Patents by Inventor Masahito Watanabe

Masahito Watanabe 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).

  • Apparatus for testing infrared camera
    Patent number: 7418127
    Abstract: An apparatus for testing infrared cameras includes: a front plate which has holes arranged in line, and which is adapted to emit an amount of infrared light; and a back plate which is disposed in parallel to and behind the front plate as viewed from infrared cameras to be tested, and which is adapted to emit a different amount of infrared light when compared with the front plate. The back plate is disposed at lower portions of pillars. On the other hand, the front plate is made vertically movable in front of the back plate and along the pillars. By being controlled by a controller, the front plate is movable from the ground height to a level corresponding to approximately two times the height of the back plate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2003
    Date of Patent: August 26, 2008
    Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Masahito Watanabe, Takayuki Tsuji, Hiroshi Hattori, Nobuharu Nagaoka, Izumi Takatsudo, Masakazu Saka
  • Optical system and imaging system incorporating it
    Publication number: 20080198478
    Abstract: The invention relates to an optical system that is capable of providing a zoom lens having improved image-formation capability with a reduced number of lenses, and fabricating a slim yet high-performance digital or video camera. The optical system comprises a cemented lens having a cementing surface on its optical axis. Air contact surfaces on the light ray entrance and exit sides of the cemented lens G2 are aspheric, and at least one cementing surface in the cemented lens G2 satisfies condition (1). 6.4<|(r/R)| ??(1) Here r is the axial radius of curvature of the cementing surface, and R is the maximum diameter of the cementing surface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 11, 2008
    Publication date: August 21, 2008
    Inventors: Tetsuya Yanai, Masahito Watanabe, Kazuteru Kawamura
  • Imaging system
    Patent number: 7414665
    Abstract: The invention relates to an imaging system in which, while high image quality is maintained with the influence of diffraction minimized, the quantity of light is controlled, and which enables the length of the zoom lens to be cut down. The imaging system comprises a zoom lens comprising a plurality of lens groups G1 and G2 wherein the spacing between individual lens groups is varied to vary a focal length and an aperture stop located in an optical path for limiting at least an axial light beam diameter, and an electronic image pickup device I located on the image side of the zoom lens. The aperture stop has a fixed shape, and a filter S2 for performing light quantity control by varying transmittance is located on an optical axis of a space located at a position different from that of a space in which the aperture stop is located.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 15, 2003
    Date of Patent: August 19, 2008
    Assignee: Olympus Corporation
    Inventors: Masahito Watanabe, Shinichi Mihara, Azusa Noguchi, Toru Miyajima, Yuji Miyauchi
  • Optical system and imaging system incorporating it
    Patent number: 7405889
    Abstract: The invention relates to an optical system that is capable of providing a zoom lens having improved image-formation capability with a reduced number of lenses, and fabricating a slim yet high-performance digital or video camera. The optical system comprises a cemented lens having a cementing surface on its optical axis. Air contact surfaces on the light ray entrance and exit sides of the cemented lens G2 are aspheric, and at least one cementing surface in the cemented lens G2 satisfies condition (1). 6.4<|(r/R)| ??(1) Here r is the axial radius of curvature of the cementing surface, and R is the maximum diameter of the cementing surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 25, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 29, 2008
    Assignee: Olympus Imaging Corp. and Olympus Corporation
    Inventors: Masahito Watanabe, Kazuteru Kawamura
  • Structure for attaching stereoscopic camera in vehicle
    Patent number: 7403709
    Abstract: A structure for attaching a stereoscopic camera to a vehicle, by which a plurality of cameras are attached to a body frame of the vehicle in order to stereoscopically capture images surrounding the vehicle; and the same structure includes a lateral stay for coupling the plurality of cameras with each other; and brackets for fixing the lateral stay or the plurality of cameras on the body frame, which are provided at a plurality of points, spaced from each other, of the lateral stay, or at the plurality of cameras fixed on the lateral stay; wherein the rigidity of at least a part of the brackets is lower than the bending rigidity of the lateral stay.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 4, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 22, 2008
    Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Yasuaki Miyazaki, Hiroshi Hattori, Masahito Watanabe, Nobuharu Nagaoka, Yoshitaka Katashima
  • Zoom lens system and electronic image pickup apparatus using the same
    Patent number: 7403341
    Abstract: A zoom lens system comprising, in order from an object side: a first lens unit comprising two lens components; and a second lens unit comprising one lens component, during zooming, a space between the first lens unit and the second lens unit changing, the first lens unit and the second lens unit having aspherical surfaces, at least one aspherical surface of the first lens unit satisfying the following condition: R1/hl 1.35, wherein R1 denotes a paraxial radius of curvature of the at least one aspherical surface, and hi denotes a length from a first intersection between a chief ray reaching a point of maximum image height on an image surface and the at least one aspherical surface to an optical axis in the wide-angle end at a time when the chief ray enters the zoom lens system with an angle of incidence equal to or larger than 36 degrees.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 12, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 22, 2008
    Assignee: Olympus Imaging Corp.
    Inventors: Masahito Watanabe, Takahiro Amanai
  • Vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus
    Patent number: 7388476
    Abstract: A vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus that extracts a body present in the surroundings of a vehicle as an object, based on an image captured by an infrared imaging device, including a binarized object extraction device that extracts a binarized object from image data obtained by binarizing a gray scale image of the image; a horizontal edge detection device that detects a horizontal edge in the gray scale image; a horizontal edge determination device that determines whether or not the horizontal edge detected by the horizontal edge detection device exists in a prescribed range from the top end or bottom end of the binarized object extracted by the binarized object extraction device; and an object type determination device that determines a type of object based on a determination result of the horizontal edge determination device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 28, 2005
    Date of Patent: June 17, 2008
    Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Nobuharu Nagaoka, Takayuki Tsuji, Masahito Watanabe
  • Image pickup apparatus having image pickup optical system
    Patent number: 7380998
    Abstract: An image pickup apparatus comprising a first lens unit which comprises at least a negative lens element and at least a positive lens element and has negative refractive power, a second lens unit which has positive refractive power, and an optical path bending reflecting optical element which has a variable reflecting surface disposed in an airspace between a most object side lens component of the first lens unit and a most object side lens component of the second lens unit. This image pickup apparatus changes a magnification by moving the second lens unit along an optical axis and corrects a deviation of an image location by varying a shape of the variable reflecting surface of the reflecting optical element.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2007
    Date of Patent: June 3, 2008
    Assignee: Olympus Corporation
    Inventors: Shinichi Mihara, Masahito Watanabe, Tomoyuki Satori, Toyoharu Hanzawa, Shigeru Kato
  • Zoom lens and imaging system using the same
    Publication number: 20080088944
    Abstract: The invention relates to a high-performance, high-zoom-ratio zoom lens that can be much more reduced in terms of thickness upon received at a collapsible lens mount, and an imaging system incorporating the same. The zoom lens comprises a positive first lens group G1, a negative second lens group G2, a positive third lens group G3 and a positive fourth lens group G4. Upon zooming from the wide-angle end to the telephoto end, the first G1, the second G2, the third G3 and the fourth lens group G4 each move such that the air spacing between the first G1 and the second lens group G2 grows wide, the air spacing between the second G2 and the third lens group G3 becomes narrow, and the air spacing between the third G3 and the fourth lens group G4 grows wide.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 16, 2007
    Publication date: April 17, 2008
    Inventor: Masahito Watanabe
  • Electronic imaging apparatus
    Patent number: 7339744
    Abstract: An electronic imaging apparatus includes a zoom optical system having, in order from the object side, a first lens unit with negative power and a second lens unit with positive power, in which lens components having refracting power in the first lens unit are only a single biconcave negative lens element located at the most object-side position and a positive lens component located at the most image-side position; an electronic image sensor placed on the image side of the zoom optical system; and an image processing section electrically processing image data obtained by the electronic image sensor to change the shape thereof. The zoom lens system satisfies the following conditions in focusing of a nearly infinite object point: 0.85<|y07/(fw·tan ?07w)|<0.97 0.75<|y10/(fw·tan ?10w)|<0.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 21, 2006
    Date of Patent: March 4, 2008
    Assignee: Olympus Imaging Corp.
    Inventors: Masashi Hankawa, Eiji Shirota, Kazuteru Kawamura, Masahito Watanabe
  • Process for preparing optically active nitro compounds and cyano compounds
    Patent number: 7332622
    Abstract: A process for preparing optically active nitro compounds and cyano compounds using a metal complex, which is obtained by reaction of an optically active nitrogen-containing compound and a periodic table group VIII metal complex, in the asymmetric Michael reaction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 3, 2004
    Date of Patent: February 19, 2008
    Assignee: Kanto Kaguku Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Masahito Watanabe, Kunihiko Murata, Takao Ikariya
  • Device for monitoring around vehicle
    Patent number: 7330568
    Abstract: A device for monitoring around a vehicle capable of detecting objects present around the vehicle based on an image captured by at least one infrared camera member provided with the vehicle. An area which is inferred to correspond to the pedestrian's head is established as a reference area. Two object areas are established above the reference area so as to correspond to spaces above the shoulders on both sides of the pedestrian's head. An area which corresponds to the head and the shoulders in an infra-red ray image is acknowledged. Another object area which is inferred to correspond to the shoulders and arms of the pedestrian is established. If a distance from an entire pedestrian and a distance from an area which corresponds to the shoulders and arms are equal, it is acknowledged that a binary object including the area which corresponds to the shoulders and arms indicates a pedestrian.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 2004
    Date of Patent: February 12, 2008
    Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Nobuharu Nagaoka, Takayuki Tsuji, Masakazu Saka, Masahito Watanabe
  • Image pickup apparatus having image pickup optical system
    Publication number: 20070258711
    Abstract: An image pickup apparatus comprising a first lens unit which comprises at least a negative lens element and at least a positive lens element and has negative refractive power, a second lens unit which has positive refractive power, and an optical path bending reflecting optical element which has a variable reflecting surface disposed in an airspace between a most object side lens component of the first lens unit and a most object side lens component of the second lens unit. This image pickup apparatus changes a magnification by moving the second lens unit along an optical axis and corrects a deviation of an image location by varying a shape of the variable reflecting surface of the reflecting optical element.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 30, 2007
    Publication date: November 8, 2007
    Applicant: Olympus Corporation
    Inventors: Shinichi Mihara, Masahito Watanabe, Tomoyuki Satori, Toyoharu Hanzawa, Shigeru Kato
  • Electronic image pickup system including a zoom lens and an electronic image pickup device located on an image plane side of the zoom lens
    Patent number: 7289152
    Abstract: The invention makes a suitable selection from zoom modes and lens elements so thin that the thickness of each lens group can reduced, thereby slimming down a zoom lens with great thoroughness and, hence, an electronic image pickup system. The electronic image pickup system a zoom lens and an electronic image pickup device located on the image plane side of the zoom lens. The zoom lens comprises, in order from the object side, a first lens group G1 comprising two lens components and having generally negative power and a second lens group G2 comprising two lens components and having generally positive power. The focal length of the zoom lens can be varied by varying the air separation between the first lens group G1 and the second lens group G2. The zoom lens should satisfy at least one of conditions (a) to (n).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 29, 2006
    Date of Patent: October 30, 2007
    Assignee: Olympus Corporation
    Inventors: Masahito Watanabe, Toru Miyajima, Shinichi Mihara, Yuji Miyauchi, Toshihide Nozawa, Hisashi Goto
  • Process for producing optically active compound
    Patent number: 7268250
    Abstract: A highly efficient process is provided for producing an optically active compound having high optical purity by an asymmetric reaction using as a catalyst a transition metal complex having an optically active nitrogen-containing compound as an asymmetric ligand.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 31, 2003
    Date of Patent: September 11, 2007
    Assignee: Kanto Kagaku Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Masahito Watanabe, Kunihiko Murata, Takao Ikariya
  • Image pickup apparatus having image pickup optical system
    Patent number: 7253834
    Abstract: An image pickup apparatus comprising a first lens unit which comprises at least a negative lens element and at least a positive lens element and has negative refractive power, a second lens unit which has positive refractive power, and an optical path bending reflecting optical element which has a variable reflecting surface disposed in an airspace between a most object side lens component of the first lens unit and a most object side lens component of the second lens unit. This image pickup apparatus changes a magnification by moving the second lens unit along an optical axis and corrects a deviation of an image location by varying a shape of the variable reflecting surface of the reflecting optical element.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 20, 2002
    Date of Patent: August 7, 2007
    Assignee: Olympus Corporation
    Inventors: Shinichi Mihara, Masahito Watanabe, Tomoyuki Satori, Toyoharu Hanzawa, Shigeru Kato
  • Zoom lens system and electronic image pickup apparatus using the same
    Publication number: 20070121217
    Abstract: A zoom lens system comprising, in order from an object side, a first lens unit having a negative refractive power, a second lens unit having a positive refractive power and a third lens unit having a positive refractive power, wherein during zooming from a wide-angle end to a telephoto end, a space between the first lens unit and the second lens unit narrows, at least the second unit move only toward the object side, and the third lens unit G3 is constituted of one positive lens.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 21, 2006
    Publication date: May 31, 2007
    Inventors: Kouki Hozumi, Takahiro Amanai, Toru Miyajima, Masahito Watanabe, Masashi Hankawa, Kazuya Nishimura
  • Image analysis device
    Patent number: 7221777
    Abstract: An image analysis device installed on a vehicle for detecting objects that are likely to affect the vehicle. An image processing unit included in the image analysis device sets a seeking area in a left-hand image of the field, and calculates a moving increment for seeking “Step” using a variable “n”. A correlation calculation process is sequentially executed in the seeking area set in the left-hand image of the field while moving a reference image stepwise at the moving increment “Step” so as to obtain a correlation area that gives the highest degree of correlation, and then a new seeking area is set, which consists of the correlation area and horizontally arranged two areas that sandwich the correlation area, and the moving increment “Step” is decreased in order to reduce the amount of calculation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 27, 2003
    Date of Patent: May 22, 2007
    Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Nobuharu Nagaoka, Masahito Watanabe, Takayui Tsuji, Hiroshi Hattori, Izumi Takatsudo
  • Zoom lens system and image pickup apparatus using the same
    Publication number: 20070103791
    Abstract: A three-unit zoom lens system comprising, in order from an object side, a first lens unit having a negative refractive power; a second lens unit having a positive refractive power; and a third lens unit having a positive or negative refractive power, wherein during magnification change from a wide-angle end to a telephoto end, a space between the first lens unit and the second lens unit narrows, the second lens unit and the third lens unit move toward the only object side, and a space between the second lens unit and the third lens unit changes during a focusing operation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 7, 2006
    Publication date: May 10, 2007
    Inventors: Masashi Hankawa, Masahito Watanabe, Kouki Hozumi, Kazuya Nishimura, Takahiro Amanai, Toru Miyajima
  • Electronic image pickup system
    Patent number: 7212242
    Abstract: The invention makes a suitable selection from zoom modes and lens elements so thin that the thickness of each lens group can reduced, thereby slimming down a zoom lens with great thoroughness and, hence, an electronic image pickup system. The electronic image pickup system a zoom lens and an electronic image pickup device located on the image plane side of the zoom lens. The zoom lens comprises, in order from the object side, a first lens group G1 comprising two lens components and having generally negative power and a second lens group G2 comprising two lens components and having generally positive power. The focal length of the zoom lens can be varied by varying the air separation between the first lens group G1 and the second lens group G2. The zoom lens should satisfy at least one of conditions (a) to (n).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 3, 2002
    Date of Patent: May 1, 2007
    Assignee: Olympus Corporation
    Inventors: Masahito Watanabe, Toru Miyajima, Shinichi Mihara, Yuji Miyauchi, Toshihide Nozawa, Hisashi Goto