Patents by Inventor Katsuhiro Shirota

Katsuhiro Shirota 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: 20050083363
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method and apparatus for ink jet printing enabling a high grade image with the reduced ununiformity of colors to be inexpensively printed. A scan of a print head is executed to apply a reacting liquid to a print medium so that the number of reacting liquid dots impacting a unit area is reduced as the scan moves from a printing start-point of the reacting liquid to a printing end-point. Then, a scan of the print head is executed to apply the coloring inks to the area printed the reacting liquid. Simultaneously, the reacting liquid is applied to an area which precedes by one band the area printed coloring inks. Then, the coloring inks are applied. Simultaneously, the reacting liquid is applied to the area which precedes by one band the area printed coloring inks. An image is formed by repeating the above steps.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 13, 2004
    Publication date: April 21, 2005
    Applicant: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Takuei Ishikawa, Koichiro Nakazawa, Katsuhiro Shirota
  • Patent number: 6860593
    Abstract: An ink which includes a first pigment, a second pigment, a polymer dispersant and an aqueous medium; wherein the first pigment is a self-dispersing pigment having on its surface at least one anionic group bonded to the surface directly or via an atomic group, the second pigment is dispersed in the aqueous medium by the polymer dispersant, and the polymer dispersant contains benzylmethacrylate as a monomer unit. Diffusion of this ink in the printing medium is suppressed in the cross-sectional direction but not horizontal direction. Thus, the ink can form an ink dot that has a proper dot size, uniform and high density in the dot, with little feathering or blur.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 12, 2002
    Date of Patent: March 1, 2005
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Akio Kashiwazaki, Katsuhiro Shirota, Akihiro Mouri, Noribumi Koitabashi, Hitoshi Tsuboi, Yasunori Fujimoto
  • Patent number: 6794427
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is a colorless or pale-colored liquid composition comprising a cationic substance, wherein the liquid composition contains in combination a cationic substance and a nonionic polymeric substance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 19, 1996
    Date of Patent: September 21, 2004
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yutaka Kurabayashi, Keiichi Murai, Katsuhiro Shirota, Katsuhiko Takahashi
  • Patent number: 6729718
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method and apparatus for allowing a high quality image to be recorded with good coloring.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 6, 2002
    Date of Patent: May 4, 2004
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Fumitaka Goto, Katsuhiro Shirota, Koichiro Nakazawa, Masao Kato, Hiroshi Tomioka
  • Patent number: 6686104
    Abstract: Provided is a color filter which comprises a substrate and a resin layer on the substrate, the resin layer containing a plurality of colored portions of different colors and non-colored portions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 4, 2000
    Date of Patent: February 3, 2004
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Shoji Shiba, Hiroshi Sato, Katsuhiro Shirota, Hideto Yokoi, Akio Kashiwazaki, Keiichi Murai, Takeshi Miyazaki
  • Patent number: 6659601
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method and apparatus for allowing a high quality image to be recorded with good coloring, wherein M, D, Ka, tw and t satisfy the relation of t ⪯ ( 10 / 7 × M ⁢   ⁢ D / K ⁢   ⁢ a ) 2 + t ⁢   ⁢ w wherein M (pg/&mgr;m2) is the amount of the water based ink supplied to the recording medium per unit area, D (%) is the concentration of the coloring material of the water based ink, Ka (&mgr;m/msec1/2) is the absorption coefficient of the ink in the recording medium, tw (msec) is
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 6, 2002
    Date of Patent: December 9, 2003
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Fumitaka Goto, Katsuhiro Shirota, Koichiro Nakazawa, Masao Kato, Hiroshi Tomioka
  • Publication number: 20030107631
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method and apparatus for allowing a high quality image to be recorded with good coloring.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 6, 2002
    Publication date: June 12, 2003
    Applicant: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Fumitaka Goto, Katsuhiro Shirota, Koichiro Nakazawa, Masao Kato, Hiroshi Tomioka
  • Patent number: 6547382
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an ink set capable of achieving a further improvement in quality of an image formed on commercial plain paper. The ink set includes a combination of a recording performance improving liquid for improving the recording performance of ink jet ink, and ink jet ink for forming an image on a recording medium by an ink jet recording method, wherein the recording performance improving liquid contains at least cationic resin fine particles, the ink jet ink contains an organic pigment as a colorant, and the difference between the zeta potentials of the recording performance improving liquid and the ink jet ink is 30 mV or more.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 24, 2002
    Date of Patent: April 15, 2003
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Katsuhiro Shirota, Hidemi Kubota
  • Publication number: 20030067525
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method and apparatus for allowing a high quality image to be recorded with good coloring.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 6, 2002
    Publication date: April 10, 2003
    Applicant: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Fumitaka Goto, Katsuhiro Shirota, Koichiro Nakazawa, Masao Kato, Hiroshi Tomioka
  • Patent number: 6540344
    Abstract: An ink which includes a first pigment, a second pigment, a polymer dispersant and an aqueous medium; wherein the first pigment is a self-dispersing pigment having on its surface at least one anionic group bonded to the surface directly or via an atomic group, the second pigment is dispersed in the aqueous medium by the polymer dispersant, and the polymer dispersant contains benzylmethacrylate as a monomer unit, or the polymer dispersant contains benzylmethacrylate as a monomer unit. Diffusion of this ink in the printing medium is suppressed in the cross-sectional direction but not horizontal direction. Thus, the ink can form an ink dot that has a proper dot size, uniform and high density in the dot, with little feathering or blur.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 20, 2001
    Date of Patent: April 1, 2003
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Akio Kashiwazaki, Katsuhiro Shirota, Akihiro Mouri, Noribumi Koitabashi, Hitoshi Tsuboi, Yasunori Fujimoto
  • Patent number: 6533407
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an ink which appropriately spreads on a surface of a recording medium while being suppressed from permeating into the recording medium the thickness direction thereof to form a dot having an appropriate diameter, a high image density in the dot, and excellent outer shape with substantially no feathering, thereby stably forming a high-quality image. The ink includes a self-dispersible pigment having an anionic group or cationic group bound to the surface thereof directly or through another atomic group, a pigment which can be dispersed in an aqueous medium with a polymeric dispersant, and a polymeric dispersant in an aqueous medium. The ink shows one peak in particle diameter's distribution, the peak positioning at the particle diameter of from 50 to 300 nm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 14, 2001
    Date of Patent: March 18, 2003
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Akihiro Mouri, Katsuhiro Shirota, Noribumi Koitabashi, Akio Kashiwazaki
  • Publication number: 20030048342
    Abstract: An ink which comprises a first pigment, a second pigment, a polymer dispersant and an aqueous medium; wherein the first pigment is a self-dispersing pigment having on its surface at least one anionic group bonded to the surface directly or via an atomic group, the second pigment is dispersed in the aqueous medium by the polymer dispersant, and the polymer dispersant contains benzylmethacrylate as a monomer unit, or the polymer dispersant contains benzylmethacrylate as a monomer unit. Diffusion of this ink in the printing medium is suppressed in the cross-sectional direction but not horizontal direction. Thus, the ink can form an ink dot that has a proper dot size, uniform and high density in the dot, with little feathering or blur.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 12, 2002
    Publication date: March 13, 2003
    Applicant: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Akio Kashiwazaki, Katsuhiro Shirota, Akihiro Mouri, Noribumi Koitabashi, Hitoshi Tsuboi, Yasunori Fujimoto
  • Patent number: 6501527
    Abstract: A liquid crystal elemental device comprising a pair of substrates arranged in opposed relation to each other through a spacer and a liquid crystal held in a space between the substrates is produced by applying a spacer-forming material onto one of the pair of substrates by an ink-jet system to form the spacer, arranging the pair of substrates in opposed relation to each other with the spacer held therebetween, and enclosing a liquid crystal compound in the space between the pair of substrates.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 27, 2000
    Date of Patent: December 31, 2002
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Masashi Hirose, Katsuhiro Shirota, Takeshi Miyazaki, Akio Kashiwazaki, Koichiro Nakazawa, Yoshihisa Yamashita
  • Patent number: 6488364
    Abstract: A liquid jet recording method includes applying thermal energy to liquid in a liquid passage to produce film boiling of the liquid to produce a. bubble; permitting the bubble to communicate with ambience; wherein the liquid passage is not blocked in the communicating step.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 13, 2000
    Date of Patent: December 3, 2002
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Kazuhiro Nakajima, Masanori Takenouchi, Toshiharu Inui, Yoshihisa Takizawa, Masashi Miyagawa, Hisao Yaegashi, Katsuhiro Shirota, Norio Ohkuma, Akira Asai
  • Publication number: 20020101472
    Abstract: The present invention provides an ink jet printing apparatus and a preliminary ejecting method. In both a full-line and a serial printer, the amount of ink passing through nozzles of print heads is sometimes decreased below a normal value before and during actual printing, In the printer of present invention, a preliminary ejecting operation is performed taking the opportunity in which the amount of ink passing through nozzles is decreased below a normal value. Then, the amount of ink passing through nozzles recovers to the normal value at an ink ejection after the preliminary ejecting operation. Since only a small amount of ink is ejected through the nozzles during the preliminary ejection operation, dots formed on a print sheet are not noticeable. Further, it is unnecessary to move the print heads to a home position where an ejection recovering process is executed to remove ink having an increase viscosity.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 13, 2001
    Publication date: August 1, 2002
    Inventors: Hitoshi Tsuboi, Katsuhiro Shirota, Noribumi Koitabashi, Yasunori Fujimoto
  • Publication number: 20020077386
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is a colorless or pale-colored liquid composition comprising a cationic substance, wherein the liquid composition contains in combination a cationic substance and a nonionic polymeric substance.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 19, 1996
    Publication date: June 20, 2002
    Inventors: YUTAKA KURABAYASHI, KEIICHI MURAI, KATSUHIRO SHIROTA, KATSUHIKO TAKAHASHI
  • Patent number: 6399257
    Abstract: A color filter manufacturing method comprises the steps of forming, on a substrate, a photosensitive layer that increases or develops hydrophilic property upon irradiation of light; exposing the photosensitive layer to light for patterning to form hydrophilic areas in which hydrophilic property is relatively high and non-hydrophilic areas in which hydrophilic property is lower than the hydrophilic areas; and applying a setting ink to the hydrophilic areas with an ink jet technique, thereby forming colored portions. A color filter includes at least a photosensitive layer formed on a substrate and having hydrophilic areas in which hydrophilic property is increased or developed upon irradiation of light, and colored portions formed on the hydrophilic areas of the photosensitive layer. A liquid crystal device is constructed by using the color filter. The color filter can be manufactured inexpensively with the reduced number of steps while satisfying requisite characteristics.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 3, 2000
    Date of Patent: June 4, 2002
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Katsuhiro Shirota, Akio Kashiwazaki, Koichiro Nakazawa, Masashi Hirose, Mayumi Yokoyama, Yoshihisa Yamashita
  • Patent number: 6391947
    Abstract: An ink for ink-jet recording is provided which contains a coloring material and an aqueous liquid medium for solving or dispersing the coloring material, the liquid medium having a lower critical consolute temperature (Tc) to cause phase separation at a temperature in the range of from 40 to 100° C. Ink-jet recording method and an ink-jet recording apparatus employing the above ink are also provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 14, 1996
    Date of Patent: May 21, 2002
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hiromichi Noguchi, Yuko Suga, Katsuhiro Shirota, Akio Kashiwazaki, Aya Takaide
  • Publication number: 20020041317
    Abstract: An ink which comprises a first pigment, a second pigment, a polymer dispersant and an aqueous medium; wherein the first pigment is a self-dispersing pigment having on its surface at least one anionic group bonded to the surface directly or via an atomic group, the second pigment is dispersed in the aqueous medium by the polymer dispersant, and the polymer dispersant contains benzylmethacrylate as a monomer unit, or the polymer dispersant contains benzylmethacrylate as a monomer unit. Diffusion of this ink in the printing medium is suppressed in the cross-sectional direction but not horizontal direction. Thus, the ink can form an ink dot that has a proper dot size, uniform and high density in the dot, with little feathering or blur.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 20, 2001
    Publication date: April 11, 2002
    Inventors: Akio Kashiwazaki, Katsuhiro Shirota, Akihiro Mouri, Noribumi Koitabashi, Hitoshi Tsuboi, Yasunori Fujimoto
  • Publication number: 20020012035
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an ink which appropriately spreads on a surface of a recording medium while being suppressed from permeating into the recording medium the thickness direction thereof to form a dot having an appropriate diameter, a high image density in the dot, and excellent outer shape with substantially no feathering, thereby stably forming a high-quality image.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 14, 2001
    Publication date: January 31, 2002
    Inventors: Akihiro Mouri, Katsuhiro Shirota, Noribumi Koitabashi, Akio Kashiwazaki