Patents by Inventor Makoto Mizutani

Makoto Mizutani 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: 10046842
    Abstract: An outboard motor mounting structure mounts an outboard motor body on a hull and includes a mounting bracket fixed to the hull, a swivel bracket joined to the mounting bracket to be tiltable around a tilt axis and that supports the outboard motor body, a flexible connector, and a first connector support that supports the flexible connector at a support position in a region adjacent to the mounting bracket. The relative position of the support position with respect to the mounting bracket does not change depending on a tilt angle of the outboard motor body. The flexible connector includes at least one of a wire, an operating cable, and a pipe that connects equipment on the hull and equipment provided in the outboard motor body. The adjacent region is a region defined between an upper surface of the hull and the engine cover and between a lowest point of the engine cover and the tilt axis in a state that the outboard motor body is tilted up at a maximum tilt angle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 9, 2016
    Date of Patent: August 14, 2018
    Assignee: YAMAHA HATSUDOKI KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Makoto Mizutani
  • Patent number: 10018111
    Abstract: An outboard motor includes an outboard motor main body including an engine and a propeller driven by the engine, an upper bracket to attach the outboard motor main body to a hull, and a pair of antivibration mounts. The pair of antivibration mounts are joined to the upper bracket, and sandwich and elastically support a portion of the outboard motor main body from the left and the right of the outboard motor main body. The pair of antivibration mounts are arranged side by side in the left-right direction so that a center of rolling of the outboard motor main body is located between the pair of antivibration mounts in the left-right direction, and are bilaterally asymmetrical to each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 14, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 10, 2018
    Assignee: YAMAHA HATSUDOKI KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Makoto Mizutani, Tomohiro Hagi
  • Publication number: 20180179417
    Abstract: A. polishing agent for chemomechanically polishing a base having a carbon-based material and an insulating material to remove at least a part of the carbon-based material, the carbon-based material having a carbon content of 60 to 95 atm % as measured by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, the polishing agent comprising: an abrasive grain comprising silica; an allylamine-based polymer; and water, wherein a mass ratio of a content of the allylamine-based polymer with respect to a content of the abrasive grain is 0.002 to 0.400, and the abrasive grain has a positive charge in the polishing agent.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 17, 2015
    Publication date: June 28, 2018
    Inventors: Makoto MIZUTANI, Satoyuki NOMURA, Haruaki SAKURAI, Masaya NISHIYAMA, Masayuki HANANO
  • Patent number: 9994295
    Abstract: An outboard motor includes an engine, a cowl, and a tilt mechanism. The cowl accommodates the engine. The tilt mechanism pivots the cowl from a tilt-down position to a tilt-up position about a horizontal tilt axis. The cowl includes a movable portion that moves from a normal position to a contracted position to reduce a contour of the cowl when the cowl is pivoted from the tilt-down position to the tilt-up position by the tilt mechanism.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 7, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 12, 2018
    Assignee: YAMAHA HATSUDOKI KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Makoto Mizutani
  • Publication number: 20180109684
    Abstract: A gateway device that relays between a first communication network and a plurality of communication devices or/and second communication networks, the gateway device including: a plurality of control units configured to respectively notify first data received from the plurality of communication devices or/and second communication networks and notify the plurality of communication devices or/and second communication networks of second data; and a data analysis and management unit configured to analyze data received from the first communication network and notify a control unit included in the plurality of control units of a result of the analysis, the control unit being related to result of the analysis, and analyze the first data received from the plurality of control units respectively and notify the first communication network, the data analysis and management unit generating a plurality of local MAC addresses from a MAC address given to the gateway device and assigning the local MAC addresses to the plural
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 6, 2017
    Publication date: April 19, 2018
    Applicant: NEC Platforms, Ltd.
    Inventor: Makoto MIZUTANI
  • Patent number: 9926061
    Abstract: An outboard motor includes an outboard motor body, a first support mounted on a boat body, a second support that rotatably supports the outboard motor body, a linkage that couples the first support and the second support to each other such that the second support is movable in a vertical direction and rotatable with respect to the first support, a first drive that rotates the second support coupled to the first support through the linkage with respect to the first support while moving the second support in the vertical direction with respect to the first support, and a second drive that rotates the outboard motor body with respect to the second support.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 5, 2017
    Date of Patent: March 27, 2018
    Assignee: YAMAHA HATSUDOKI KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Makoto Mizutani
  • Patent number: 9868500
    Abstract: An outboard motor includes an outboard motor body, a mount mounted on a boat body, and a support member that supports the outboard motor body so as to be steerable with respect to the mount. The support member includes an upper support that surrounds a drive shaft and supports the outboard motor body, a lower support that is spaced below the upper support, surrounds the drive shaft, and supports the outboard motor body, and a coupler that couples the upper support to the lower support.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 5, 2017
    Date of Patent: January 16, 2018
    Assignee: YAMAHA HATSUDOKI KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Makoto Mizutani
  • Publication number: 20180001983
    Abstract: An outboard motor includes an outboard motor body, a mount mounted on a boat body, and a support member that supports the outboard motor body so as to be steerable with respect to the mount. The support member includes an upper support that surrounds a drive shaft and supports the outboard motor body, a lower support that is spaced below the upper support, surrounds the drive shaft, and supports the outboard motor body, and a coupler that couples the upper support to the lower support.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 5, 2017
    Publication date: January 4, 2018
    Inventor: Makoto MIZUTANI
  • Publication number: 20170355432
    Abstract: An outboard motor includes an outboard motor body, a first support mounted on a boat body, a second support that rotatably supports the outboard motor body, a linkage that couples the first support and the second support to each other such that the second support is movable in a vertical direction and rotatable with respect to the first support, a first drive that rotates the second support coupled to the first support through the linkage with respect to the first support while moving the second support in the vertical direction with respect to the first support, and a second drive that rotates the outboard motor body with respect to the second support.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 5, 2017
    Publication date: December 14, 2017
    Inventor: Makoto MIZUTANI
  • Publication number: 20170314461
    Abstract: An outboard motor includes an outboard motor main body including an engine and a propeller driven by the engine, an upper bracket to attach the outboard motor main body to a hull, and a pair of antivibration mounts. The pair of antivibration mounts are joined to the upper bracket, and sandwich and elastically support a portion of the outboard motor main body from the left and the right of the outboard motor main body. The pair of antivibration mounts are arranged side by side in the left-right direction so that a center of rolling of the outboard motor main body is located between the pair of antivibration mounts in the left-right direction, and are bilaterally asymmetrical to each other.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 14, 2017
    Publication date: November 2, 2017
    Inventors: Makoto MIZUTANI, Tomohiro HAGI
  • Publication number: 20170225759
    Abstract: An outboard motor includes an engine, a cowl, and a tilt mechanism. The cowl accommodates the engine. The tilt mechanism pivots the cowl from a tilt-down position to a tilt-up position about a horizontal tilt axis. The cowl includes a movable portion that moves from a normal position to a contracted position to reduce a contour of the cowl when the cowl is pivoted from the tilt-down position to the tilt-up position by the tilt mechanism.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 7, 2017
    Publication date: August 10, 2017
    Inventor: Makoto MIZUTANI
  • Publication number: 20170129577
    Abstract: An outboard motor mounting structure mounts an outboard motor body on a hull and includes a mounting bracket fixed to the hull, a swivel bracket joined to the mounting bracket to be tiltable around a tilt axis and that supports the outboard motor body, a flexible connector, and a first connector support that supports the flexible connector at a support position in a region adjacent to the mounting bracket. The relative position of the support position with respect to the mounting bracket does not change depending on a tilt angle of the outboard motor body. The flexible connector includes at least one of a wire, an operating cable, and a pipe that connects equipment on the hull and equipment provided in the outboard motor body. The adjacent region is a region defined between an upper surface of the hull and the engine cover and between a lowest point of the engine cover and the tilt axis in a state that the outboard motor body is tilted up at a maximum tilt angle.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 9, 2016
    Publication date: May 11, 2017
    Inventor: Makoto MIZUTANI
  • Publication number: 20160318592
    Abstract: A steering system for a vessel includes an electric actuator that generates power to rotate a steering wheel, a transmitting mechanism that transmits a rotation of the electric actuator to the steering wheel, and a power supply controller that supplies electric power to the electric actuator according to an input signal that is not based on a rotation of the steering wheel.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 29, 2016
    Publication date: November 3, 2016
    Inventor: Makoto MIZUTANI
  • Publication number: 20160156785
    Abstract: A gateway device that relays between a first communication network and a plurality of communication devices or/and second communication networks, the gateway device including: a plurality of control units configured to respectively notify first data received from the plurality of communication devices or/and second communication networks and notify the plurality of communication devices or/and second communication networks of second data; and a data analysis and management unit configured to analyze data received from the first communication network and notify a control unit included in the plurality of control units of a result of the analysis, the control unit being related to result of the analysis, and analyze the first data received from the plurality of control units respectively and notify the first communication network, the data analysis and management unit generating a plurality of local MAC addresses from a MAC address given to the gateway device and assigning the local MAC addresses to the plur
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 26, 2015
    Publication date: June 2, 2016
    Inventor: Makoto MIZUTANI
  • Publication number: 20160056436
    Abstract: A lithium ion secondary battery includes a negative electrode primarily containing carbon as an active material, the negative electrode including a negative electrode active material and a coating material formed on the surface of the negative electrode active material, and the coating material is composed of a compound including boron and an alkyl group, and adsorbed on the surface of the negative electrode active material surface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 3, 2013
    Publication date: February 25, 2016
    Applicant: HITACHI, LTD.
    Inventors: Hiroshi HARUNA, Makoto MIZUTANI, Toshio ABE
  • Patent number: 9156535
    Abstract: A vessel propulsion system includes propulsion apparatuses that are turnably mounted on a stern of a hull in an inclined manner such that a turning center line intersects a hull center line, turning actuators that respectively turn the propulsion apparatuses left and right with respect to the hull, a steering device that outputs a steering command, and a control unit that controls the turning actuators individually according to the steering command. The control unit includes a storage unit that stores a reference angle that the turning center line of each propulsion apparatus defines with respect to the hull center line, and a turning command angle computing unit that determines a turning command angle of each propulsion apparatus. The control unit drives each turning actuator based on each turning command angle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 5, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 13, 2015
    Assignee: Yamaha Hatsudoki Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Makoto Mizutani
  • Patent number: 9126667
    Abstract: A marine vessel propulsion control device includes a marine vessel maneuvering pattern storage section that stores a plurality of marine vessel maneuvering patterns corresponding to a plurality of combinations of a propulsion device attached to a marine vessel and an operation device attached to the marine vessel, a selection information storage section that stores selection information that specifies one marine vessel maneuvering pattern selected from the plurality of marine vessel maneuvering patterns, and a control section programmed to read out from the marine vessel maneuvering pattern storage section a marine vessel maneuvering pattern corresponding to selection information stored in the selection information storage section, and to output a command signal to the propulsion device according to an operation signal of the operation device based on the read-out marine vessel maneuvering pattern.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 17, 2013
    Date of Patent: September 8, 2015
    Assignee: Yamaha Hatsudoki Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Makoto Mizutani
  • Patent number: 9079650
    Abstract: An electric steering apparatus for a vessel propulsion apparatus includes a steering motor, a lock clutch, and a rotation stopper mechanism. The steering motor generates a driving force to turn the steering shaft joined to an outboard motor. The lock clutch transmits a driving force from an input shaft to an output shaft when a forward input to transmit a driving force from the steering motor is generated, and shuts off the driving force transmission from the output shaft to the input shaft when a reverse input to transmit a driving force from the steering shaft is generated. The rotation stopper mechanism is configured to switch between a lock state in which the rotation stopper mechanism restricts rotation of the casing and a release state in which the rotation stopper mechanism releases the rotation restriction of the casing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 16, 2014
    Date of Patent: July 14, 2015
    Assignee: Yamaha Hatsudoki Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Morihiko Nanjo, Makoto Mizutani
  • Patent number: 9079651
    Abstract: A marine vessel propulsion system includes multiple propulsion devices, multiple operation levers, and multiple lever position sensors arranged to detect the positions of the multiple operation levers, and a control unit. The control unit is programmed to control, based on detection results from the multiple lever position sensors, the shift states of the respective propulsion devices and to change the steering angle of at least one of the propulsion devices. The control unit may be arranged to change the steering angles of the propulsion devices to facilitate the behavior of the hull corresponding to the shift states of the respective propulsion devices.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 14, 2015
    Assignee: Yamaha Hatsudoki Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yukinori Nose, Toshiya Inai, Yoshiyuki Ichikawa, Makoto Mizutani
  • Patent number: 9067906
    Abstract: The epoxy resin molding material of the invention comprises (A) an epoxy resin and (B) a curing agent, wherein the (B) curing agent contains a polyvalent carboxylic acid condensate. The thermosetting resin composition of the invention comprises (A) an epoxy resin and (B) a curing agent, wherein the viscosity of the (B) curing agent is 1.0-1000 mPa·s at 150° C., as measured with an ICI cone-plate Brookfield viscometer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 17, 2013
    Date of Patent: June 30, 2015
    Assignee: Hitachi Chemical Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hayato Kotani, Naoyuki Urasaki, Makoto Mizutani