Patents by Inventor Naoko Sawatari

Naoko Sawatari 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: 8139189
    Abstract: A main object of the present invention is to provide a liquid crystal display, using a ferroelectric liquid crystal exhibiting mono-stability, which makes it possible to control the direction of the spontaneous polarization of the ferroelectric liquid crystal. The liquid crystal display is produced by holding a ferroelectric liquid crystal between: an oblique vapor deposition-alignment layer of a first alignment treatment substrate, in which a first electrode layer and the oblique vapor deposition-alignment layer are formed in this order on a first substrate; and a fixed liquid crystal layer of a second alignment treatment substrate, in which a second electrode layer, an alignment layer for reactive liquid crystal and the fixed liquid crystal layer are laminated in this order on the second substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 20, 2012
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Naoko Sawatari, Masato Okabe
  • Patent number: 8130358
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display, using a ferroelectric liquid crystal exhibiting mono-stability, which makes it possible to control the direction of the spontaneous polarization of the ferroelectric liquid crystal. The liquid crystal display includes: a first alignment treatment substrate having a first alignment layer which is a rubbed layer; a second alignment treatment substrate having a second alignment layer which is a photo alignment layer using a photo-dimerization type material; and a liquid crystal layer containing a ferroelectric liquid crystal and held between the first alignment treatment substrate and the second alignment treatment substrate. The ferroelectric liquid crystal exhibits mono-stability, and when a negative voltage is applied to a second electrode layer of the second alignment treatment substrate, a molecular direction of the ferroelectric liquid crystal is changed by about 2 times a tilt angle of the ferroelectric liquid crystal parallel to a surface of the substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 19, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 6, 2012
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Naoko Sawatari, Masato Okabe
  • Patent number: 8009266
    Abstract: A process for producing a liquid crystal display having less alignment defects, which seldom causes aligning disorder at the boundary where ferroelectric liquid crystals allowed to flow are brought into contact with each other when the ferroelectric liquid crystals are coated on the substrate flow. The process includes a first alignment layer formation step and a liquid crystal coating step. The liquid crystal coating step is a step of linearly coating the ferroelectric liquid crystals on a first alignment layer of a liquid crystal side substrate in a direction substantially perpendicular or substantially parallel to the alignment treatment direction conducted in the first alignment layer formation step.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 14, 2007
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2011
    Assignee: DAI Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Naoko Sawatari, Masato Okabe
  • Patent number: 7911562
    Abstract: To provide a liquid crystal display, in which substrates are strongly fixed with an even cell gap to exhibit an excellent display quality. The liquid crystal display includes a spacer side substrate and a counter substrate in which the spacer side substrate and the counter substrate oppose a first alignment layer and a second alignment layer to each other; and in which a liquid crystal layer having a liquid crystal material are held between the spacer side substrate and the counter substrate. Additionally, a reactive alignment layer having a curable resin is formed on at least one of the first alignment layer and the second alignment layer, and the spacer side substrate and the counter substrate are bonded to each other with the reactive alignment layer interposed therebetween.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 19, 2006
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2011
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Masato Okabe, Naoko Sawatari, Makoto Ishikawa
  • Patent number: 7907247
    Abstract: To provide a liquid crystal display, using a ferroelectric liquid crystal exhibiting mono-stability, which makes it possible to control the direction of the spontaneous polarization of the ferroelectric liquid crystal. The liquid crystal display includes a first alignment treatment substrate and a second alignment treatment substrate in which the first alignment treatment substrate and the second alignment treatment substrate have the first alignment layer and a reactive liquid crystal layer that face each other; and in which a ferroelectric liquid crystal is held between the first alignment layer and the reactive liquid crystal layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 18, 2006
    Date of Patent: March 15, 2011
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Masato Okabe, Naoko Sawatari, Hideo Hama
  • Patent number: 7867580
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display which can give mono-domain alignment of the ferroelectric liquid crystal without forming alignment defects. The liquid crystal display has a UV curable liquid crystal side substrate having a first substrate, an electrode layer formed on the first substrate, a first alignment layer formed on the electrode layer, and a UV curable liquid crystal layer with a UV curable liquid crystal fixed and formed on the first alignment layer; and a counter substrate having a second substrate, an electrode layer formed on the second substrate, and a second alignment layer formed on the electrode layer. The UV curable liquid crystal layer of the UV curable liquid crystal side substrate and the second alignment layer of the counter substrate are disposed so as to face each other such that a ferroelectric liquid crystal is sandwiched between the UV curable liquid crystal side substrate and the counter substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 9, 2005
    Date of Patent: January 11, 2011
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Naoko Sawatari, Masato Okabe
  • Patent number: 7777847
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display including two alignment substrates, each having, in this order, a substrate, an electrode layer and an alignment layer, with a ferroelectric liquid crystal interposed therebetween. At least one of the two alignment layers is a columnar alignment layer having a column structure with plate-like molecules laminated with the normal directions of the plate-like molecules aligned in a certain direction of the substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 9, 2005
    Date of Patent: August 17, 2010
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Masato Okabe, Naoko Sawatari, Makoto Ishikawa
  • Publication number: 20100060844
    Abstract: A process for producing a liquid crystal display having less alignment defects, which seldom causes aligning disorder at the boundary where ferroelectric liquid crystals allowed to flow are brought into contact with each other when the ferroelectric liquid crystals are coated on the substrate flow. The process includes a first alignment layer formation step and a liquid crystal coating step. The liquid crystal coating step is a step of linearly coating the ferroelectric liquid crystals on a first alignment layer of a liquid crystal side substrate in a direction substantially perpendicular or substantially parallel to the alignment treatment direction conducted in the first alignment layer formation step.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 14, 2007
    Publication date: March 11, 2010
    Inventors: Naoko Sawatari, Masato Okabe
  • Publication number: 20100053525
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display, using a ferroelectric liquid crystal exhibiting mono-stability, which makes it possible to control the direction of the spontaneous polarization of the ferroelectric liquid crystal. The liquid crystal display includes: a first alignment treatment substrate having a first alignment layer which is a rubbed layer; a second alignment treatment substrate having a second alignment layer which is a photo alignment layer using a photo-dimerization type material; and a liquid crystal layer containing a ferroelectric liquid crystal and held between the first alignment treatment substrate and the second alignment treatment substrate. The ferroelectric liquid crystal exhibits mono-stability, and when a negative voltage is applied to a second electrode layer of the second alignment treatment substrate, a molecular direction of the ferroelectric liquid crystal is changed by about 2 times a tilt angle of the ferroelectric liquid crystal parallel to a surface of the substrate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 19, 2007
    Publication date: March 4, 2010
    Inventors: Naoko Sawatari, Masato Okabe
  • Publication number: 20100007832
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display, using a ferroelectric liquid crystal exhibiting mono-stability, which makes it possible to control the direction of the spontaneous polarization of the ferroelectric liquid crystal. The liquid crystal display is produced by holding a ferroelectric liquid crystal between: an oblique vapor deposition-alignment layer of a first alignment treatment substrate, in which a first electrode layer and the oblique vapor deposition-alignment layer are formed in this order on a first substrate; and a fixed liquid crystal layer of a second alignment treatment substrate, in which a second electrode layer, an alignment layer for reactive liquid crystal and the fixed liquid crystal layer are laminated in this order on the second substrate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 19, 2007
    Publication date: January 14, 2010
    Inventors: Naoko Sawatari, Masato Okabe
  • Patent number: 7599041
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display using a ferroelectric liquid crystal, which can give mono-domain alignment of the ferroelectric liquid crystal without forming alignment defects such as zigzag defects, hairpin defects and double domains and which is so remarkably good in alignment stability that the alignment thereof can be maintained even if the temperature of the liquid crystal is raised to the phase transition point or higher. The liquid crystal display has a ferroelectric liquid crystal sandwiched between two substrates, wherein an electrode and a photo alignment layer are each successively formed on opposite faces of the two substrates facing each other, and a constituent material of the respective photo alignment layer has a different composition with the ferroelectric liquid crystal sandwiched there between.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 20, 2008
    Date of Patent: October 6, 2009
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Naoko Sawatari, Masato Okabe, Hideo Hama
  • Patent number: 7570331
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display including two alignment substrates having a base material, an electrode layer and alignment layer, with a ferroelectric liquid crystal interposed therebetween. One of the two alignment layers for controlling the alignment of the ferroelectric liquid crystal has a column structure with plate-like molecules having the photo dichroism in the visible light range laminated with the normal directions of the plate-like molecules oriented in a certain direction, and it is provided a columnar alignment layer having the alignment function and the polarizing function.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 9, 2005
    Date of Patent: August 4, 2009
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Masato Okabe, Naoko Sawatari, Makoto Ishikawa
  • Patent number: 7553524
    Abstract: The invention provides a liquid crystal display using a ferroelectric liquid crystal, which can give mono-domain alignment of the ferroelectric liquid crystal without forming alignment defects which is so remarkably good in alignment stability that the alignment thereof can be maintained even if the temperature of the liquid crystal is raised to the phase transition point or higher. The present invention provides a liquid crystal display comprising a ferroelectric liquid crystal sandwiched between two substrates, wherein an electrode and a photo alignment layer are each successively formed a constituent material of the respective photo alignment layer is a photoreactive material which generates a photoreaction to give anisotropy to the photo alignment layer; and the constituent material of the respective photo alignment layer has different composition from each other with the ferroelectric liquid crystal sandwiched therebetween.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 19, 2005
    Date of Patent: June 30, 2009
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Naoko Sawatari, Masato Okabe, Hideo Hama
  • Patent number: 7553521
    Abstract: The invention provides a liquid crystal displays using a ferroelectric liquid crystal, which can give mono-domain alignment of ferroelectrical liquid crystal without forming orientation defects and which is so remarkably good in orientation stability that the orientation thereof can be maintained even if the temperature of the liquid crystal is raised to the phase transition point or higher. The invention provides liquid crystal displays comprising a ferroelectric liquid crystal sandwiched between two substrates, wherein an electrode and a photo alignment film are each successively formed, the first of which is a photoreactive material which generates photoreaction to give anisotropy to the photo alignment film, and the constituent material of the second film is an optically isomerizable material comprising an optically isomerization-reactive compound.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 19, 2005
    Date of Patent: June 30, 2009
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Naoko Sawatari, Masato Okabe, Hideo Hama
  • Patent number: 7553525
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display using a ferroelectric liquid crystal, which can give mono-domain alignment of the ferroelectric liquid crystal without forming alignment defects such as zigzag defects, hairpin defects and double domains and which is so remarkably good in alignment stability that the alignment thereof can be maintained even if the temperature of the liquid crystal is raised to the phase transition point or higher. The liquid crystal display has a ferroelectric liquid crystal sandwiched between two substrates, wherein an electrode and a photo alignment layer are each successively formed on opposite faces of the two substrates facing each other, and a constituent material of the respective photo alignment layer has a different composition with the ferroelectric liquid crystal sandwiched therebetween.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 19, 2005
    Date of Patent: June 30, 2009
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Naoko Sawatari, Masato Okabe, Hideo Hama
  • Publication number: 20090142865
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display using a ferroelectric liquid crystal, which can give mono-domain alignment of the ferroelectric liquid crystal without forming alignment defects such as zigzag defects, hairpin defects and double domains and which is so remarkably good in alignment stability that the alignment thereof can be maintained even if the temperature of the liquid crystal is raised to the phase transition point or higher. The liquid crystal display has a ferroelectric liquid crystal sandwiched between two substrates, wherein an electrode and a photo alignment layer are each successively formed on opposite faces of the two substrates facing each other, and a constituent material of the respective photo alignment layer has a different composition with the ferroelectric liquid crystal sandwiched there between.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 20, 2008
    Publication date: June 4, 2009
    Inventors: Naoko SAWATARI, Masato OKABE, Hideo HAMA
  • Publication number: 20090066884
    Abstract: To provide a liquid crystal display, in which substrates are strongly fixed with an even cell gap to exhibit an excellent display quality. The liquid crystal display includes a spacer side substrate and a counter substrate in which the spacer side substrate and the counter substrate oppose a first alignment layer and a second alignment layer to each other; and in which a liquid crystal layer having a liquid crystal material are held between the spacer side substrate and the counter substrate. Additionally, a reactive alignment layer having a curable resin is formed on at least one of the first alignment layer and the second alignment layer, and the spacer side substrate and the counter substrate are bonded to each other with the reactive alignment layer interposed therebetween.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 19, 2006
    Publication date: March 12, 2009
    Inventors: Masato Okabe, Naoko Sawatari, Makoto Ishikawa
  • Patent number: 7499135
    Abstract: A method of controlling the alignment of a ferroelectric liquid crystal without the need of an alignment process, such as a rubbing process and a photo alignment process, in a liquid crystal display using a ferroelectric liquid crystal. The method uses a columnar alignment layer having a column structure with a plate-like molecule having photo dichroism in the visible light range as one of the alignment layers for controlling the alignment of the ferroelectric liquid crystal. The method forms a reactive liquid crystal layer produced by fixing a reactive liquid crystal including a polymerizable liquid crystal material on the side to be contacted with the ferroelectric liquid crystal on the columnar alignment layer, showing the nematic phase on the columnar alignment layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 9, 2005
    Date of Patent: March 3, 2009
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Masato Okabe, Naoko Sawatari, Makoto Ishikawa
  • Publication number: 20090051854
    Abstract: To provide a liquid crystal display, using a ferroelectric liquid crystal exhibiting mono-stability, which makes it possible to control the direction of the spontaneous polarization of the ferroelectric liquid crystal. The liquid crystal display includes a first alignment treatment substrate and a second alignment treatment substrate in which the first alignment treatment substrate and the second alignment treatment substrate have the first alignment layer and a reactive liquid crystal layer that face each other; and in which a ferroelectric liquid crystal is held between the first alignment layer and the reactive liquid crystal layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 18, 2006
    Publication date: February 26, 2009
    Inventors: Masato Okabe, Naoko Sawatari, Hideo Hama
  • Patent number: 7425394
    Abstract: A main object of the present invention is to provide a liquid crystal display using a ferroelectric liquid crystal, showing the mono-stability operation mode using a material showing the chiral smectic C phase via the smectic A phase in the temperature cooling process as the ferroelectric liquid crystal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 10, 2005
    Date of Patent: September 16, 2008
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Naoko Sawatari, Masato Okabe