Patents by Inventor Kenji Umetsu

Kenji Umetsu 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: 8418749
    Abstract: A continuous casting device for steel of the present invention includes a casting mold for casting a molten steel, a submerged entry nozzle, an electromagnetic stirring device, and an electromagnetic brake device. Further, a curved portion which is curved toward the electromagnetic stirring device is formed at least at a position where the curved portion faces the submerged entry nozzle, on each of the long side walls. Moreover, the horizontal distance between a top of the curved portion and the submerged entry nozzle in plan view is equal to or more than 35 mm and less than 50 mm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 4, 2009
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2013
    Assignee: Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corporation
    Inventors: Takehiko Toh, Hideaki Yamamura, Kenji Umetsu
  • Patent number: 8383978
    Abstract: This invention provides a steel pipe material weld zone heating method and apparatus for melting and welding the weld zone of a steel pipe material that during continuous induction heating and welding of moving steel pipe material as the material being heated controls temperature distribution and molten steel shape and weld frequency fluctuation with high accuracy and high efficiency, irrespective of the shape of the heated region of material being heated or the material properties of the material being heated, which comprises a first imaging device, a weld zone temperature distribution computation device, a heating control device, and a variable frequency alternating current power supply device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 22, 2008
    Date of Patent: February 26, 2013
    Assignee: Nippon Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Kazuhiko Fukutani, Kenji Umetsu, Yoshiaki Nakamura, Kazuto Yamamoto, Takashi Miyakawa, Ryuichi Shimada, Tadayuki Kitahara, Takanori Isobe
  • Publication number: 20120312805
    Abstract: The transverse flux induction heating device allows an alternating magnetic field to intersect the sheet face of a conductive sheet which is conveyed in one direction, thereby inductively heating the conductive sheet. The transverse flux induction heating device includes a heating coil disposed such that a coil face faces the sheet face of the conductive sheet; a core around which the heating coil is coiled; and a shielding plate formed of a conductor and disposed between the core and a side end portion in a direction perpendicular to the conveyance direction of the conductive sheet, wherein the shielding plate has a protruded portion, and the side surface of the protruded portion represents a closed loop when viewed from a direction perpendicular to the coil face.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 18, 2011
    Publication date: December 13, 2012
    Inventors: Kenji Umetsu, Tsutomu Ueki, Yasuhiro Mayumi, Toshiya Takechi
  • Publication number: 20120305548
    Abstract: The transverse flux induction heating device is allows an alternating magnetic field to intersect the sheet face of a conductive sheet which is conveyed in one direction, thereby inductively heating the conductive sheet. The transverse flux induction heating device includes a heating coil disposed such that a coil face faces the sheet face of the conductive sheet; a core around which the heating coil is coiled; a shielding plate formed of a conductor and disposed between the core and a side end portion in the direction perpendicular to a conveyance direction of the conductive sheet; and a non-conductive soft magnetic material which is attached to the shielding plate, wherein the shielding plate is interposed between the core and the non-conductive soft magnetic material.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 18, 2011
    Publication date: December 6, 2012
    Applicant: NIPPON STEEL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Kenji Umetsu, Tsutomu Ueki, Yasuhiro Mayumi, Toshiya Takechi
  • Publication number: 20120305547
    Abstract: A control unit of an induction heating unit controls AC power output to a heating coil of a transverse type induction heating unit that allows an alternating magnetic field to intersect a sheet surface of a conductive sheet that is being conveyed to inductively heat the conductive sheet. The control unit includes: a magnetic energy recovery switch that outputs AC power to the heating coil; a frequency setting unit that sets an output frequency in response to at least one of the relative permeability, resistivity, and sheet thickness of the conductive sheet; and a gate control unit that controls a switching operation of the magnetic energy recovery switch on the basis of the output frequency set by the frequency setting unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 22, 2010
    Publication date: December 6, 2012
    Inventors: Kazuhiko Fukutani, Yasuhiro Mayumi, Toshiya Takechi, Kenji Umetsu
  • Publication number: 20110209847
    Abstract: A continuous casting device for steel of the present invention includes a casting mold for casting a molten steel, a submerged entry nozzle, an electromagnetic stirring device, and an electromagnetic brake device. Further, a curved portion which is curved toward the electromagnetic stirring device is formed at least at a position where the curved portion faces the submerged entry nozzle, on each of the long side walls. Moreover, the horizontal distance between a top of the curved portion and the submerged entry nozzle in plan view is equal to or more than 35 mm and less than 50 mm.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 4, 2009
    Publication date: September 1, 2011
    Inventors: Takehiko Toh, Hideaki Yamamura, Kenji Umetsu
  • Publication number: 20100326984
    Abstract: There is provided an induction heating apparatus which continuously heats a steel plate using a solenoid system. The induction heating apparatus (1) includes: at least three heating coils (10A to 10D) disposed along a longitudinal direction of the steel plate to make the steel plate (2) pass through an inside thereof; and inductance adjusters (12A to 12D) disposed on electrical pathways (11) electrically connecting each of the heating coils and a power source applying a voltage to each of the heating coils and capable of generating self-induction and adjusting self-inductance in the self-induction, in which each of the inductance adjusters is disposed to cause a generation of mutual induction at least between the inductance adjusters mutually adjacent to one another.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 12, 2009
    Publication date: December 30, 2010
    Applicants: NIPPON STEEL CORPORATION, FUJI ELECTRIC SYSTEMS CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Hiroaki Mochinaga, Kazunari Ishizaki, Shigenobu Koga, Takaharu Kataoka, Kenji Umetsu, Yasuo Matsunaga, Yasuyuki Ikeda
  • Publication number: 20100258535
    Abstract: This invention provides a steel pipe material weld zone heating method and apparatus for melting and welding the weld zone of a steel pipe material that during continuous induction heating and welding of moving steel pipe material as the material being heated controls temperature distribution and molten steel shape and weld frequency fluctuation with high accuracy and high efficiency, irrespective of the shape of the heated region of material being heated or the material properties of the material being heated, which comprises a first imaging step in which first imaging means 3 installed opposite an end face weld zone of the steel pipe material is used to detect self-emitted light of the weld zone and output a brightness image, a weld zone temperature distribution computation step in which image processing is performed based on the brightness image and emitted light temperature measurement is applied to compute the plate-thickness direction temperature distribution of the weld zone, a heating control step in
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 22, 2008
    Publication date: October 14, 2010
    Inventors: Kazuhiko Fukutani, Kenji Umetsu, Yoshiaki Nakamura, Kazuto Yamamoto, Takashi Miyakawa, Ryuichi Shimada, Tadayuki Kitahara, Takanori Isobe
  • Patent number: 5746268
    Abstract: A method and an apparatus for continuously casting a metal slab made of steel are provided for uniformly circulating molten metal on a meniscus in a mold. The cast metal slab has no surface defect such as a slitting. On the meniscus, the method and apparatus operates to generate electromagnetic stirring thrusts along two long mold sides, these thrusts being opposed to each other. The thrust oriented from a dipping nozzle to the short mold side is made larger than the thrust oriented from the short mold side to the dipping nozzle. A circuit for connecting each coil of a shifting field electromagnetic stirring coil part with a three-phase power supply is symmetric to another circuit with respect to the dipping nozzle. The circuit is divided into two parts along each long mold side. The divided circuit parts are located in parallel but have respective impedances.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 9, 1996
    Date of Patent: May 5, 1998
    Assignee: Nippon Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Keisuke Fujisaki, Kiyoshi Wajima, Kenji Umetsu, Kenzo Sawada, Takatsugu Ueyama, Takehiko Toh, Kensuke Okazawa, Yasushi Okumura
  • Patent number: 5621649
    Abstract: Analysis of an electromagnetic field in a region including an electric conductor having an arbitrary shape is efficiently and accurately performed with a computer. A value of electric potential at a predetermined portion of the electric conductor or a value of the normal component of an electric current density vector to the cross section of a predetermined portion of the electric conductor is used as an initial condition. The distribution of exciting current density vectors in the electric conductor is obtained form the initial condition so as to meet the condition of continuity of electric current. The electromagnetic field of the region is analyzed by using the obtained distribution of exciting current density vectors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 19, 1993
    Date of Patent: April 15, 1997
    Assignee: Nippon Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Keiji Iwata, Hosei Hirano, Takatsugu Ueyama, Kenji Umetsu