Patents by Inventor Nobuyuki Kihara

Nobuyuki Kihara 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: 20220392477
    Abstract: Disclosed is an operation device including an interaction member, a microphone, a control circuit, and an audio signal processing circuit. The interaction member is used for interacting with a user. The control circuit periodically acquires scan data indicating the acting status of the interaction member. The audio signal processing circuit executes a noise removal process of removing noise from a collected audio signal collected by the microphone. The control circuit periodically transmits previously acquired scan data to the audio signal processing circuit. The audio signal processing circuit executes the noise removal process by using the scan data transmitted from the control circuit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 29, 2020
    Publication date: December 8, 2022
    Applicant: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.
    Inventors: Takashi Enokihara, Kojiro Matsuyama, Takafumi Ogura, Tetsuro Horikawa, Shin Kimura, Nobuyuki Kihara
  • Patent number: 10818048
    Abstract: An automatic medical image processing system includes a series of operation stages, each automating specifying the image processing parameters for processing medical images. In response to an image processing indicator, a first medical image is automatically identified, including determining a first image operation and image processing parameters, without user intervention. The first image operation is performed on the first medical image based on the image processing parameters. A second medical image is generated and transmitted to the client device to be presented therein. The client device displays a message prompting the user whether the user is satisfied with the second medical image. In response to a user input from the client device indicating that the user is unsatisfied with the second medical image, one or more remedial options are presented to allow the user selecting a remedial action to reprocess the first medical image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 7, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 27, 2020
    Assignee: TERARECON, INC.
    Inventors: Tiecheng T. Zhao, Akio Iwase, Nobuyuki Kihara
  • Publication number: 20180330525
    Abstract: An automatic medical image processing system includes a series of operation stages, each automating specifying the image processing parameters for processing medical images. In response to an image processing indicator, a first medical image is automatically identified, including determining a first image operation and image processing parameters, without user intervention. The first image operation is performed on the first medical image based on the image processing parameters. A second medical image is generated and transmitted to the client device to be presented therein. The client device displays a message prompting the user whether the user is satisfied with the second medical image. In response to a user input from the client device indicating that the user is unsatisfied with the second medical image, one or more remedial options are presented to allow the user selecting a remedial action to reprocess the first medical image.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 7, 2018
    Publication date: November 15, 2018
    Inventors: Tiecheng T. Zhao, Akio Iwase, Nobuyuki Kihara
  • Patent number: 10025479
    Abstract: An automatic medical image processing system includes a series of operation stages, each automating specifying the image processing parameters for processing medical images. In response to an image processing indicator, a first medical image is automatically identified, including determining a first image operation and image processing parameters, without user intervention. The first image operation is performed on the first medical image based on the image processing parameters. A second medical image is generated and transmitted to the client device to be presented therein. The client device displays a message prompting the user whether the user is satisfied with the second medical image. In response to a user input from the client device indicating that the user is unsatisfied with the second medical image, one or more remedial options are presented to allow the user selecting a remedial action to reprocess the first medical image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 24, 2014
    Date of Patent: July 17, 2018
    Assignee: TERARECON, INC.
    Inventors: Tiecheng Zhao, Akio Iwase, Nobuyuki Kihara
  • Publication number: 20150089365
    Abstract: An automatic medical image processing system includes a series of operation stages, each automating specifying the image processing parameters for processing medical images. In response to an image processing indicator, a first medical image is automatically identified, including determining a first image operation and image processing parameters, without user intervention. The first image operation is performed on the first medical image based on the image processing parameters. A second medical image is generated and transmitted to the client device to be presented therein. The client device displays a message prompting the user whether the user is satisfied with the second medical image. In response to a user input from the client device indicating that the user is unsatisfied with the second medical image, one or more remedial options are presented to allow the user selecting a remedial action to reprocess the first medical image.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 24, 2014
    Publication date: March 26, 2015
    Inventors: Tiecheng Zhao, Akio Iwase, Nobuyuki Kihara
  • Publication number: 20140178049
    Abstract: This technology relates to an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, and a program, which enable easier addition of an effect to a moving image. In a portable terminal device, an ambient environmental sound and a voice uttered by a user are picked up by different sound pickup units when the moving image is shot. A keyword detecting unit detects a keyword determined in advance from the voice uttered by the user and an effect generating unit generates an image effect and a sound effect associated with the detected keyword. Then, an effect adding unit superposes the generated image effect on the shot moving image and synthesizes the generated sound effect with the environmental sound, thereby applying image effects and sound effects to the moving image. According to the portable terminal device, it is possible to easily add a desired effect to the moving image only by uttering the keyword while shooting the moving image. This technology may be applied to a mobile phone.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 1, 2012
    Publication date: June 26, 2014
    Applicant: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Nobuyuki Kihara, Yohei Sakuraba, Takeshi Yamaguchi, Yasuhiko Kato
  • Patent number: 8755671
    Abstract: A reproducing apparatus has three reproducing modes that are a first mode, a second mode, and a third mode. In the first mode, when a program that has been reproduction restricted is tried to be reproduced, the reproducing operation is paused and the user is asked whether he or she wants to reproduce the program. Corresponding to the user's reply, the reproducing operation is performed or prohibited. In the second mode, a program that has been reproduction restricted is prohibited from being reproduced. In the third mode, a program that has been reproduction restricted is unconditionally reproduced. When the power of the apparatus is turned on at step S31, a prompt that causes the user to select one of the first mode, the second mode, and the third mode is displayed. At step S33, a process for designating a mode is performed. Information of the designated mode is stored in a nonvolatile memory.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 12, 2009
    Date of Patent: June 17, 2014
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Teppei Yokota, Nobuyuki Kihara, Takumi Okaue
  • Patent number: 8607069
    Abstract: A data processing apparatus is disclosed, that comprises a large capacity memory means for storing a plurality of files, a memory means for storing move/copy history when a particular file is moved/copied from the large capacity memory means to a non-volatile memory, a reference means for referencing the history information stored in the memory means when the particular file is moved/copied from the large capacity memory means to the non-volatile memory, and a control means for prohibiting the particular file from being moved/copied from the large capacity memory means to the non-volatile memory when the reference means has detected that the history information is stored in the memory means.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 4, 2004
    Date of Patent: December 10, 2013
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Nobuyuki Kihara, Teppei Yokota
  • Publication number: 20130322649
    Abstract: Provided is an audio processing apparatus including a frequency domain conversion unit configured to convert an audio signal input from a microphone to a frequency domain for each of frames, and a gain adjustment unit configured to perform gain adjustment for each of bands on the audio signal converted to the frequency domain. The gain adjustment unit acquires an autocorrelation value of power of the audio signal between the frames for each of the bands, and sets an adjustment amount of the gain in accordance with the acquired autocorrelation value.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 14, 2012
    Publication date: December 5, 2013
    Applicant: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Yohei Sakuraba, Nobuyuki Kihara
  • Publication number: 20130301841
    Abstract: An audio processing device includes: a directivity adjustment unit adjusting directivity and sharpness thereof in audio picked up by plural microphones picking up audio; and a howling suppression adjustment unit adjusting intensity of suppressing howling of audio picked up by the plural microphones, wherein the directivity adjustment unit adjusts the directivity and sharpness thereof in preference to the howling suppression of audio performed by the howling suppression adjustment unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 15, 2013
    Publication date: November 14, 2013
    Applicant: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Yohei Sakuraba, Yasuhiko Kato, Nobuyuki Kihara, Takeshi Yamaguchi
  • Publication number: 20130297311
    Abstract: An information processing apparatus including: a high-quality-voice determining section configured to determine a voice, which can be determined to have been collected under a good condition, as a good-condition voice included in mixed voices pertaining to a group of voices collected under different conditions; and a voice recognizing section configured to carry out voice recognition processing by making use of a predetermined parameter on the good-condition voice determined by the high-quality-voice determining section, modify the value of the predetermined parameter on the basis of a result of the voice recognition processing carried out on the good-condition voice, and carry out the voice recognition processing by making use of the predetermined parameter having the modified value on a voice included in the mixed voices as a voice other than the good-condition voice.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 15, 2013
    Publication date: November 7, 2013
    Applicant: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Takeshi Yamaguchi, Yasuhiko Kato, Nobuyuki Kihara, Yohei Sakuraba
  • Patent number: 8494192
    Abstract: An audio reproducing system includes a pair of speaker units, a mounting unit for mounting the pair of speaker units, without being attached to a baffle board, to the vicinity of a listener's ears in a manner such that sounds emitted from the front and back of a diaphragm of each speaker unit are mixed, and an audio signal output unit for virtual sound imaging an input audio signal and outputting the virtual sound imaged signal to the pair of speaker units in a manner such that the listener listens to a sound reproduced by the pair of speaker units feeling as if the sound is emitted from a different speaker device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 30, 2007
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2013
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Teppei Yokota, Nobuyuki Kihara
  • Publication number: 20130063539
    Abstract: A signal processing apparatus includes: an audio separator that separates audios into a first audio and a second audio using two inputted audio signals; an audio combiner that combines the first audio with the second audio based on proportions of the audios separated by the audio separator; and an image combiner that combines a first image corresponding to the first audio with a second image corresponding to the second audio based on the proportions of the audios separated by the audio separator.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 16, 2012
    Publication date: March 14, 2013
    Applicant: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yohei SAKURABA, Yasuhiko Kato, Nobuyuki Kihara, Takeshi Yamaguchi
  • Publication number: 20130044890
    Abstract: n information processing device includes: an estimating section which estimates an amplitude frequency function from a first signal output to a speaker and a second signal input from a microphone; a generating section which generates an estimated echo signal from the first signal and the amplitude frequency function; and a suppressing section which suppresses the estimated echo signal from the second signal, wherein the estimating section changes a coefficient of the amplitude frequency function on the basis of the correlation between the estimated amplitude frequency function and a short-time average amplitude frequency function.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 19, 2012
    Publication date: February 21, 2013
    Applicant: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Nobuyuki KIHARA, Yohei SAKURABA
  • Patent number: 8160239
    Abstract: An echo canceller used for hands-free communication systems in which hands-free communication is performed by using a speaker and a microphone is disclosed. The echo canceller includes a step size control unit calculating a step size value in an adaptive filter and an adaptive filter unit estimating an echo component of a feedback path from an input signal to the feedback path by adaptively identifying an impulse response of the feedback path formed by an acoustical coupling and the like of the speaker and the microphone, and subtracting the echo component from an output signal from the feedback path, in which the step size control unit calculates a step size value by using an echo reduction amount defined based on the ratio between the output signal from the feedback path and a residual signal and outputs the value to the adaptive filter unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 2007
    Date of Patent: April 17, 2012
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Yohei Sakuraba, Nobuyuki Kihara, Takayoshi Kawaguchi
  • Patent number: 8139918
    Abstract: An editing apparatus wherein the editing of content is controlled according to its supply source. Identification information for identifying a content supply source is recorded in a recording medium in correspondence with the content supplied from the content supply source and recorded in the recording medium. When editing of the content is requested by a user, the identification information corresponding to that contend is checked. According to the content supply source identified by the identification information, the editing of the content is enabled or disabled.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2006
    Date of Patent: March 20, 2012
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Teppei Yokota, Nobuyuki Kihara
  • Patent number: 8107617
    Abstract: An audio processor of a loud speech communication system including a speaker and a microphone is provided. The audio processor includes: an adaptive filter wherein an amount of update in a learning event is set to an arbitrary value, and a filter coefficient is serially determined corresponding to the set amount of update; a semi-fixed filter adapted to an echo cancellation process of an audio input signal input from the microphone; adaptive filter assessment unit that calculates a length of an update vector based on the filter coefficient determined by the adaptive filter and a length of an update vector based on a filter coefficient set in the semi-fixed filter and that performs assessment of the filter coefficients in accordance with the update vectors; and coefficient specifying unit that sets an optimal filter coefficient among the filter coefficients into the semi-fixed filter in accordance with the result of the assessment of the filter coefficients performed by the adaptive filter assessment unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 1, 2007
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2012
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Yohei Sakuraba, Yasuhiko Kato, Nobuyuki Kihara
  • Patent number: 7991166
    Abstract: A microphone apparatus for processing and outputting an output signal of a microphone array including at least nine microphones includes a directivity function processing circuit that converts the output signal of the microphone array into a unidirectional signal and that outputs the unidirectional signal. The directivity function processing circuit expands a directivity function whose variable is an incident angle of an acoustic wave into a Fourier series up to at least third order. The variable in the expanded expression is produced from output signals of the microphones forming the microphone array.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 14, 2006
    Date of Patent: August 2, 2011
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Nobuyuki Kihara, Yoshikazu Takahashi, Yasuhiko Kato
  • Patent number: RE43377
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is an apparatus along with a method for displaying a list of data to be transferred from one storage area to another in conjunction with a progress status report of the data transfer, thereby allowing users to know at a glance how far the transfer of desired data has progressed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 8, 2008
    Date of Patent: May 8, 2012
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Tessho Ishida, Kenji Tomizawa, Nobuyuki Kihara, Shoichi Awai, Ichiro Sakamoto, Ippei Tambata
  • Patent number: RE44436
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is an apparatus along with a method for displaying a list of data to be transferred from one storage area to another in conjunction with a progress status report of the data transfer, thereby allowing users to know at a glance how far the transfer of desired data has progressed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 9, 2011
    Date of Patent: August 13, 2013
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Tessho Ishida, Kenji Tomizawa, Nobuyuki Kihara, Shoichi Awai, Ichiro Sakamoto, Ippei Tambata