Patents by Inventor Kohei Sakurai
Kohei Sakurai 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).
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Publication number: 20100030421Abstract: A vehicle control system which can ensure high reliability, real-time processing, and expandability with a simplified ECU configuration and a low cost by backing up an error through coordination in the entire system without increasing a degree of redundancy of individual controllers beyond the least necessary level. The vehicle control system comprises a sensor controller for taking in sensor signals indicating a status variable of a vehicle and an operation amount applied from a driver, a command controller for generating a control target value based on the sensor signals taken in by the sensor controller, and an actuator controller for receiving the control target value from the command controller and operating an actuator to control the vehicle, those three controller being interconnected via a network.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 7, 2009Publication date: February 4, 2010Applicant: HITACHI, LTD.Inventors: Kentaro YOSHIMURA, Kohei Sakurai, Nobuyasu Kanekawa, Yuichiro Morita, Yoshiaki Takahashi, Kenichi Kurosawa, Toshimichi Minowa, Masatoshi Hoshino, Yasuhiro Nakatsuka, Kotaro Shimamura, Kunihiko Tsunedomi, Shoji Sasaki
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Patent number: 7630807Abstract: A vehicle control system which can ensure high reliability, real-time processing, and expandability with a simplified ECU configuration and a low cost by backing up an error through coordination in the entire system without increasing a degree of redundancy of individual controllers beyond the least necessary level. The vehicle control system comprises a sensor controller for taking in sensor signals indicating a status variable of a vehicle and an operation amount applied from a driver, a command controller for generating a control target value based on the sensor signals taken in by the sensor controller, and an actuator controller for receiving the control target value from the command controller and operating an actuator to control the vehicle, those three controller being interconnected via a network.Type: GrantFiled: March 31, 2005Date of Patent: December 8, 2009Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.Inventors: Kentaro Yoshimura, Kohei Sakurai, Nobuyasu Kanekawa, Yuichiro Morita, Yoshiaki Takahashi, Kenichi Kurosawa, Toshimichi Minowa, Masatoshi Hoshino, Yasuhiro Nakatsuka, Kotaro Shimamura, Kunihiko Tsunedomi, Shoji Sasaki
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Publication number: 20090285107Abstract: The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for monitoring a status of nodes of a communication network. The method determines first node status data at a first node by diagnosing the own status of the first node and the status of at least one second node, sends the first node status data to at least one second node, receives second node status data from at least one second node, and determines node status evaluation data at the first node based on the determined first node status data and the received second node status data. Furthermore, improvements are proposed for the sake of efficiency and/or robustness of the method.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 14, 2009Publication date: November 19, 2009Applicant: Hitachi, Ltd.Inventors: Kohei SAKURAI, Marco Serafini, Neeraj Suri
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Publication number: 20090089627Abstract: There is provided a distributed system having a plurality of nodes connected by a network. Each of the nodes includes: a common-parameter-value determining unit for determining a common-parameter-value from values of a parameter (each value being possessed by a corresponding one of the nodes); a common-operation execution unit for executing a common-operation using, as its input, a value of the parameter or the common-parameter-value; a send/receive unit for exchanging, via the network, the parameter values used for the determination of the common-parameter-value and the results of the common-operation execution with the other nodes; and a fault identification unit that compares the common-operation execution results collected from all the nodes and determines that an error occurs if not all the results are the same.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 20, 2008Publication date: April 2, 2009Inventors: Masahiro Matsubara, Kohei Sakurai, Kotaro Shimamura, Nobuyasu Kanekawa
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Patent number: 7509206Abstract: The microcomputer 1 operates a control signal for controlling the state of an automobile on the basis of an input signal from a sensor. The output driver ICs 2A and 2B include the output driver 22 having power transistors in correspondence to a plurality of channels, the serial communication interface 23 for executing serial communication with the microcomputer, and the timer circuits 20A and 20B for generating a pulse width modulation signal and a pulse signal and are structured as a semiconductor circuit with these units integrated. The timer circuits 20A and 20B, on the basis of a control data signal received from the microcomputer by the serial communication interface 23, generates a pulse width modulation signal and a pulse signal.Type: GrantFiled: March 17, 2004Date of Patent: March 24, 2009Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.Inventors: Kohei Sakurai, Nobuya Kanekawa, Shoji Sasaki
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Publication number: 20090040934Abstract: Mutual node-fault monitoring keeps the values of abnormality counters, which keep track of error occurrences, consistent among all nodes. However, in some cases, the counter values may become inconsistent among the nodes depending on the error situation. In a distributed system having a plurality of nodes connected via a network, each of the plurality of nodes includes: an error monitor unit for monitoring an error in each of the other nodes; a send/receive unit for sending and receiving data for detecting abnormalities in the other nodes, to and from each of the other nodes via the network, thereby exchanging error monitor results; an abnormality determination unit for determining a node abnormality based on the exchanged error monitor results; a counter unit for counting occurrences of the abnormality for the node determined as having the abnormality; and a counter synchronization unit for synchronizing abnormality counter values after exchanging the counter values with each of the other nodes.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 1, 2008Publication date: February 12, 2009Inventors: Masahiro Matsubara, Kohei Sakurai, Kotaro Shimamura
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Patent number: 7480549Abstract: An electrical control unit for an automobile of which standby current is smaller. In an electrical control unit for an automobile having a microcomputer, an input circuit, a driver circuit, and a power supply circuit, which is started by a wake-up signal from the circuit other than the ignition switch even when the ignition switch of the automobile is cut off, the microcomputer is started by shifting the power supply circuit from an inert state to an active state to generate the voltage for operating the microcomputer, and the predetermined processing is executed.Type: GrantFiled: May 23, 2007Date of Patent: January 20, 2009Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.Inventors: Kohei Sakurai, Nobuyasu Kanekawa, Mitsuru Watabe, Shoji Sasaki, Katsuya Oyama
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Publication number: 20080298256Abstract: There is known a method for identifying faults in a distributed system, in which multiple nodes mutually monitor one another and identify faults using two different fault identification conditions and majority voting in order to share information and achieve high reliability fault identification. However, in such configuration, abnormality occurrences are counted irrespective of the abnormality types, and as a result the application cannot grasp accurate and detailed fault situations, and therefore cannot handle faults depending on the fault type. There is provided a distributed system having a plurality of nodes connected via a network.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 29, 2008Publication date: December 4, 2008Inventors: Masahiro Matsubara, Kohei Sakurai
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Patent number: 7409275Abstract: The present invention provides a vehicle diagnostic system comprising an electronic control unit for controlling and monitoring vehicle equipment, a radio communication means for transmitting a vehicle diagnostic information to a telecommunication equipment located outside the vehicle or for communicating between the vehicle and the telecommunication equipment located outside the vehicle and for transmitting a communication diagnostic signal to the electronic control unit and receiving a response signal to the communication diagnostic signal, and a communication line for connecting the electronic control unit and the radio communication means wherein the response signal is utilized to determine if the communication line is properly functional.Type: GrantFiled: January 29, 2007Date of Patent: August 5, 2008Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.Inventors: Kohei Sakurai, Nobuyasu Kanekawa, Minoru Ohsuga, Masatoshi Hoshino, Yoichi Iihoshi, Yutaka Takaku
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Patent number: 7376498Abstract: A vehicle controller which can realize a reduced cost and high reliability at the same time. A control target status signal outputted from a control target is inputted to a monitoring unit. The monitoring unit compares a control command value with the control target status signal to determine whether the control target operates normally as per the control command value. When the monitoring unit determines that the control target does not operate normally, it outputs a failure detected signal to an actuator driving unit.Type: GrantFiled: February 10, 2005Date of Patent: May 20, 2008Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.Inventors: Kohei Sakurai, Nobuyasu Kanekawa, Yuichiro Morita, Kotaro Shimamura, Shoji Sasaki
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Publication number: 20070219671Abstract: An electrical control unit for an automobile of which standby current is smaller. In an electrical control unit for an automobile having a microcomputer, an input circuit, a driver circuit, and a power supply circuit, which is started by a wake-up signal from the circuit other than the ignition switch even when the ignition switch of the automobile is cut off, the microcomputer is started by shifting the power supply circuit from an inert state to an active state to generate the voltage for operating the microcomputer, and the predetermined processing is executed.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 23, 2007Publication date: September 20, 2007Applicant: HITACHI LTD.Inventors: Kohei SAKURAI, Nobuyasu KANEKAWA, Mitsuru Watabe, Shoji SASAKI, Katsuya OYAMA
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Patent number: 7263416Abstract: An electrical control unit for an automobile of which standby current is smaller. In an electrical control unit for an automobile having a microcomputer, an input circuit, a driver circuit, and a power supply circuit, which is started by a wake-up signal from the circuit other than the ignition switch even when the ignition switch of the automobile is cut off, the microcomputer is started by shifting the power supply circuit from an inert state to an active state to generate the voltage for operating the microcomputer, and the predetermined processing is executed.Type: GrantFiled: December 12, 2003Date of Patent: August 28, 2007Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.Inventors: Kohei Sakurai, Nobuyasu Kanekawa, Mitsuru Watabe, Shoji Sasaki, Katsuya Oyama
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Patent number: 7245248Abstract: In an A/D converter and a microcontroller including the same, the number of selection patterns of analog input channels is increased for each A/D conversion and the A/D conversion is conducted using an A/D converter having only fundamental functions without imposing load onto a CPU. The A/D converter or a DMA transfer device includes an A/D conversion table including one or more entries. Each entry includes enable bits for setting whether or not an A/D conversion is executed for the respective analog input channels and a plurality of count number bits for setting a number of executions of the A/D conversion.Type: GrantFiled: August 6, 2004Date of Patent: July 17, 2007Assignee: Renesas Technology Corp.Inventors: Yuichiro Morita, Kohei Sakurai, Nobuyasu Kanekawa, Masatoshi Hoshino, Hiromichi Yamada, Kotaro Shimamura, Satoshi Tanaka, Naoki Yada
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Publication number: 20070124039Abstract: The present invention provides a vehicle diagnostic system comprising an electronic control unit for controlling and monitoring vehicle equipment, a radio communication means for transmitting a vehicle diagnostic information to a telecommunication equipment located outside the vehicle or for communicating between the vehicle and the telecommunication equipment located outside the vehicle and for transmitting a communication diagnostic signal to the electronic control unit and receiving a response signal to the communication diagnostic signal, and a communication line for connecting the electronic control unit and the radio communication means wherein the response signal is utilized to determine if the communication line is properly functional.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 29, 2007Publication date: May 31, 2007Inventors: Kohei Sakurai, Nobuyasu Kanekawa, Minoru Ohsuga, Masatoshi Hoshino, Yoichi Iihoshi, Yutaka Takaku
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Patent number: 7207314Abstract: An engine electronic control unit is inserted through a through hole provided in an intake pipe and mounted in an intake air passage in a direction substantially perpendicularly with respect to a plane of the intake pipe forming the intake air passage. This unit is then secured to the intake pipe using a fixing flange provided at a connector portion. A fixing rail is protruded inside the intake pipe and leading edges of a metal base and a metal cover of the unit are inserted into this rail, thereby securing in position an end opposite to a side of the connector portion of the unit. This realizes an engine electronic control unit offering an outstanding heat radiation performance and vibration resistance, without having to provide special heat radiating parts or without involving an increase in an intake air resistance within the intake air passage. By using such an engine electronic control unit, it is possible to provide a low-cost, compact engine air intake system.Type: GrantFiled: July 1, 2005Date of Patent: April 24, 2007Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.Inventors: Kohei Sakurai, Minoru Ohsuga, Nobuyasu Kanekawa, Masatoshi Hoshino, Atsushi Kanke, Yutaka Nishimura, Mitsuru Watabe, Noriyoshi Urushiwara
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Publication number: 20070076593Abstract: In a vehicle control system in which a large number of ECUs operate in coordination via a network, each node has an intra-network node status determination section, other node's status decision transmitting/other nodes status decision receiving section, and failed-node identification section. The nodes exchange decisions made by the intra-network node status evaluation section with other nodes and thereby identify failed node.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 28, 2006Publication date: April 5, 2007Applicant: Hitachi, Ltd.Inventors: Kohei Sakurai, Yuichiro Morita, Masatoshi Hoshino, Yoshiaki Takahashi, Kenichi Kurosawa, Masahiro Matsubara
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Patent number: 7161264Abstract: A semiconductor device comprises an embedded insulation layer 101 formed on a semiconductor substrate 100, plural power semiconductor elements 2, 3 formed on a semiconductor substrate 100 on the embedded insulation layer, a trench 4 formed on the semiconductor substrate and isolating between the power semiconductor elements, and an isolator 5 insulating and driving control electrodes of the power semiconductor elements, and the power semiconductor elements 2, 3 such as transistors can be used, being connected each other in series.Type: GrantFiled: August 19, 2003Date of Patent: January 9, 2007Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.Inventors: Nobuyasu Kanekawa, Kohei Sakurai, Shoji Sasaki, Kenji Tabuchi, Mittsuru Watabe
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Patent number: 7089097Abstract: A low-cost vehicle control system and a car using the system controls radiation of an actuator driver and thereby reduces the radiation component cost and allows downsizing of an electronic control unit to improve the versatility. The vehicle control system has an electronic control unit, a plurality of actuators and actuator drivers for driving the actuators at the actuator side. The actuator drivers, respectively, have an independent self-diagnosis section, a self-protection section, and a communication control section and are dispersed correspondingly to the actuators.Type: GrantFiled: September 16, 2005Date of Patent: August 8, 2006Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.Inventors: Kohei Sakurai, Nobuyasu Kanekawa, Fumio Murabayashi, Mitsuru Watabe, Toshio Hayashibara
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Patent number: 7047939Abstract: An engine electronic control unit is inserted through a through hole provided in an intake pipe and mounted in an intake air passage in a direction substantially perpendicularly with respect to a plane of the intake pipe forming the intake air passage. This unit is then secured to the intake pipe using a fixing flange provided at a connector portion. A fixing rail is protruded inside the intake pipe and leading edges of a metal base and a metal cover of the unit are inserted into this rail, thereby securing in position an end opposite to a side of the connector portion of the unit.Type: GrantFiled: September 27, 2002Date of Patent: May 23, 2006Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.Inventors: Kohei Sakurai, Minoru Ohsuga, Nobuyasu Kanekawa, Masatoshi Hoshino, Atsushi Kanke, Yutaka Nishimura, Mitsuru Watabe, Noriyoshi Urushiwara
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Publication number: 20060089768Abstract: The present invention provides a vehicle diagnostic system comprising an electronic control unit for controlling and monitoring vehicle equipment, a radio communication means for transmitting a vehicle diagnostic information to a telecommunication equipment located outside the vehicle or for communicating between the vehicle and the telecommunication equipment located outside the vehicle and for transmitting a communication diagnostic signal to the electronic control unit and receiving a response signal to the communication diagnostic signal, and a communication line for connecting the electronic control unit and the radio communication means wherein the response signal is utilized to determine if the communication line is properly functional.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 19, 2005Publication date: April 27, 2006Inventors: Kohei Sakurai, Nobuyasu Kanekawa, Minoru Ohsuga, Masatoshi Hoshino, Yoichi Iihoshi, Yutaka Takaku