Patents by Inventor Hitoshi Niino

Hitoshi Niino 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: 7682643
    Abstract: To provide a new manufacturing method of containered green tea beverage suited for selling hot. A step of eliminating silica was introduced in the manufacturing process, wherein the silica is eliminated after adding silica to a tea extract obtained by extracting green tea leaves to adsorb the sediment component present in tea extract to the silica. By adding silica to the tea extract and bringing them into contact, the proteins and polysaccharides causing secondary sediment can be selectively adsorbed and decreased, allowing the occurrence of sediment to be prevented, even when selling the beverage hot. Furthermore, it allows a large amount of flavor component to be left. Further more, a large amount of catechins can be left in the beverage, allowing the growth of heat-resistant bacteria to be inhibited by the antibacterial action of catechins.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 26, 2004
    Date of Patent: March 23, 2010
    Assignee: Ito En, Ltd.
    Inventors: Masami Sasame, Hitoshi Kinugasa, Kenji Shimaoka, Yoko Haraguchi, Hitoshi Niino, Kazunori Okanoya
  • Publication number: 20050186314
    Abstract: To provide a new manufacturing method of containered green tea beverage suited for selling hot. A step of eliminating silica was introduced in the manufacturing process, wherein the silica is eliminated after adding silica to a tea extract obtained by extracting green tea leaves to adsorb the sediment component present in tea extract to the silica. By adding silica to the tea extract and bringing them into contact, the proteins and polysaccharides causing secondary sediment can be selectively adsorbed and decreased, allowing the occurrence of sediment to be prevented, even when selling the beverage hot. Furthermore, it allows a large amount of flavor component to be left. Further more, a large amount of catechins can be left in the beverage, allowing the growth of heat-resistant bacteria to be inhibited by the antibacterial action of catechins.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 26, 2004
    Publication date: August 25, 2005
    Inventors: Masami Sasame, Hitoshi Kinugasa, Kenji Shimaoka, Yoko Haraguchi, Hitoshi Niino, Kazunori Okanoya
  • Patent number: 6797305
    Abstract: Providing a manufacturing process of tea beverages that the secondary sediment does not occur even during the long-term storage. In the manufacturing process, determining the strictinin content in a tea extract or formulation of before-heat-sterilization, to manage to manufacture the strictinin content to be at or below the predetermined level. Since the strictinin in the tea extract or formulation decomposed to ellagic acid which is a cause substance of the secondary sediment after heat-sterilization, the occurrence of secondary sediment can be prevented previously by managing the manufacturing process to control the strictinin content in the tea extract or formulation of before-heat-sterilization.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 20, 2003
    Date of Patent: September 28, 2004
    Assignee: Ito En, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hitoshi Niino, Hitoshi Kinugasa, Masami Sasame, Kazunori Okanoya, Shuhei Kuribayashi, Kenji Shimaoka, Yoko Ueno
  • Publication number: 20030185950
    Abstract: Providing a manufacturing process of tea beverages that the secondary sediment does not occur even during the long-term storage.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 20, 2003
    Publication date: October 2, 2003
    Applicant: ITO EN, LTD.
    Inventors: Hitoshi Niino, Hitoshi Kinugasa, Masami Sasame, Kazunori Okanoya, Shuhei Kuribayashi, Kenji Shimaoka, Yoko Ueno
  • Patent number: 6387428
    Abstract: In order to produce green tea beverages which have a good flavor and a good balance of the fragrant components and do not form unpleasant precipitates, such green tea beverage are produced by a method including an extracting step consisting of two extraction steps, a first step in which green tea leaves are extracted at an applied pressure to obtain a pressure extract (step 1) and a second step in which green tea leaves are extracted under atmospheric pressure, followed by microfiltration to obtain an atmospheric extract (step 2), and a mixing step in which the pressure extract and the atmospheric extract obtained in the respective step are mixed at a mixing ratio determined on the basis of the weight of the raw tea leaves (step 3).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 14, 2000
    Date of Patent: May 14, 2002
    Assignee: Ito En, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hitoshi Kinugasa, Masami Sasame, Nobuo Matsumoto, Kenji Shimaoka, Yoko Ueno, Hitoshi Niino, Kazunori Okanoya, Izumi Kobayashi
  • Patent number: 5922380
    Abstract: Tea leaves are extracted in warm or hot water, and the obtained extract is contacted with a cation exchange resin ionically bonded to potassium ion. The potassium ion is ionically bonded to the cation exchange resin in advance. Divalent ions in the tea beverage are replaced with the potassium ions from the cation exchange resin. The electrical conductivity of the extract is controlled in this whole process. The natural flavor and quality of the tea are thereby maintained more certainly, since metal ions that cause muddiness or precipitation are effectively removed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 8, 1997
    Date of Patent: July 13, 1999
    Assignee: Ito En, Ltd.
    Inventors: Takanobu Takihara, Hitoshi Kinugasa, Hitoshi Niino, Yuko Sagesaka, Toshio Kawasaki, Nobuo Matsumoto, Kenji Shimaoka, Masami Sasame, Takashi Yamamoto