Patents by Inventor Kazutoshi Usui

Kazutoshi Usui 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: 20240053572
    Abstract: To provide a small-sized voice coil motor, the voice coil motor includes a first yoke and a second yoke each having a length in a first direction, a third yoke that has a length in the first direction and is disposed between the first yoke and the second yoke, a first magnet disposed on the first yoke, a second magnet disposed on the second yoke, and a coil that is penetrated by the third yoke and is movable in the first direction by magnetic forces of the first magnet and the second magnet, wherein the coil includes a first section in which a winding wire is linearly wound and a second section in which the wiring wire is wound in an arc shape.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 20, 2021
    Publication date: February 15, 2024
    Applicant: NIKON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Azusa MUTO, Kazutoshi USUI
  • Patent number: 8259183
    Abstract: The invention includes a vibration reduction mechanism, a vibration detecting part, a reference signal generating part, a target drive position calculating part, and a driving part. The vibration reduction mechanism reduces a vibration of a subject image. The vibration detecting part outputs a vibration detection signal. The reference signal generating part estimates a reference signal of the vibration detection part. The target drive position calculating part obtains a vibration component from a difference between the vibration detection signal and the estimated reference signal to obtain a target position to which the vibration reduction mechanism is driven. The driving part controls the vibration reduction mechanism to follow the target position. Particularly, the reference signal generating part corrects the reference signal according to a motion signal obtained from a captured image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 4, 2012
    Assignee: Nikon Corporation
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Tomita, Kazutoshi Usui, Tsuyoshi Matsumoto
  • Patent number: 8036519
    Abstract: A motion compensation device comprising, a detector to detect a vibration of an imaging device which takes an image, a controller to control a compensation amount of an influence of said vibration based on an output of said detector, said controller increasing said compensation amount according to lapse of shooting time of said imaging device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 28, 2008
    Date of Patent: October 11, 2011
    Assignee: Nikon Corporation
    Inventor: Kazutoshi Usui
  • Publication number: 20110169973
    Abstract: The invention includes a vibration reduction mechanism, a vibration detecting part, a reference signal generating part, a target drive position calculating part, and a driving part. The vibration reduction mechanism reduces a vibration of a subject image. The vibration detecting part outputs a vibration detection signal. The reference signal generating part estimates a reference signal of the vibration detection part. The target drive position calculating part obtains a vibration component from a difference between the vibration detection signal and the estimated reference signal to obtain a target position to which the vibration reduction mechanism is driven. The driving part controls the vibration reduction mechanism to follow the target position. Particularly, the reference signal generating part corrects the reference signal according to a motion signal obtained from a captured image.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 18, 2011
    Publication date: July 14, 2011
    Applicant: NIKON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Tomita, Kazutoshi Usui, Tsuyoshi Matsumoto
  • Patent number: 7932926
    Abstract: The invention includes a vibration reduction mechanism, a vibration detecting part, a reference signal generating part, a target drive position calculating part, and a driving part. The vibration reduction mechanism reduces a vibration of a subject image. The vibration detecting part outputs a vibration detection signal. The reference signal generating part estimates a reference signal of the vibration detection part. The target drive position calculating part obtains a vibration component from a difference between the vibration detection signal and the estimated reference signal to obtain a target position to which the vibration reduction mechanism is driven. The driving part controls the vibration reduction mechanism to follow the target position. Particularly, the reference signal generating part corrects the reference signal according to a motion signal obtained from a captured image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 14, 2009
    Date of Patent: April 26, 2011
    Assignee: Nikon Corporation
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Tomita, Kazutoshi Usui, Tsuyoshi Matsumoto
  • Publication number: 20110032615
    Abstract: This object aims to provide a lens barrel that can realize suitable imaging. A lens barrel (100) is characterized in including an imaging optical system (102, 104) having a second optical system (102) that is relatively movable against a first optical system (104) and a driving unit (113) for driving the second optical system (102) relatively to the first optical system (104) so that an aberration of the imaging optical system (102, 104) can be reduced.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 19, 2010
    Publication date: February 10, 2011
    Applicant: NIKON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Kazutoshi USUI, Takeshi SUZUKI, Nobutaka HIRAMA
  • Patent number: 7760237
    Abstract: An imaging device according to the present invention includes: an image-capturing optical system forming an image of a subject on a surface of an image sensor; a blur-detecting unit detecting a blur of an optical axis in the image-capturing optical system; an image-capturing unit which divides a total exposure time by a predetermined dividing number to repeat image capturing, and generates a number of images corresponding to the dividing number; and a composing unit which finds a motion vector based on the images in the dividing number generated by the image-capturing unit and on the blur detected by the blur-detecting unit and composes the generated images in the dividing number based on the motion vector. Therefore, it is possible to precisely correct a blur while shortening the time required for the blur correction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 20, 2010
    Assignee: Nikon Corporation
    Inventor: Kazutoshi Usui
  • Patent number: 7711253
    Abstract: A blur correction camera system includes a blur correction lens driven based upon the vibration detection signal detected by an angular velocity sensor, that corrects an image blur, a point-image function computing unit that computes a point spread function, and an image restoration computing unit that corrects an image blur by executing image restoration through image processing on a captured image by using the point spread function. The image blur that cannot be completely corrected by the blur correction lens is further corrected through image restoration so as to obtain a high quality image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 25, 2003
    Date of Patent: May 4, 2010
    Assignee: Nikon Corporation
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Tomita, Kazutoshi Usui, Kenichi Kitano, Yoshiko Ono
  • Patent number: 7675546
    Abstract: An imaging device photoelectrically converts a subject image to generate image data. The imaging device has a function of selectively performing two types of image vibration correction processings on this image data. The imaging device makes a selection/switching between the image vibration correction processings in accordance with a determination of an exposure period required to shoot the image data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2005
    Date of Patent: March 9, 2010
    Assignee: Nikon Corporation
    Inventor: Kazutoshi Usui
  • Publication number: 20100033583
    Abstract: The invention includes a vibration reduction mechanism, a vibration detecting part, a reference signal generating part, a target drive position calculating part, and a driving part. The vibration reduction mechanism reduces a vibration of a subject image. The vibration detecting part outputs a vibration detection signal. The reference signal generating part estimates a reference signal of the vibration detection part. The target drive position calculating part obtains a vibration component from a difference between the vibration detection signal and the estimated reference signal to obtain a target position to which the vibration reduction mechanism is driven. The driving part controls the vibration reduction mechanism to follow the target position. Particularly, the reference signal generating part corrects the reference signal according to a motion signal obtained from a captured image.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 14, 2009
    Publication date: February 11, 2010
    Applicant: Nikon Corporation
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Tomita, Kazutoshi Usui, Tsuyoshi Matsumoto
  • Patent number: 7596307
    Abstract: A blur correction camera system includes a blur correction lens driven based upon the vibration detection signal detected by an angular velocity sensor, that corrects an image blur, a point-image function computing unit that computes a point spread function, and an image restoration computing unit that corrects an image blur by executing image restoration through image processing on a captured image by using the point spread function. The image blur that cannot be completely corrected by the blur correction lens is further corrected through image restoration so as to obtain a high quality image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 12, 2008
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2009
    Assignee: Nikon Corporation
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Tomita, Kazutoshi Usui, Kenichi Kitano, Yoshiko Ono
  • Patent number: 7443422
    Abstract: When a photographing apparatus that is in a photographing enabled state but, at the same time, in a blur correction disabled state, is expected to be subjected to a shock, e.g., when an flash device in the photographing apparatus is about to be deployed, a blur correcting optical system is held at a constant position over a necessary length of time. In addition, at the start of a photographing operation, the blur correcting optical system is moved to a position at which the optical axis of the photographic optical system and the optical axis of the blur correcting optical system are substantially aligned with each other and the blur correcting optical system is held at the position. As a result, it becomes possible to dispense with a lock mechanism for holding the blur correcting lens and, at the same time, power consumption is reduced.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2003
    Date of Patent: October 28, 2008
    Assignee: Nikon Corporation
    Inventor: Kazutoshi Usui
  • Publication number: 20080240695
    Abstract: A motion compensation device comprising, a detector to detect a vibration of an imaging device which takes an image, a controller to control a compensation amount of an influence of said vibration based on an output of said detector, said controller increasing said compensation amount according to lapse of shooting time of said imaging device.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 28, 2008
    Publication date: October 2, 2008
    Applicant: NIKON Corporation
    Inventor: Kazutoshi USUI
  • Publication number: 20080175574
    Abstract: A blur correction camera system includes a blur correction lens driven based upon the vibration detection signal detected by an angular velocity sensor, that corrects an image blur, a point-image function computing unit that computes a point spread function, and an image restoration computing unit that corrects an image blur by executing image restoration through image processing on a captured image by using the point spread function. The image blur that cannot be completely corrected by the blur correction lens is further corrected through image restoration so as to obtain a high quality image.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 12, 2008
    Publication date: July 24, 2008
    Applicant: NIKON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Tomita, Kazutoshi Usui, Kenichi Kitano, Yoshiko Ono
  • Publication number: 20070253732
    Abstract: An imaging device photoelectrically converts a subject image to generate image data. The imaging device has a function of selectively performing two types of image vibration correction processings on this image data. The imaging device makes a selection/switching between the image vibration correction processings in accordance with a determination of an exposure period required to shoot the image data.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 14, 2005
    Publication date: November 1, 2007
    Applicant: NIKON CORPORATION
    Inventor: Kazutoshi Usui
  • Patent number: 7161621
    Abstract: An image-capturing device includes: an image-capturing element that converts light to an electrical signal; a photographic lens member that condenses subject light at the image-capturing element; a board on which the image-capturing element is mounted; and an elastic member having one end thereof secured to the photographic lens member and another end thereof secured to the board.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 31, 2001
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2007
    Assignee: Nikon Corporation
    Inventors: Tadao Kai, Kazutoshi Usui
  • Publication number: 20060110147
    Abstract: A blur correction camera system includes a blur correction lens driven based upon the vibration detection signal detected by an angular velocity sensor, that corrects an image blur, a point-image function computing unit that computes a point spread function, and an image restoration computing unit that corrects an image blur by executing image restoration through image processing on a captured image by using the point spread function. The image blur that cannot be completely corrected by the blur correction lens is further corrected through image restoration so as to obtain a high quality image.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 25, 2003
    Publication date: May 25, 2006
    Applicant: NIKON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Tomita, Kazutoshi Usui, Kenichi Kitano, Yoshiko Ono
  • Publication number: 20060028554
    Abstract: An imaging device according to the present invention includes: an image-capturing optical system forming an image of a subject on a surface of an image sensor; a blur-detecting unit detecting a blur of an optical axis in the image-capturing optical system; an image-capturing unit which divides a total exposure time by a predetermined dividing number to repeat image capturing, and generates a number of images corresponding to the dividing number; and a composing unit which finds a motion vector based on the images in the dividing number generated by the image-capturing unit and on the blur detected by the blur-detecting unit and composes the generated images in the dividing number based on the motion vector. Therefore, it is possible to precisely correct a blur while shortening the time required for the blur correction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 29, 2005
    Publication date: February 9, 2006
    Applicant: NIKON CORPORATION
    Inventor: Kazutoshi Usui
  • Publication number: 20050128309
    Abstract: The invention includes a vibration reduction mechanism, a vibration detecting part, a reference signal generating part, a target drive position calculating part, and a driving part. The vibration reduction mechanism reduces a vibration of a subject image. The vibration detecting part outputs a vibration detection signal. The reference signal generating part estimates a reference signal of the vibration detection part. The target drive position calculating part obtains a vibration component from a difference between the vibration detection signal and the estimated reference signal to obtain a target position to which the vibration reduction mechanism is driven. The driving part controls the vibration reduction mechanism to follow the target position. Particularly, the reference signal generating part corrects the reference signal according to a motion signal obtained from a captured image.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 19, 2005
    Publication date: June 16, 2005
    Applicant: Nikon Corporation
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Tomita, Kazutoshi Usui, Tsuyoshi Matsumoto
  • Publication number: 20050018051
    Abstract: The invention includes a vibration reduction mechanism, a vibration detecting part, a reference signal generating part, a target drive position calculating part, and a driving part. The vibration reduction mechanism reduces a vibration of a subject image. The vibration detecting part outputs a vibration detection signal. The reference signal generating part estimates a reference signal of the vibration detection part. The target drive position calculating part obtains a vibration component from a difference between the vibration detection signal and the estimated reference signal to obtain a target position to which the vibration reduction mechanism is driven. The driving part controls the vibration reduction mechanism to follow the target position. Particularly, the reference signal generating part corrects the reference signal according to a motion signal obtained from a captured image.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 19, 2004
    Publication date: January 27, 2005
    Applicant: NIKON CORPORATION
    Inventors: HIroyuki Tomita, Kazutoshi Usui, Tsuyoshi Matsumoto