Patents by Inventor Mitsuteru Kimura
Mitsuteru Kimura 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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Patent number: 10174740Abstract: A wave activated electric power generating system is durable even if exposed to a rainstorm, extremely simple in structure and highly efficient. A motion transfer medium rendering the rotary part of an electric generator less liable to produce slipping and a rotation transform member adapted to rotate while fitting with the motion transfer medium in movement are also provided. The system includes a buoy floating on the sea or lake so as to move up and down with the waves, and an underwater motion restrainer suspended underwater by water resistance, or submerged by its own weight on the sea or lake floor. Vertical movement of the buoy relative to the underwater motion restrainer is converted and transferred by the motion transfer medium in the form of an elongate rope vertically moving under the weight of an element to operate the rotary electric generator securely connected to the buoy.Type: GrantFiled: September 26, 2013Date of Patent: January 8, 2019Assignees: NPO RENEWABLE HYDROGEN NETWORKInventor: Mitsuteru Kimura
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Patent number: 9759613Abstract: Disclosed are a temperature sensor device using a thermopile, the total number n of thermocouples thereon can be increased without greatly increasing the internal resistance of the thermopile r, providing high output level and high S/N ratio, a highly sensitive radiation thermometer using the device, and production method of the device using organic material for thin films to form the thermopile. These provide a standardized inexpensive multi-layered thin film thermopile, a radiation thermometer with high sensitivity, and production method of these devices. The temperature sensor device is a device wherein a thermopile which is formed on a thin film thermally isolated from a substrate is place in a temperature sensing part, and the thin film is formed as a multi-layered thin film, a layered thermopile is formed on each layered thin film, the substrate functioning as a heat sink which is one junction of the reference temperature of the thermopile.Type: GrantFiled: April 26, 2011Date of Patent: September 12, 2017Assignees: HME CO., LTD., TOHOKU GAKUINInventors: Mitsuteru Kimura, Nobuo Tanaka, Hironori Shimobayashi
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Publication number: 20160265506Abstract: A wave activated electric power generating system is durable even if exposed to a rainstorm, extremely simple in structure and highly efficient. A motion transfer medium rendering the rotary part of an electric generator less liable to produce slipping and a rotation transform member adapted to rotate while fitting with the motion transfer medium in movement are also provided. The system includes a buoy floating on the sea or lake so as to move up and down with the waves, and an underwater motion restrainer suspended underwater by water resistance, or submerged by its own weight on the sea or lake floor. Vertical movement of the buoy relative to the underwater motion restrainer is converted and transferred by the motion transfer medium in the form of an elongate rope vertically moving under the weight of an element to operate the rotary electric generator securely connected to the buoy.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 26, 2013Publication date: September 15, 2016Inventor: Mitsuteru KIMURA
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Publication number: 20160103082Abstract: A hydrogen gas sensor element and a hydrogen gas concentration part which has, on a membrane thermally isolated from a substrate, a heater, a temperature sensor and a hydrogen gas absorbing substance are provided in the same microchamber. Hydrogen gas is released from the concentration part and highly concentrated due to heat applied by the heater, and the highly concentrated hydrogen gas is measured by the hydrogen gas sensor element. Because the hydrogen gas absorbing substance exhibits selectivity for hydrogen gas, there is no need for the hydrogen gas sensor element to exhibit selectivity for hydrogen gas. An airflow limiting part is provided in the exit/entrance opening of the microchamber, whereby dilution of hydrogen gas by the entrance of external airflow is prevented. Introduction of the gas to be investigated into the microchamber is performed at predetermined intervals using an introduction means such as a pump.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 22, 2014Publication date: April 14, 2016Inventor: Mitsuteru KIMURA
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Patent number: 9261472Abstract: A specified gas concentration sensor includes a thin film thermally separated from a substrate, which is provided by a heater, a temperature sensor and an absorbing substance of a specified gas, and temperature change accompanied by heat generation while absorbing the specified gas in an ambient gas being capable of measuring by the temperature sensor. The absorbed specified gas is released from the absorbing substance by heating with the heater, and after stopping heating with the heater, the specified gas concentration in the ambient gas is obtained by utilizing an output of the temperature sensor at a time passing a predetermined time which is a thermal time constant of the thin film or longer at which the specified gas is absent from the heater. An optional heat conductive type sensor having no absorbing substance of the specified gas can broaden the measurable range of the specified gas concentration.Type: GrantFiled: September 8, 2011Date of Patent: February 16, 2016Inventor: Mitsuteru Kimura
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Publication number: 20140216127Abstract: In order to basically solve the problem of the change with time of a standard barometric pressure including a vacuum in a standard pressure chamber of a separated type pressure gauge, provided is a separated type pressure gauge in which even if the atmospheric pressure in a standard pressure chamber of the separated type pressure gauge fluctuates due to, for example, the change with the passage of time, a standard barometric pressure in the standard pressure chamber is measured and can be calibrated. In the separated type pressure gauge having a standard pressure chamber, a heat conduction type barometric sensor is equipped in the standard pressure chamber, and the atmospheric pressure in the standard pressure chamber is measured constantly or as necessary to use the measured atmospheric pressure as a standard barometric pressure. The heat conduction type sensor uses a silicon substrate and includes an absolute temperature sensor.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 25, 2012Publication date: August 7, 2014Applicants: MD Innovations Co., Ltd, Purreon Japan Co., LtdInventors: Mitsuteru Kimura, Seiji Ishihara
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Patent number: 8667839Abstract: A heat conduction-type sensor corrects (calibrate) effects of a temperature of a measurement target fluid and a type of the fluid on a measurement value in measurement of a flow velocity, a mass flow, or an atmospheric pressure. Also provided is a thermal flow sensor and a thermal barometric sensor with this correcting function, high sensitivity, simple configuration, and low cost. At least two thin films that are thermally separated from a substrate through the same cavity are provided, one thin film comprises a heater and a temperature sensor, and the other thin film comprises at least one temperature sensor, the temperature sensors being thin-film thermocouples. The thin film is arranged in proximity so that it is heated only through the measurement target fluid by heating of the heater. A calibration circuit calculates and compares quantities concerning heat transfer coefficients of a standard fluid and the unknown measurement target fluid.Type: GrantFiled: January 13, 2012Date of Patent: March 11, 2014Inventor: Mitsuteru Kimura
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Publication number: 20140036953Abstract: Disclosed are a temperature sensor device using a thermopile, the total number n of thermocouples thereon can be increased without greatly increasing the internal resistance of the thermopile r, providing high output level and high S/N ratio, a highly sensitive radiation thermometer using the device, and production method of the device using organic material for thin films to form the thermopile. These provide a standardized inexpensive multi-layered thin film thermopile, a radiation thermometer with high sensitivity, and production method of these devices. The temperature sensor device is a device wherein a thermopile which is formed on a thin film thermally isolated from a substrate is place in a temperature sensing part, and the thin film is formed as a multi-layered thin film, a layered thermopile is formed on each layered thin film, the substrate functioning as a heat sink which is one junction of the reference temperature of the thermopile.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 26, 2011Publication date: February 6, 2014Applicants: HME CO., LTD.Inventors: Mitsuteru Kimura, Nobuo Tanaka, Hironori Shimobayashi
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Publication number: 20130209315Abstract: A specified gas concentration sensor includes a thin film thermally separated from a substrate, which is provided by a heater, a temperature sensor and an absorbing substance of a specified gas, and temperature change accompanied by heat generation while absorbing the specified gas in an ambient gas being capable of measuring by the temperature sensor. The absorbed specified gas is released from the absorbing substance by heating with the heater, and after stopping heating with the heater, the specified gas concentration in the ambient gas is obtained by utilizing an output of the temperature sensor at a time passing a predetermined time which is a thermal time constant of the thin film or longer at which the specified gas is absent from the heater. An optional heat conductive type sensor having no absorbing substance of the specified gas can broaden the measurable range of the specified gas concentration.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 8, 2011Publication date: August 15, 2013Inventor: Mitsuteru Kimura
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Patent number: 8453501Abstract: A heat conduction type barometric sensor has high sensitivity and high accuracy that has simple structure and circuit configuration and can measure a barometric pressure in the range of a very low barometric pressure to ?1 atm using one sensor chip. The sensor includes a cantilever-shaped thin film provided with a thin-film temperature sensor, a heating element, and an excitation element. The excitation element utilizes warpage and bending based on a difference in thermal expansion between two main layers constituting the thin film during intermittent heating by a thin-film heater as the heating element. The two main layers are a silicon layer and a thermally oxidized film of silicon which are significantly different from each other in the coefficient of thermal expansion. A circuit in which the sensitivity is enhanced by the integration of a seebeck current for a predetermined period of time can be also provided.Type: GrantFiled: August 21, 2009Date of Patent: June 4, 2013Inventor: Mitsuteru Kimura
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Publication number: 20120318058Abstract: A heat conduction-type sensor corrects (calibrate) effects of a temperature of a measurement target fluid and a type of the fluid on a measurement value in measurement of a flow velocity, a mass flow, or an atmospheric pressure. Also provided is a thermal flow sensor and a thermal barometric sensor with this correcting function, high sensitivity, simple configuration, and low cost. At least two thin films that are thermally separated from a substrate through the same cavity are provided, one thin film comprises a heater and a temperature sensor, and the other thin film comprises at least one temperature sensor, the temperature sensors being thin-film thermocouples. The thin film is arranged in proximity so that it is heated only through the measurement target fluid by heating of the heater. A calibration circuit calculates and compares quantities concerning heat transfer coefficients of a standard fluid and the unknown measurement target fluid.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 13, 2012Publication date: December 20, 2012Inventor: Mitsuteru Kimura
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Publication number: 20120118060Abstract: A heat conduction type barometric sensor has high sensitivity and high accuracy that has simple structure and circuit configuration and can measure a barometric pressure in the range of a very low barometric pressure to ?1 atm using one sensor chip. The sensor includes a cantilever-shaped thin film provided with a thin-film temperature sensor, a heating element, and an excitation element. The excitation element utilizes warpage and bending based on a difference in thermal expansion between two main layers constituting the thin film during intermittent heating by a thin-film heater as the heating element. The two main layers are a silicon layer and a thermally oxidized film of silicon which are significantly different from each other in the coefficient of thermal expansion. A circuit in which the sensitivity is enhanced by the integration of a seebeck current for a predetermined period of time can be also provided.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 21, 2009Publication date: May 17, 2012Inventor: Mitsuteru Kimura
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Publication number: 20080317087Abstract: To calibrate a thermocouple, a calibrating thermocouple, made of the same thermocouple material as a detecting thermocouple, is used. An absolute thermoelectric power Ero, of the calibrating thermocouple is determined in advance, and the detecting thermocouple is assumed to have the same Ero. An internal resistance rs of the detecting thermocouple is obtained, and a short-circuit current Is is measured with a measured temperature difference ?Ts using an operational amplifier, and the temperature difference ?Ts is calculated. An offset of the operational amplifier is also calibrated. The thermocouples and switches are connected to an inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier, so that the sensors can be selected. Alternatively, these are connected to a non-inverting input terminal, allowing a plurality of the thermocouples to be switched, while a small resistor r is connected to the inverting terminal thereof, to provide an equivalent current detection type thermocouple.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 16, 2006Publication date: December 25, 2008Inventor: Mitsuteru Kimura
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Patent number: 7024094Abstract: A display unit comprising a board (10), a three-primary color-independent optical waveguide (100) arranged and formed on one side thereof, and a transparent electrode (30) and an electrode (40) serving as counter electrodes arranged and formed to sandwich an electric field reaction material (20) formed on one of two optical waveguides constituting the optical waveguide (100) and being transparent to waveguide light, wherein part of the waveguide light is allowed to pass at least the field reaction material (20), and a voltage applied between these counter electrodes changes the shape of the reaction material (20) to scatter the waveguide light and form pixels in to a displayed image, whereby the device is free from a mechanical drive unit, high in reliability, quality, brightness and response speed, low in power consumption and cost, and capable of full color displaying.Type: GrantFiled: February 20, 2003Date of Patent: April 4, 2006Assignee: Japan Science and Technology AgencyInventor: Mitsuteru Kimura
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Publication number: 20050123265Abstract: A display unit comprising a board (10), a three-primary color-independent optical waveguide (100) arranged and formed on one side thereof, and a transparent electrode(30) and an electrode (40) serving as counter electrodes arranged and formed to sandwich an electric field reaction material (20) formed on one of two optical waveguides constituting the optical waveguide (100) and being transparent to waveguide light, wherein part of the waveguide light is allowed to pass at least the field reaction material (20), and a voltage applied between these counter electrodes changes the shape of the reaction material (20) to scatter the waveguide light and form pixels in to a displayed image, whereby the device is free from a mechanical drive unit, high in reliability, quality, brightness and response speed, low in power consumption and cost, and capable of full color displaying.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 20, 2003Publication date: June 9, 2005Inventor: Mitsuteru Kimura
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Patent number: 6851849Abstract: At least one forward-biased semiconductor diode having a potential barrier is used as a temperature sensor whose sensitivity can be finely adjusted. An operational amplifier circuit (A1) is used to apply a bias voltage of DC or rectangular waveform to a semiconductor diode (D) having a potential barrier used as a temperature sensor. In view of the fact that the temperature sensitivity of the semiconductor diode (D) depends on the height of its potential barrier, the forward bias voltage applied from a bias circuit (2) directly to the semiconductor diode (D) is finely adjusted to obtain desired temperature sensitivity. The output voltage of the sensor is associated with a current, having an exponential temperature dependence, which flows in the semiconductor diode (D) with the forward bias being fixed.Type: GrantFiled: January 11, 2001Date of Patent: February 8, 2005Assignee: Japan Science and Technology AgencyInventor: Mitsuteru Kimura
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Publication number: 20030038332Abstract: At least one forward-biased semiconductor diode having a potential barrier is used as a temperature sensor whose sensitivity can be finely adjusted. An operational amplifier circuit (A1) is used to apply a bias voltage of DC or rectangular waveform to a semiconductor diode (D) having a potential barrier used as a temperature sensor. In view of the fact that the temperature sensitivity of the semiconductor diode (D) depends on the height of its potential barrier, the forward bias voltage applied from a bias circuit (2) directly to the semiconductor diode (D) is finely adjusted to obtain desired temperature sensitivity. The output voltage of the sensor is associated with a current, having an exponential temperature dependence, which flows in the semiconductor diode (D) with the forward bias being fixed.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 6, 2002Publication date: February 27, 2003Inventor: Mitsuteru A Kimura
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Patent number: 6353251Abstract: On a Schottky tunnel junction with Schottky metal as a source, an extremely thin and a high density impurities semiconductor layer having a conduction type different from that of a high density impurities semiconductor constituting the base junction is formed, and height and width of this extremely thin high density impurities semiconductor layer are controlled by adjusting a voltage loaded to a MOS gate formed on this tunnel junction section, so that a main portion of the drain current comprises a carrier passing through the barrier because of the tunnel effect and a carrier moving over this barrier. In addition, a CMOS structure is made to prepare a three-dimensionally or three-dimensionally integrated circuit.Type: GrantFiled: November 24, 1998Date of Patent: March 5, 2002Inventor: Mitsuteru Kimura
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Patent number: 6331074Abstract: A thermal analyzer scans temperature by thermally altering a sample and measuring a thermal change based on physical and chemical changes of the sample as a function of time and/or temperature. The thermal analyzer includes a heat-generating section for heating a sample. The heat-generating section includes a first semiconductor substrate of a first conductivity type forming a thin-film heater with a cavity section in a lower section thereof and a second semiconductor substrate of a second conductivity type connected to the first substrate. The cavity section forms a sample holding section for holding the sample. The thermal analyzer further includes a temperature detecting section for detecting a temperature of the sample holding section. The sample holding section and the temperature detecting section are monolithically formed on the thin-film heater or an area proximate the thin-film heater in a thin-film supporting section for supporting the thin-film heater.Type: GrantFiled: January 16, 1998Date of Patent: December 18, 2001Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventor: Mitsuteru Kimura
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Patent number: 6048092Abstract: This invention concerns a noncontacting type thermometer which is improved in sensitivity of detection and accuracy of measurement and meanwhile adapted to prevent a thermistor element itself from self-generation of heat. A pulse voltage generating circuit 15 generates a pulse voltage of a rectangular waveform having a pulse wave height, a pulse width, and a pulse cycle enough to render negligible the effects of the self-generation of heat of a thermistor bolometer element in accordance with the thermal capacity of the thermistor bolometer. A detecting circuit 20 admits the pulse voltage, generates a differential voltage arising from a change in the magnitude of resistance corresponding to the amount of an incident infrared radiation of an infrared radiation detecting thermistor bolometer element RA, and amplifies this differential voltage by means of a differential amplifier 24.Type: GrantFiled: March 25, 1997Date of Patent: April 11, 2000Assignees: Terumo Kabushiki Kaisha, Mitsuteru KimuraInventors: Mitsuteru Kimura, Takeshi Kudo