Patents by Inventor Hitoshi Shimizu

Hitoshi Shimizu 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: 20130242261
    Abstract: Provided is a scanning laser ophthalmoscope capable of accurately superposing multiple photographed images. The scanning laser ophthalmoscope comprises an image generating unit that generates first images based on the light reflected from first laser light and second images based on the light reflected from second laser light. An associating unit associates the first images and the second images based on the first laser light and the second laser light parallelly scanned by the scanning unit. A displacement calculating unit calculates displacements between images regarding multiple first images. The position matching unit matches the positions of multiple second images based on the processing results from the associating unit and the displacements. The superposing unit superposes the multiple second images that have undergone the position matching. The display unit displays an image obtained by superposing the multiple second images.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 14, 2011
    Publication date: September 19, 2013
    Applicant: KABUSHIKI KAISHA TOPCON
    Inventors: Masahiro Ohishi, Hitoshi Shimizu
  • Patent number: 8494022
    Abstract: A surface emitting laser is formed of a composition in which bandgap energy of layers from immediately above a current confinement layer to a second conductivity type contact layer is reduced towards the second conductivity type contact layer in a stacking direction, and a composition in which bandgap energy of layers from immediately below the current confinement layer to a first conductivity type contact layer is reduced towards the first conductivity type contact layer in a stacking direction while bypassing a quantum well layer or a quantum dot of an active layer, and includes a second conductivity type cladding layer including a material for reducing the mobility of carriers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2013
    Assignee: Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hitoshi Shimizu, Takeo Kageyama, Keishi Takaki, Norihiro Iwai
  • Patent number: 8488644
    Abstract: A semiconductor laser element includes a first electrode, a second electrode, a first reflecting mirror, a second reflecting mirror, and a resonator. The resonator includes an active layer, a current confinement layer, a first semiconductor layer having a first doping concentration formed at a side opposite to the active layer across the current confinement layer, and a second semiconductor layer having a second doping concentration higher than the first doping concentration formed between the first semiconductor layer and the current confinement layer. The first electrode is provided to contact a part of a surface of the first semiconductor layer. The first semiconductor layer has a diffusion portion into which a component of the first electrode diffuses. The second semiconductor layer contacts the diffusion portion. The second semiconductor layer is positioned at a node of a standing wave at a time of laser oscillation of the semiconductor laser element.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 10, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 16, 2013
    Assignee: Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Suguru Imai, Keishi Takaki, Norihiro Iwai, Kinuka Tanabe, Hitoshi Shimizu, Hirotatsu Ishii
  • Patent number: 8472492
    Abstract: Included are: an active layer provided between an upper multilayer film reflecting mirror and a lower multilayer film reflecting mirror formed on a GaAs substrate and formed of a periodic structure of a low-refractive-index layer formed of AlxGa1-xAs (0.8?x?1) and a high-refractive-index layer formed of AlyGa1-yAs (0?y?x), at least one of the low-refractive-index layer and the high-refractive-index layer being of n-type; and a lower electrode provided between the lower multilayer film reflecting mirror and the active layer and configured to inject an electric current into the active layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2010
    Date of Patent: June 25, 2013
    Assignee: Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Yasumasa Kawakita, Takeo Kageyama, Hitoshi Shimizu, Hirotatsu Ishii
  • Patent number: 8410456
    Abstract: A measurement data correction method is provided. A living organism is employed as a test sample, fluorescent light generated by excitation light from a fluorescent substance administered to the test sample is received by a light receiving component at a plurality of locations around the periphery of the test sample in a flat plane passing through an observation site of the test sample, and the method is employed for reconstruction of an optical tomographic image of the test sample along the flat plane passing through the observation site. The method includes: generating corrected measurement data, as measurement data to be used in reconstruction of an optical tomographic image along the flat plane passing through the observation site of the test sample, from an obtained first measurement data and an obtained first standardization measurement data using a defined correction coefficient.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2010
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2013
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventors: Hiroaki Yamamoto, Yu Tojo, Hitoshi Shimizu
  • Patent number: 8403482
    Abstract: [Task] To provide a fundus oculi observation device capable of effectively performing dispersion compensation. [Means for Resolution] A fundus oculi observation device 1 functions as an optical image measurement device that splits a broadband light into a signal light LS and a reference light LR, superimposes the signal light LS propagated through a fundus oculi Ef and the reference light LR propagated through a reference mirror 174 to generate an interference light LC and forms an image of the fundus oculi Ef. The device 1 corrects the influence of dispersion of the reference light LR based on ocular information 212a, generates the interference light LC after the correction, detects this interference light LC, and forms an OCT image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 15, 2008
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2013
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Topcon
    Inventors: Takeyoshi Nouchi, Kazuhiko Yumikake, Hitoshi Shimizu
  • Patent number: 8355421
    Abstract: A vertical cavity surface emitting laser element as described herein can suppress of any dislocation, when a distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) mirror is formed on the onto a substrate (1). The vertical cavity surface emitting laser can be designed so that an average of strain in the DBR mirror (2) and a layer thickness of the DBR mirror (2) are in reference to a curvature of the substrate (1) in order to satisfy a predetermined condition, and then nitrogen can be added into the DBR mirror (2) with a composition that corresponds to a designed average of strain in the DBR mirror (2). For example, the average composition of nitrogen can be designed to be between 0.028% and 0.390%.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 16, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 15, 2013
    Assignee: Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd
    Inventors: Yasumasa Kawakita, Kageyama Takeo, Hitoshi Shimizu
  • Patent number: 8327804
    Abstract: A measurement object holder that holds a measurement object in an optical measurement instrument, wherein the optical measurement instrument takes, as the measurement object, a living body in which isotropic scattering of light occurs inside and receives light emitted from the measurement object is disclosed. The measurement object holder includes a block that is formed in a predetermined outer shape by a material having optical properties in which the isotropic scattering of light occurs inside; and a cavity portion that is formed inside the block, that has an inner shape following the outer shape of the measurement object and in which the measurement object is accommodated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 1, 2010
    Date of Patent: December 11, 2012
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventors: Yukio Yamada, Hitoshi Shimizu, Takeshi Kimura
  • Patent number: 8300671
    Abstract: A surface emitting laser includes a cavity region formed on a group-III-V compound substrate, which includes an active layer and a current confinement layer that has an aluminum oxide compound and confines a current path through which a current is injected into the active layer, an upper DBR mirror and a lower DBR mirror formed on the substrate, sandwiching the cavity region, and a graded-composition layer disposed to contact the current confinement layer, which has an aluminum composition ratio decreasing monotonically as a distance from the current confinement layer increases. The graded-composition layer includes a first region that contacts the current confinement layer and an oxidation stop layer that contacts the first region and that has a change rate of the aluminum composition ratio larger than that of the first region. The graded-composition layer is oxidized from an interface with the current confinement layer to at least a portion of the oxidation stop layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 6, 2011
    Date of Patent: October 30, 2012
    Assignee: Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Yasumasa Kawakita, Hitoshi Shimizu, Takeo Kageyama
  • Publication number: 20120251039
    Abstract: Provided is a laser device comprising a substrate, an active layer, and a current confinement layer. The current confinement layer includes an oxide layer that is formed extending from a edge of the current confinement layer in a parallel plane parallel to a surface of the substrate, toward a center of the current confinement layer along the parallel plane, and that does not have an inflection point between the edge and a tip portion formed closer to the center or has a plurality of inflection points formed between the edge and the tip portion.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 30, 2012
    Publication date: October 4, 2012
    Applicant: FURUKAWA ELECTRIC CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Hitoshi SHIMIZU, Toshihito SUZUKI, Yasumasa KAWAKITA, Keishi TAKAKI
  • Patent number: 8175467
    Abstract: An apparatus, method, system, computer program, and product, each capable of detecting a state of an apparatus. The apparatus includes a plurality of devices. When at least one of the plurality of devices is determined to be in a first state, a second state of at least one of the plurality of devices is determined. When a state of the apparatus is determined to be in the first state, the second state of another apparatus is determined.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 14, 2006
    Date of Patent: May 8, 2012
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hisashi Shoji, Masaichi Sawada, Osamu Satoh, Yasushi Nakazato, Seiji Hoshino, Hitoshi Shimizu, Takenori Oku, Noboru Tsukude
  • Patent number: 8175470
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus is provided. The image forming apparatus includes an acquiring unit that acquires a plurality of types of operation control information of the image forming apparatus that indicate deterioration of a toner in the image forming apparatus or deterioration of a component of the image forming apparatus. An index value calculating unit calculates an index value indicating a state of the image forming apparatus based on the acquired operation control information. An abnormality judging unit judges whether the image forming apparatus abnormality has occurred and predicts an occurrence of a failure that requires maintenance of the image forming apparatus due to deterioration of the toner in the image forming apparatus or deterioration of the component of the image forming apparatus based on the index value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 8, 2012
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Limited
    Inventors: Yasushi Nakazato, Kohji Ue, Osamu Satoh, Masahide Yamashita, Jun Yamane, Hitoshi Shimizu, Shuji Hirai, Takenori Oku
  • Patent number: 8144742
    Abstract: To provide a surface emitting laser device including a substrate; an optical resonator arranged on the substrate, the optical resonator including a lower multilayer reflector and an upper multilayer reflector; a strained active layer arranged in the resonator, the strained active layer having a multiple quantum well structure formed with a quantum well layer and a barrier layer; and a current confinement layer arranged on an upper side of the strained active layer, the current confinement layer including a selectively oxidized portion, where the current confinement layer is arranged at a position where a strain in the selectively oxidized portion influences the strained active layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 10, 2009
    Date of Patent: March 27, 2012
    Assignee: Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hitoshi Shimizu, Takeo Kageyama
  • Publication number: 20120053413
    Abstract: A fluorescent endoscopy apparatus includes an endoscope insertion unit that is inserted into a body cavity and that guides excitation light to illuminate a region to be observed, and an imaging unit that images a fluorescent image by receiving fluorescence that has been output from the region to be observed by illumination with the excitation light and guided by the endoscope insertion unit. Further, the fluorescent endoscopy apparatus includes a facial information detection unit that detects facial information about a person in an imaging image that has been imaged by the imaging unit by receiving light guided by the endoscope insertion unit, and an interlock unit that prohibits illumination with the excitation light when the facial information detection unit has detected the facial information.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 23, 2011
    Publication date: March 1, 2012
    Applicant: FUJIFILM CORPORATION
    Inventors: Koji YOSHIDA, Hitoshi Shimizu, Masayuki Iwasaka
  • Publication number: 20120020383
    Abstract: A surface emitting laser includes lower and upper multilayer mirrors, first-conductivity-type and second-conductivity-type contact layers formed between the lower and the upper multilayer mirrors, an active layer formed between the first-conductivity-type and the second-conductivity-type contact layers, a current confinement layer formed between the second-conductivity-type contact layer and the active layer, and first and second composition gradient layers formed facing each other across the current confinement layer. The first composition gradient layer and the second composition gradient layer are formed such that bandgap energy of each of the layers is monotonically decreased from the current confinement layer to an adjacent layer and approach bandgap energy of the adjacent layer in a growth direction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 21, 2011
    Publication date: January 26, 2012
    Applicant: FURUKAWA ELECTRIC CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Hitoshi SHIMIZU, Yasumasa KAWAKITA
  • Publication number: 20120017842
    Abstract: A measurement object holder that holds a measurement object in an optical measurement instrument, wherein the optical measurement instrument takes, as the measurement object, a living body in which isotropic scattering of light occurs inside and receives light emitted from the measurement object is disclosed. The measurement object holder includes a block that is formed in a predetermined outer shape by a material having optical properties in which the isotropic scattering of light occurs inside; and a cavity portion that is formed inside the block, that has an inner shape following the outer shape of the measurement object and in which the measurement object is accommodated.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 1, 2010
    Publication date: January 26, 2012
    Applicant: FUJIFILM CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yukio Yamada, Hitoshi Shimizu, Takeshi Kimura
  • Publication number: 20120008659
    Abstract: A surface emitting laser includes a cavity region formed on a group-III-V compound substrate, which includes an active layer and a current confinement layer that has an aluminum oxide compound and confines a current path through which a current is injected into the active layer, an upper DBR mirror and a lower DBR mirror formed on the substrate, sandwiching the cavity region, and a graded-composition layer disposed to contact the current confinement layer, which has an aluminum composition ratio decreasing monotonically as a distance from the current confinement layer increases. The graded-composition layer includes a first region that contacts the current confinement layer and an oxidation stop layer that contacts the first region and that has a change rate of the aluminum composition ratio larger than that of the first region. The graded-composition layer is oxidized from an interface with the current confinement layer to at least a portion of the oxidation stop layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 6, 2011
    Publication date: January 12, 2012
    Applicant: FURUKAWA ELECTRIC CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Yasumasa KAWAKITA, Hitoshi SHIMIZU, Takeo KAGEYAMA
  • Publication number: 20110274131
    Abstract: Included are a plurality of surface-emitting laser elements each of which includes a substrate; a lower multilayer reflective mirror and an upper multilayer reflective mirror that are formed on the substrate and are formed from a periodic structure of a high-refractive index layer and a low-refractive index layer; an active layer provided between the lower multilayer reflective mirror and the upper multilayer reflective mirror; a lower contact layer positioned between the active layer and the lower multilayer reflective mirror, and is extended to an outer peripheral side of the upper multilayer reflective mirror; a lower electrode formed on a surface of a portion where the lower contact layer is extended; and an upper electrode for injecting a current to the active layer, wherein the surface-emitting laser elements are electrically connected in series to each other to form a series-connected element array.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 20, 2010
    Publication date: November 10, 2011
    Applicant: FURUKAWA ELECTRIC CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Keishi Takaki, Hirotatsu Ishii, Hitoshi Shimizu, Norihiro Iwai
  • Publication number: 20110261852
    Abstract: A semiconductor laser element includes a first electrode, a second electrode, a first reflecting mirror, a second reflecting mirror, and a resonator. The resonator includes an active layer, a current confinement layer, a first semiconductor layer having a first doping concentration formed at a side opposite to the active layer across the current confinement layer, and a second semiconductor layer having a second doping concentration higher than the first doping concentration formed between the first semiconductor layer and the current confinement layer. The first electrode is provided to contact a part of a surface of the first semiconductor layer. The first semiconductor layer has a diffusion portion into which a component of the first electrode diffuses. The second semiconductor layer contacts the diffusion portion. The second semiconductor layer is positioned at a node of a standing wave at a time of laser oscillation of the semiconductor laser element.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 10, 2009
    Publication date: October 27, 2011
    Applicant: FURUKAWA ELECTRIC CO., LTD
    Inventors: Suguru Imai, Keishi Takaki, Norihiro Iwai, Kinuka Tanabe, Hitoshi Shimizu, Hirotatsu Ishii
  • Publication number: 20110241564
    Abstract: A surface emitting laser is formed of a composition in which bandgap energy of layers from immediately above a current confinement layer to a second conductivity type contact layer is reduced towards the second conductivity type contact layer in a stacking direction, and a composition in which bandgap energy of layers from immediately below the current confinement layer to a first conductivity type contact layer is reduced towards the first conductivity type contact layer in a stacking direction while bypassing a quantum well layer or a quantum dot of an active layer, and includes a second conductivity type cladding layer including a material for reducing the mobility of carriers.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 30, 2011
    Publication date: October 6, 2011
    Applicant: FURUKAWA ELECTRIC CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Hitoshi SHIMIZU, Takeo KAGEYAMA, Keishi TAKAKI, Norihiro IWAI