Patents by Inventor Noboru Toyozawa

Noboru Toyozawa 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: 20140035898
    Abstract: A driver IC includes: a plurality of driver circuits that are individually provided for respective light modulation elements and drive the light modulation elements, in which the light modulation elements each perform light modulation on received light in response to an applied voltage; and a plurality of output terminals outputting signals derived from the respective driver circuits to outside. The driver IC is a single driver IC that drives the light modulation elements. The output terminals are disposed on sides of the driver IC, and the respective output terminals are disposed on the different sides for the respective corresponding driver circuits.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 26, 2013
    Publication date: February 6, 2014
    Applicant: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Noboru Toyozawa, Takashi Hirakawa, Taro Ichitsubo, Eiji Kato
  • Patent number: 8456399
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display that is unsusceptible to the effect of a pixel potential during writing of data to a memory, allowing a large margin to be provided against variation in characteristics of transistors forming a pixel circuit, and a portable terminal having the liquid crystal display. In a pixel circuit including a memory circuit (25), separate paths are provided for writing image data from a signal line (16-i) to the memory circuit (25) via a data-write switch (24) and for reading image data held in the memory circuit (25) out into a liquid crystal cell unit via a data-read switch (27). Furthermore, image data are read via a data-read buffer (26). Accordingly, when image data is written to the memory, data held in the memory circuit (25) is not affected by a pixel potential. Thus, a large margin can be provided against variation in the characteristics of the transistors forming the pixel circuit, serving to avoid variation in picture quality due to the variation in the transistor characteristics.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 10, 2010
    Date of Patent: June 4, 2013
    Assignee: Japan Display West, Inc.
    Inventors: Noboru Toyozawa, Yoshiharu Nakajima
  • Patent number: 7928974
    Abstract: An active-matrix liquid crystal display device has pixels arranged in a matrix which each include a thin film transistor (TFT) as an active element. When the device is in a power-off state, TFTs in all the pixels are switched on, and all horizontal switches are turned on so that all data lines are supplied with a potential equal to the potential of common electrodes of the pixels. This forms a discharging path for discharging residual charge in all the pixels, and the discharging path can instantaneously discharge the residual charges.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 9, 2007
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2011
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Noboru Toyozawa, Yoshiharu Nakajima, Yoshihiko Toyoshima
  • Patent number: 7911434
    Abstract: This invention realizes reduction in consumption of DC current in a level converter circuit by setting level shifters in an operating state only when necessary in accordance with hierarchical control, in which an output pulse of a level shifter (311) that is constantly in a power-ON state is used to set a level shifter (321) of the next hierarchical level in the operating state, then output pulses of the level shifter (311) and the level shifter (321) are used to generate control pulses LT1 and LT2, which are used to set level shifters (341 to 346) of the next hierarchical level in the operating state, and an output pulse of one of the level shifters is used to set level shifters (351), (352) and (353) of the next hierarchical level in the operating state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2006
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2011
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Noboru Toyozawa, Yoshiharu Nakajima
  • Patent number: 7872646
    Abstract: A power supply generating circuit, a display apparatus incorporating the same, and a portable terminal device using the display apparatus as an output display unit are provided. In a DC-DC converter having a charge pump circuit (31), a voltage dividing circuit (32), and a regulation circuit (33), p-channel MOS transistors (Qp21, Qp22, Qp31) are turned on/off based on an enable pulse enb to make the voltage dividing circuit (32) and a comparator (41) active only for a period of regulation time and inactive otherwise. This can cause a current to flow in voltage-divider resistors (R1, R2) and the comparator (41) only for a certain period of time required for the regulation operation, thus reducing the power consumption loss caused by a constant current flow in the voltage-divider resistors (R1, R2) and the comparator (41).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 30, 2006
    Date of Patent: January 18, 2011
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Noboru Toyozawa, Yoshiharu Nakajima
  • Publication number: 20100220107
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display that is unsusceptible to the effect of a pixel potential during writing of data to a memory, allowing a large margin to be provided against variation in characteristics of transistors forming a pixel circuit, and a portable terminal having the liquid crystal display. In a pixel circuit including a memory circuit (25), separate paths are provided for writing image data from a signal line (16-i) to the memory circuit (25) via a data-write switch (24) and for reading image data held in the memory circuit (25) out into a liquid crystal cell unit via a data-read switch (27). Furthermore, image data are read via a data-read buffer (26). Accordingly, when image data is written to the memory, data held in the memory circuit (25) is not affected by a pixel potential. Thus, a large margin can be provided against variation in the characteristics of the transistors forming the pixel circuit, serving to avoid variation in picture quality due to the variation in the transistor characteristics.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 10, 2010
    Publication date: September 2, 2010
    Applicant: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Noboru TOYOZAWA, Yoshiharu NAKAJIMA
  • Patent number: 7746308
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display that is unsusceptible to the effect of a pixel potential during writing of data to a memory, allowing a large margin to be provided against variation in characteristics of transistors forming a pixel circuit, and a portable terminal having the liquid crystal display. In a pixel circuit including a memory circuit (25), separate paths are provided for writing image data from a signal line (16-i) to the memory circuit (25) via a data-write switch (24) and for reading image data held in the memory circuit (25) out into a liquid crystal cell unit via a data-read switch (27). Furthermore, image data are read via a data-read buffer (26). Accordingly, when image data is written to the memory, data held in the memory circuit (25) is not affected by a pixel potential. Thus, a large margin can be provided against variation in the characteristics of the transistors forming the pixel circuit, serving to avoid variation in picture quality due to the variation in the transistor characteristics.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 16, 2006
    Date of Patent: June 29, 2010
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Noboru Toyozawa, Yoshiharu Nakajima
  • Patent number: 7420532
    Abstract: The present invention applies illustratively to a liquid crystal display apparatus as well as to a PDA and a mobile phone each using that liquid crystal display apparatus. Typically, a gradation setting circuit 20B for the green color is disposed along one of two opposing sides of a display unit 14, and a gradation setting circuit 20A for the red and blue colors is positioned along the other side of the unit 14.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 26, 2003
    Date of Patent: September 2, 2008
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Yoshiharu Nakajima, Noboru Toyozawa
  • Patent number: 7391403
    Abstract: This invention applies illustratively to a horizontal driving circuit for a liquid crystal display device, and to a liquid crystal display device utilizing that horizontal driving circuit. With a CMOS latch cell 12 disconnected from power supplies VDD2 and VSS2, the input of the latch cell 12 is connected to an upstream circuit 51 so as to set corresponding data on the cell. Then with the input of the CMOS latch cell 12 disconnected from the upstream circuit 51, the power supplies VDD2 and VSS2 to the CMOS latch cell 12 are switched on to level-shift the data set on the latch cell 12.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 26, 2003
    Date of Patent: June 24, 2008
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Yasuyuki Teranishi, Yoshiharu Nakajima, Noboru Toyozawa
  • Patent number: 7379058
    Abstract: A display apparatus that can improve power savings in a waiting mode is disclosed. The display apparatus (0) is used as a display component of an electronic device capable of switching between a normal power consumption state and a low power consumption state and includes a panel in which a display area (2) and a peripheral circuit section for driving the display area are integrally formed on an insulating substrate (1). The circuit section switches between an operation mode and a waiting mode responsive to switching between the normal power consumption state and the low power consumption state of a main body of the electronic device. In the waiting mode, a standby control operation stops driving the display area 2 and inactivates the circuit section to suppress power consumption.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 25, 2003
    Date of Patent: May 27, 2008
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Noboru Toyozawa, Yoshiharu Nakajima, Hirotoshi Koyama
  • Publication number: 20070290968
    Abstract: An active-matrix liquid crystal display device has pixels arranged in a matrix which each include a thin film transistor (TFT) as an active element. When the device is in a power-off state, TFTs in all the pixels are switched on, and all horizontal switches are turned on so that all data lines are supplied with a potential equal to the potential of common electrodes of the pixels. This forms a discharging path for discharging residual charge in all the pixels, and the discharging path can instantaneously discharge the residual charges.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 9, 2007
    Publication date: December 20, 2007
    Inventors: Noboru Toyozawa, Yoshiharu Nakajima, Yoshihiko Toyoshima
  • Patent number: 7271801
    Abstract: An active-matrix liquid crystal display device has pixels arranged in a matrix which each include a thin film transistor (TFT) as an active element. When the device is in a power-off state, TFTs in all the pixels are switched on, and all horizontal switches are turned on so that all data lines are supplied with a potential equal to the potential of common electrodes of the pixels. This forms a discharging path for discharging residual charge in all the pixels, and the discharging path can instantaneously discharge the residual charges.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 11, 2003
    Date of Patent: September 18, 2007
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Noboru Toyozawa, Yoshiharu Nakajima, Yoshihiko Toyoshima
  • Publication number: 20070063958
    Abstract: This invention realizes reduction in consumption of DC current in a level converter circuit by setting level shifters in an operating state only when necessary in accordance with hierarchical control, in which an output pulse of a level shifter (311) that is constantly in a power-ON state is used to set a level shifter (321) of the next hierarchical level in the operating state, then output pulses of the level shifter (311) and the level shifter (321) are used to generate control pulses LT1 and LT2, which are used to set level shifters (341 to 346) of the next hierarchical level in the operating state, and an output pulse of one of the level shifters is used to set level shifters (351), (352) and (353) of the next hierarchical level in the operating state.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 27, 2006
    Publication date: March 22, 2007
    Inventors: Noboru Toyozawa, Yoshiharu Nakajima
  • Publication number: 20070040827
    Abstract: A power supply generating circuit, a display apparatus incorporating the same, and a portable terminal device using the display apparatus as an output display unit are provided. In a DC-DC converter having a charge pump circuit (31), a voltage dividing circuit (32), and a regulation circuit (33), p-channel MOS transistors (Qp21, Qp22, Qp31) are turned on/off based on an enable pulse enb to make the voltage dividing circuit (32) and a comparator (41) active only for a period of regulation time and inactive otherwise. This can cause a current to flow in voltage-divider resistors (R1, R2) and the comparator (41) only for a certain period of time required for the regulation operation, thus reducing the power consumption loss caused by a constant current flow in the voltage-divider resistors (R1, R2) and the comparator (41).
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 30, 2006
    Publication date: February 22, 2007
    Inventors: Noboru Toyozawa, Yoshiharu Nakajima
  • Patent number: 7129939
    Abstract: A power supply generating circuit, a display apparatus incorporating the same, and a portable terminal device using the display apparatus as an output display unit are provided. In a DC-DC converter having a charge pump circuit (31), a voltage dividing circuit (32), and a regulation circuit (33), p-channel MOS transistors (Qp21, Qp22, Qp31) are turned on/off based on an enable pulse enb to make the voltage dividing circuit (32) and a comparator (41) active only for a period of regulation time and inactive otherwise. This can cause a current to flow in voltage-divider resistors (R1, R2) and the comparator (41) only for a certain period of time required for the regulation operation, thus reducing the power consumption loss caused by a constant current flow in the voltage-divider resistors (R1, R2) and the comparator (41).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 15, 2002
    Date of Patent: October 31, 2006
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Noboru Toyozawa, Yoshiharu Nakajima
  • Publication number: 20060232535
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display that is unsusceptible to the effect of a pixel potential during writing of data to a memory, allowing a large margin to be provided against variation in characteristics of transistors forming a pixel circuit, and a portable terminal having the liquid crystal display. In a pixel circuit including a memory circuit (25), separate paths are provided for writing image data from a signal line (16-i) to the memory circuit (25) via a data-write switch (24) and for reading image data held in the memory circuit (25) out into a liquid crystal cell unit via a data-read switch (27). Furthermore, image data are read via a data-read buffer (26). Accordingly, when image data is written to the memory, data held in the memory circuit (25) is not affected by a pixel potential. Thus, a large margin can be provided against variation in the characteristics of the transistors forming the pixel circuit, serving to avoid variation in picture quality due to the variation in the transistor characteristics.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 16, 2006
    Publication date: October 19, 2006
    Inventors: Noboru Toyozawa, Yoshiharu Nakajima
  • Patent number: 7123229
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display that is unsusceptible to the effect of a pixel potential during writing of data to a memory, allowing a large margin to be provided against variation in characteristics of transistors forming a pixel circuit, and a portable terminal having the liquid crystal display, serving to avoid variation in picture quality due to the variation in the transistor characteristics. In a pixel circuit including a memory circuit, separate paths are provided for writing image data from a signal line to the memory circuit via a data-write switch and for reading image data held in the memory circuit out into a liquid crystal cell unit via a data-read switch. Furthermore, image data are read via a data-read buffer. Accordingly, when image data is written to the memory, data held in the memory circuit is not affected by a pixel potential.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 7, 2002
    Date of Patent: October 17, 2006
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Noboru Toyozawa, Yoshiharu Nakajima
  • Patent number: 7116307
    Abstract: This invention realizes reduction in consumption of DC current in a level converter circuit by setting level shifters in an operating state only when necessary in accordance with hierarchical control, in which an output pulse of a level shifter (311) that is constantly in a power-ON state is used to set a level shifter (321) of the next hierarchical level in the operating state, then output pulses of the level shifter (311) and the level shifter (321) are used to generate control pulses LT1 and LT2, which are used to set level shifters (341 to 346) of the next hierarchical level in the operating state, and an output pulse of one of the level shifters is used to set level shifters (351), (352) and (353) of the next hierarchical level in the operating state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 18, 2002
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2006
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Noboru Toyozawa, Yoshiharu Nakajima
  • Publication number: 20060181498
    Abstract: A display device is formed by a panel in which a display area and a peripheral circuit part for driving the display area are integrally formed in an integrated manner on an insulating substrate 1. The display area includes pixel electrodes arranged in a form of a matrix, a common electrode opposed to the pixel electrodes, and an electrooptic material retained between the pixel electrodes and the common electrode.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 24, 2003
    Publication date: August 17, 2006
    Applicant: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Noboru Toyozawa, Yoshiharu Nakajima, Hirotoshi Koyama
  • Publication number: 20060164353
    Abstract: The present invention applies illustratively to a liquid crystal display apparatus as well as to a PDA and a mobile phone each using that liquid crystal display apparatus. Typically, a gradation setting circuit 20B for the green color is disposed along one of two opposing sides of a display unit 14, and a gradation setting circuit 20A for the red and blue colors is positioned along the other side of the unit 14.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 26, 2003
    Publication date: July 27, 2006
    Applicant: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Yoshiharu Nakajima, Noboru Toyozawa