Patents by Inventor Kouji Kumada

Kouji Kumada 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: 20150287372
    Abstract: In a liquid crystal display device for performing pause driving, occurrence of flicker is effectively suppressed while an increase in power consumption is suppressed. When an image change determination portion (11) detects an image change in a period from the previous refresh frame until generation of a predetermined number of times of pause frames, a reversal driving control portion (13) sets the next frame after a frame where an image change has been detected to a refresh frame where a reversal driving technique is a column-reversal driving. When the image change determination portion (11) does not detect an image change in the period from the previous refresh frame until generation of the predetermined number of times of pause frames, the reversal driving control portion (13) sets the next frame after the final pause frame to a refresh frame where a reversal driving technique is a dot-reversal driving.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 13, 2013
    Publication date: October 8, 2015
    Applicant: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Tatsuhiko Suyama, Kouji Kumada, Norio Ohmura, Noriyuki Tanaka, Takuya Sone
  • Patent number: 9153044
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display device 10 according to the present invention includes a processing device 12 configured to process an image signal D to be input into a pixel P of a liquid crystal panel 40 configured to provide a display based on light applied from LEDs 54 arranged in a peripheral area R2. The process device 12 includes a receiving section 22, a correction section 24, and a calculation section 28, for example. The calculation section is configured to calculate luminance components to be provided by the respective LEDs 54 to the pixel P based on a distance between each LED 54 and the pixel P, add a total luminance that is a sum of the luminance components to be provided by the LEDs 54 to a predetermined expected luminance to calculate an added luminance, and calculate a correction coefficient HP with respect to the pixel P based on a luminance ratio between the added luminance and the reference luminance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 6, 2015
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Tatsuhiko Suyama, Kouji Kumada, Noriyuki Tanaka
  • Publication number: 20150255028
    Abstract: In a liquid crystal display device for performing pause driving, occurrence of flicker is effectively suppressed while an increase in power consumption is suppressed. A frame in which an image signal is inputted without requesting an external portion to input the image signal is set as a refresh frame by a reversal driving technique deciding portion. A pause frame counting portion counts the number of times of pause frames since the previous refresh frame as a count value. The comparison portion compares the count value with a previously set threshold. As a result, when the count value is not smaller than the threshold, the reversal driving technique deciding portion sets a reversal driving technique in the first input frame to dot-reversal driving. When the count value is smaller than the threshold, the reversal driving technique deciding portion sets a reversal driving technique in the first input frame to column-reversal driving.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 13, 2013
    Publication date: September 10, 2015
    Applicant: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Tatsuhiko Suyama, Kouji Kumada, Norio Ohmura, Noriyuki Tanaka, Takuya Sone
  • Publication number: 20150228239
    Abstract: In a display control circuit (60) of an RAM through type, RGB data generated based on a command conformed to the DSI standard transmitted from a host (1) is supplied to a checksum circuit (33). The checksum circuit (33) obtains a checksum value of the RGB data and determines whether the RGB data is updated or not based on the obtained checksum value. In the case where the RGB data is updated, the RGB data is supplied to a latch circuit (34) and checksum process data indicating that the RGB data is updated is supplied to a timing generator (35), thereby immediately forced-refreshing an image displayed in a display unit (15).
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 1, 2013
    Publication date: August 13, 2015
    Inventors: Noriyuki Tanaka, Kouji Kumada
  • Patent number: 9047845
    Abstract: Provided is a drive circuit including: an image supply section for supplying an image to be displayed on a liquid crystal panel (2); a command issuing section for issuing a command that instructs an image displayed on the liquid crystal panel (2) to be updated; a low-speed oscillation circuit (13) for supplying a low-speed clock signal (L-CLK); a high-speed oscillation circuit (8) for supplying a high-speed clock signal (H-CLK) higher in frequency than the low-speed clock signal (L-CLK); image outputting means for supplying, to the liquid crystal panel (2), the image from the image supplying means, the image outputting means being driven by the high-speed clock signal (H-CLK); and a logic section (10) for controlling, in accordance with the command issued by the command issuing section, whether or not to cause the high-speed oscillation circuit (8) to operate, the logic section (10) being driven by the low-speed clock signal (L-CLK).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 27, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 2, 2015
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Daiji Kitagawa, Kouji Kumada
  • Patent number: 9001015
    Abstract: The liquid crystal display device (1) includes a liquid crystal panel (69) having, for each of pixels (60), a digital memory element (68) for holding an electric potential according to image data and a liquid crystal cell (64) for displaying an image by receiving the electric potential from the digital memory element (68); and a liquid crystal driver circuit (10) having an AC control section (22) for reversing a polarity of an AC voltage applied to the liquid crystal cell (64) on a given cycle and an image transmission control section (21) for issuing instruction on outputting of image data to the liquid crystal panel (69).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 7, 2015
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Daiji Kitagawa, Kouji Kumada
  • Publication number: 20150054863
    Abstract: Provided is a display device capable of suppressing reduction in display quality even when pause drive is performed, while allowing the intensity of a light source to be changed in accordance with images to be displayed. In a liquid crystal display device with the CABC function, 7.5-Hz pause drive is performed. A transition period is provided in which images to be displayed are changed gradually from bright image X to dark image Y. In the transition period, the duration of a sub-transition period is five frames. Once the transition period starts, the duration of a vertical display period changes from eight frames to one frame. That is, 7.5-Hz pause drive switches to 60-Hz normal drive. In this manner, the duration of the vertical display period is set to be less than or equal to the duration of the sub-transition period, so that screen refresh is always performed in each sub-transition period of the transition period.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 15, 2013
    Publication date: February 26, 2015
    Inventors: Noriyuki Tanaka, Kouji Kumada
  • Publication number: 20150029167
    Abstract: Provided is a display device capable of displaying a smooth video even when pause drive is performed. In a liquid crystal display device with an animation function, 12-Hz pause drive is performed with vertical display periods, each having a duration of five frames. In a video display period, an animation video changes every duration of a secondary video display period, i.e., every one frame, in the order: images A to X, then A and B. Once the video display period starts, 12-Hz pause drive switches to 60-Hz normal drive. In this case, for the animation video that changes every duration of the secondary video display period, i.e., every one frame, in the order: images A to X, then A and B, refresh is performed every duration of the vertical display period, i.e., every one frame.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 15, 2013
    Publication date: January 29, 2015
    Inventors: Noriyuki Tanaka, Kouji Kumada
  • Publication number: 20150022506
    Abstract: A display device (1) in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention includes: an LCD driving section (20) and an LCD controller (30) for causing an image based on an image signal to be displayed on an LCD (10); and a CPU (40) for supplying an image signal to the LCD controller (30), the LCD controller (30) being configured to supply, to the CPU (40), a control signal that instructs the CPU (40) to supply an image signal, and the CPU (40) being configured to supply an image signal in a case where the CPU (40) receives a control signal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 18, 2013
    Publication date: January 22, 2015
    Inventors: Kazuki Takahashi, Akizumi Fujioka, Taketoshi Nakano, Toshihiro Yanagi, Kouji Kumada, Noriyuki Tanaka
  • Publication number: 20150009224
    Abstract: An object of the present invention is to provide a display device and a method of driving it, capable of displaying images properly even upon asynchronous input of image data while taking advantages of decreased power consumption implemented by intermission driving. When there is an external input of new image data (image F) in a non-refreshing period in an intermission driving display device which performs intermittent refreshing based on the latest image data that is inputted in and read out from a frame memory, a coercive refreshing is started immediately based on the new image data (image F) (see the sixth frame period). Also, when there is an external input of image data (image G) during a refreshing period for the image F, the ongoing frame period including the refreshing of the image F is completed and immediately thereafter, a coercive refreshing based on the image data (image G) is started (see the ninth frame period).
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 28, 2013
    Publication date: January 8, 2015
    Applicant: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Noriyuki Tanaka, Kouji Kumada
  • Publication number: 20140368484
    Abstract: Provided is a display device capable of switching a refresh rate while suppressing deterioration in display quality and degradation in liquid crystal. In the case of switching the refresh rate from 60 Hz to 7.5 Hz, a transition period for gradually changing the refresh rate from 60 Hz to 7.5 Hz is provided between a 60-Hz period and a 7.5-Hz period. This transition period is configured by sequentially arraying a 30-Hz period, a 20-Hz period, a 15-Hz period, a 12-Hz period and a 10-Hz period from a start point of the transition period. Hence the refresh rate gradually changes from 60 Hz to 7.5 Hz sequentially through 30 Hz, 20 Hz, 15 Hz, 12 Hz and 10 Hz. The number of positive-polarity frames and the number of negative-polarity frames are respectively 20 in the whole of the transition period, and are equal to each other.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 25, 2013
    Publication date: December 18, 2014
    Applicant: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Noriyuki Tanaka, Kouji Kumada
  • Publication number: 20140347453
    Abstract: The purpose of the present invention is to provide a display device in which the occurrence of the crosstalk can be suppressed. A display unit includes a display panel (12), a storage unit (54), a confirmation unit (56), and a correction unit (52). The display panel displays a synthetic image. The storage unit stores respective crosstalk levels set with respect to a plurality of areas (13a, 13b, 13c) that the display panel has. The confirmation unit that confirms in which one of the plurality of areas a pixel exists that displays an image that a viewer is supposed to see, among the plurality of images contained in the synthetic image. The correction unit reads the crosstalk level corresponding to the area, among the plurality of areas, in which the confirmation unit confirms the pixel displaying the image that a viewer is supposed to see exist, from the storage unit, and corrects the gray scale level data of the pixel displaying the image that a viewer is supposed to see, by using the crosstalk level.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 10, 2012
    Publication date: November 27, 2014
    Inventors: Noriyuki Tanaka, Takuya Sone, Kouji Kumada
  • Publication number: 20140340417
    Abstract: The purpose of the present invention is to provide a display device in which the occurrence of crosstalk can be suppressed. A display device (10) includes a display unit and a separation unit (34). The display unit displays a synthetic image formed by dividing each of a plurality of images that are different from one another and arraying the divisional images thus obtained in a predetermined order. The separation unit (34) separates the plurality of images contained in the synthetic image. The display unit includes a storage unit (54) and a correction unit (52). The storage unit (54) stores crosstalk levels set with respect to respective combinations of gray scale level data including gray scale level data of a pixel displaying an image that a viewer is supposed to see, among the plurality of images contained in the synthetic image, and gray scale level data of a pixel serving as a factor that causes crosstalk.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 10, 2012
    Publication date: November 20, 2014
    Inventors: Noriyuki Tanaka, Takuya Sone, Kouji Kumada
  • Publication number: 20140078196
    Abstract: An object of the invention of the present application is to drive data signal lines accurately by pulse width modulation driving and display gradations accurately. A PWM pattern generating circuit (12) generates 2q sets of PWM patterns associated with combinations of a gradation and the polarity of a gradation voltage. A selector (15) selects one PWM pattern from among the 2p+q PWM patterns, based on gradation data and a pattern set number. A charge and discharge control circuit (16) controls a charge and discharge circuit (17) to apply a charge voltage and a discharge voltage to a data signal line in a switching manner, based on the selected PWM pattern. One correction pulse may be selected for each data signal line from among a plurality of types of generated correction pulses, and a charge voltage may be applied to the data signal line based on the correction pulse.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 24, 2012
    Publication date: March 20, 2014
    Applicant: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Kouji Kumada, Noriyuki Tanaka, Tatsuhiko Suyama
  • Patent number: 8669955
    Abstract: Provided is a portable display device sufficiently small to be held with one hand that enters a state for accepting a gesture when a fixed coordinate position near a central portion between a left display unit (14a) and a right display unit (14b) is pressed with a thumb Ftl of one hand holding the device, and accepts a command for performing such as page flipping processing based on a gesture inputted with an index finger Ffr of the other hand. Thus, it is possible to achieve an interface for input operations suitable for a two-screen display screen, where holding a two-screen portable display device naturally causes the device to enter a command accepting state to allow gesture recognition, and to enter a command non-accepting state when the portable display device is not held, in order to prevent a command from being falsely executed due to an unintended contact and such to the display screen.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 19, 2010
    Date of Patent: March 11, 2014
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Masaaki Nishio, Yoshirou Kataoka, Kouji Kumada
  • Publication number: 20140009484
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display device 10 according to the present invention includes a processing device 12 configured to process an image signal D to be input into a pixel P of a liquid crystal panel 40 configured to provide a display based on light applied from LEDs 54 arranged in a peripheral area R2. The process device 12 includes a receiving section 22, a correction section 24, and a calculation section 28, for example. The calculation section is configured to calculate luminance components to be provided by the respective LEDs 54 to the pixel P based on a distance between each LED 54 and the pixel P, add a total luminance that is a sum of the luminance components to be provided by the LEDs 54 to a predetermined expected luminance to calculate an added luminance, and calculate a correction coefficient HP with respect to the pixel P based on a luminance ratio between the added luminance and the reference luminance.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 14, 2012
    Publication date: January 9, 2014
    Applicant: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Tatsuhiko Suyama, Kouji Kumada, Noriyuki Tanaka
  • Patent number: 8405596
    Abstract: The display device includes first and second gate driver circuits. Each gate driver circuit including a shift register and a plurality of amplifier circuits connected to one end of a gate line. The first and second gate driver circuits respectively have only a first and a second non-complementary switch provided in a last stage of their amplifier circuits, where at least one of the first and second switches is an NMOS switch or a PMOS switch. As a result, a display device is provided, which has driver circuits arranged in a well-balanced manner to achieve a left-right symmetrical display area.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 12, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2013
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Kouji Kumada
  • Publication number: 20120313924
    Abstract: Provided is a drive circuit including: an image supply section for supplying an image to be displayed on a liquid crystal panel (2); a command issuing section for issuing a command that instructs an image displayed on the liquid crystal panel (2) to be updated; a low-speed oscillation circuit (13) for supplying a low-speed clock signal (L-CLK); a high-speed oscillation circuit (8) for supplying a high-speed clock signal (H-CLK) higher in frequency than the low-speed clock signal (L-CLK); image outputting means for supplying, to the liquid crystal panel (2), the image from the image supplying means, the image outputting means being driven by the high-speed clock signal (H-CLK); and a logic section (10) for controlling, in accordance with the command issued by the command issuing section, whether or not to cause the high-speed oscillation circuit (8) to operate, the logic section (10) being driven by the low-speed clock signal (L-CLK).
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 27, 2011
    Publication date: December 13, 2012
    Applicant: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Daiji Kitagawa, Kouji Kumada
  • Publication number: 20120306835
    Abstract: The liquid crystal display device (1) includes a liquid crystal panel (69) having, for each of pixels (60), a digital memory element (68) for holding an electric potential according to image data and a liquid crystal cell (64) for displaying an image by receiving the electric potential from the digital memory element (68); and a liquid crystal driver circuit (10) having an AC control section (22) for reversing a polarity of an AC voltage applied to the liquid crystal cell (64) on a given cycle and an image transmission control section (21) for issuing instruction on outputting of image data to the liquid crystal panel (69).
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 15, 2011
    Publication date: December 6, 2012
    Applicant: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Daiji Kitagawa, Kouji Kumada
  • Publication number: 20120182268
    Abstract: A position detection unit divides a plurality of LEDs (23A to 23C) into a plurality of sets, wherein one set includes a plurality of LEDs (23) (LED 23A and LED 23B), and one set includes a single LED (23C) only, for example, and turns on the LEDs on a per-set basis. The position detection unit further determines whether or not the next lighting will occur according to the total number of shadows that were caused by objects that were lit in the first lighting and that were detected by a line sensor unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 21, 2010
    Publication date: July 19, 2012
    Applicant: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Daiji Kitagawa, Kouji Kumada