direction by optical coherence tomography, an imaging unit imaging a frontal image of subject's eye, a display unit displaying the image of subject's eye, a corneal apex location detecting unit detecting a location of subject's eye, an alignment unit moving an apparatus body relative to the holder so that the location of corneal apex corresponds with a predetermined image obtaining location, a designating unit designating an area or a location where the tomographic image is obtained on subject's frontal image displayed on the display unit, and a scan line setting unit setting a scan line in the tomographic image obtaining unit on a straight line passing the corneal apex according to the designated area or location.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 10, 2008Publication date: June 11, 2009Applicant: TOMEY CORPORATIONInventors: Chihiro KATO, Keiichiro Okamoto, Kenichi Hayashi, Hiromu Watanabe
-
Publication number: 20080309872Abstract: The present invention provides an opthalmologic apparatus that can noninvasively measure the state of the lacrimal layer formed on the cornea surface and that can quantitatively measure the state of the lacrimal layer without utilizing a reflection image from the retina. The opthalmologic apparatus according to the present invention comprises an optical projection system for projecting light of a specified pattern onto a cornea surface, and an imaging device for photographing a reflection image of the projected light from the cornea surface. An operating unit calculates the degree of distortion of the reflection image on the basis of the density value distribution of the image photographed by the imaging device. The operating unit can determine the state of the lacrimal layer using the calculated degree of distortion.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 18, 2006Publication date: December 18, 2008Applicant: TOMEY CORPORATIONInventors: Naoko Hara, Hisashi Kataoka, Chihiro Kato
-
Patent number: 4954406Abstract: In an electrophotographic plate, that having an undercoating layer with smooth surface when observed by using a scanning electron microscope and an electric conductivity of at least 2.times.10.sup.-14 .OMEGA..sup.-1 .multidot.cm.sup.-1 between an electroconductive substrate and a photosensitive layer is improved in electrophotographic properties which are hardly changed by changes of circumstances.Type: GrantFiled: November 1, 1988Date of Patent: September 4, 1990Assignee: Hitachi Chemical Company, Ltd.Inventors: Keiichi Endo, Yasushi Shinbo, Akira Kageyama, Yasuo Katsuya, Chihiro Kato, Masato Fukasawa, Makoto Sekine
-
Patent number: 4265826Abstract: A method is provided for fractionating an oil to separate high melting components thereof, which comprises the steps of:(a) adjusting the temperature of an oil or fat to a temperature from the complete melting point to thirty Celsius degrees above the slip melting point of the oil or fat;(b) seeding the temperature-adjusted oil or fat with seed crystals of the high melting point components of said oil or fat;(c) cooling said seeded oil or fat below said temperature to crystallize said high melting point components; and(d) separating the crystals of said high melting point components from the slurry obtained in step (c).Type: GrantFiled: December 21, 1979Date of Patent: May 5, 1981Assignee: Ajinomoto Company, IncorporatedInventors: Masaaki Iida, Chihiro Kato, Shigemitsu Ohshima, Yoshiyuki Yazawa