Patents by Inventor Norihiko Ozawa

Norihiko Ozawa 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: 10241363
    Abstract: A lens array substrate includes a substrate with a concave portion provided in a first face thereof, and a lens layer having a substantially flat surface provided to cover the first face and fill the concave portion. The lens layer includes a first layer and a second layer which are sequentially laminated from a substrate side by reflecting the shape of the concave portion therein. A refractive index of the first layer is different from a refractive index of the second layer. The second layer, the first layer, and the second layer are sequentially exposed to the surface of the lens layer in this order in a first direction in a plan view. The second layer, the first layer, the substrate, the first layer, and the second layer are sequentially exposed to the surface of the lens layer in this order in a second direction that intersects the first direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 6, 2017
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2019
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Norihiko Ozawa
  • Publication number: 20170176812
    Abstract: A lens array substrate includes a substrate with a concave portion provided in a first face thereof, and a lens layer having a substantially flat surface provided to cover the first face and fill the concave portion. The lens layer includes a first layer and a second layer which are sequentially laminated from a substrate side by reflecting the shape of the concave portion therein. A refractive index of the first layer is different from a refractive index of the second layer. The second layer, the first layer, and the second layer are sequentially exposed to the surface of the lens layer in this order in a first direction in a plan view. The second layer, the first layer, the substrate, the first layer, and the second layer are sequentially exposed to the surface of the lens layer in this order in a second direction that intersects the first direction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 6, 2017
    Publication date: June 22, 2017
    Inventor: Norihiko Ozawa
  • Patent number: 9618787
    Abstract: A lens array substrate includes a substrate provided with a plurality of concave portions in a first face thereof. The lens layer includes a first lens layer, a second lens layer, and a third lens layer which are sequentially laminated from a substrate side by reflecting the shape of the concave portion therein. A refractive index of the first lens layer is larger than a refractive index of the second lens layer, and a refractive index of the third lens layer is smaller than the refractive index of the second lens layer and is larger than a refractive index of the substrate. The third lens layer, the second lens layer, and the first lens layer are sequentially exposed to the surface of the lens layer toward the end from the central portion of the concave portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 21, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 11, 2017
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Norihiko Ozawa
  • Patent number: 9594133
    Abstract: In multi-echo multi-contrast imaging, the image quality is improved by suppressing an increase in imaging time. In order to do so, the arrangement order of echo signals that form an echo train and k space filled with each echo signal are determined such that the continuity of the echo arrangement is maintained while sharing an echo signal between contrasts in multi-echo multi-contrast imaging. Echo trains that perform echo sharing are arranged in non-oscillatory centric view ordering (NOCO). In addition, the starting point of echo sharing of one echo train is connected to the same position of another echo train. When some discontinuous regions are present, the discontinuous regions may be corrected using continuous data of regions symmetrical thereto on the k space.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 18, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 14, 2017
    Assignee: HITACHI, LTD.
    Inventors: Shinji Kurokawa, Norihiko Ozawa, Takayuki Abe
  • Patent number: 9217885
    Abstract: A microlens array substrate includes a substrate having transparency and having a plurality of concave portions provided on a first surface to correspond to a plurality of pixels, and a lens layer having a different refractive index from a refractive index of the substrate, which is provided on the first surface of the substrate to fill in the plurality of concave portions, in which each of the plurality of concave portions has a flat portion arranged at the center portion, a curved surface portion arranged to surround the flat portion, an edge portion arranged to surround the curved surface portion and connected to the first surface of the substrate, and an angle between the edge portion and the first surface in a cross section passing through the center portion is smaller than an angle between a virtual curved surface obtained by extending the curved surface portion toward the first surface and the first surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 18, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 22, 2015
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Norihiko Ozawa
  • Publication number: 20150355502
    Abstract: A lens array substrate includes a substrate provided with a plurality of concave portions in a first face thereof. The lens layer includes a first lens layer, a second lens layer, and a third lens layer which are sequentially laminated from a substrate side by reflecting the shape of the concave portion therein. A refractive index of the first lens layer is larger than a refractive index of the second lens layer, and a refractive index of the third lens layer is smaller than the refractive index of the second lens layer and is larger than a refractive index of the substrate. The third lens layer, the second lens layer, and the first lens layer are sequentially exposed to the surface of the lens layer toward the end from the central portion of the concave portion.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 21, 2015
    Publication date: December 10, 2015
    Inventor: Norihiko Ozawa
  • Patent number: 9030630
    Abstract: A microlens includes a lens center portion having a lens-curved surface and a lens circumference portion having a linear side surface. In the case where length of the side surface is taken as L1, length of an aperture is taken as Ax, an angle formed by a normal of the side surface and incident light on the microlens is taken as ?1, and an angle formed by the normal of the side surface and output light from the microlens is taken as ?2, a relational expression of Equation 1 is satisfied.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 14, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 12, 2015
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Norihiko Ozawa
  • Publication number: 20150092277
    Abstract: A microlens array substrate includes a substrate having transparency and having a plurality of concave portions provided on a first surface to correspond to a plurality of pixels, and a lens layer having a different refractive index from a refractive index of the substrate, which is provided on the first surface of the substrate to fill in the plurality of concave portions, in which each of the plurality of concave portions has a flat portion arranged at the center portion, a curved surface portion arranged to surround the flat portion, an edge portion arranged to surround the curved surface portion and connected to the first surface of the substrate, and an angle between the edge portion and the first surface in a cross section passing through the center portion is smaller than an angle between a virtual curved surface obtained by extending the curved surface portion toward the first surface and the first surface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 18, 2014
    Publication date: April 2, 2015
    Inventor: Norihiko Ozawa
  • Patent number: 8848274
    Abstract: An electro-optical device includes an electro-optical material, a first lens which is arranged at an incident side of the light and is provided so as to correspond to a pixel, and a condenser lens which is arranged at an emitting side of the light and is provided so as to correspond to the pixel. Condensation degrees of the first lens are larger than that of the second lens, and distances between the first lens and the electro-optical material are smaller than distances between the second lens and the electro-optical material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 30, 2014
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Norihiko Ozawa
  • Patent number: 8773615
    Abstract: In a liquid crystal device, a liquid crystal layer is interposed between first and second substrates. The liquid crystal device includes a light-shielding layer formed in a lattice shape and a condensing lens condensing light incident on the side of the first substrate into the inside of an opening portion of a light-shielding section. In the second substrate, a prism element condensing the light which has been incident from the side of the first substrate and has passed and spread through the condensing lens, the liquid crystal layer, and the opening portion is disposed at a position overlapping the light-shielding layer in a plan view. The prism element includes a groove formed in the second substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 8, 2014
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Norihiko Ozawa
  • Publication number: 20130308077
    Abstract: A microlens includes a lens center portion having a lens-curved surface and a lens circumference portion having a linear side surface. In the case where length of the side surface is taken as L1, length of an aperture is taken as Ax, an angle formed by a normal of the side surface and incident light on the microlens is taken as ?1, and an angle formed by the normal of the side surface and output light from the microlens is taken as ?2, a relational expression of Equation 1 is satisfied.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 14, 2013
    Publication date: November 21, 2013
    Applicant: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Norihiko Ozawa
  • Publication number: 20130147483
    Abstract: In multi-echo multi-contrast imaging, the image quality is improved by suppressing an increase in imaging time. In order to do so, the arrangement order of echo signals that form an echo train and k space filled with each echo signal are determined such that the continuity of the echo arrangement is maintained while sharing an echo signal between contrasts in multi-echo multi-contrast imaging. Echo trains that perform echo sharing are arranged in non-oscillatory centric view ordering (NOCO). In addition, the starting point of echo sharing of one echo train is connected to the same position of another echo train. When some discontinuous regions are present, the discontinuous regions may be corrected using continuous data of regions symmetrical thereto on the k space.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 18, 2011
    Publication date: June 13, 2013
    Inventors: Shinji Kurokawa, Norihiko Ozawa, Takayuki Abe
  • Publication number: 20120242915
    Abstract: In a liquid crystal device, a liquid crystal layer is interposed between first and second substrates. The liquid crystal device includes a light-shielding layer formed in a lattice shape and a condensing lens condensing light incident on the side of the first substrate into the inside of an opening portion of a light-shielding section. In the second substrate, a prism element condensing the light which has been incident from the side of the first substrate and has passed and spread through the condensing lens, the liquid crystal layer, and the opening portion is disposed at a position overlapping the light-shielding layer in a plan view. The prism element includes a groove formed in the second substrate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 16, 2012
    Publication date: September 27, 2012
    Applicant: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Norihiko Ozawa
  • Publication number: 20120162742
    Abstract: An electro-optical device includes an electro-optical material, a first lens which is arranged at an incident side of the light and is provided so as to correspond to a pixel, and a condenser lens which is arranged at an emitting side of the light and is provided so as to correspond to the pixel. Condensation degrees of the first lens are larger than that of the second lens, and distances between the first lens and the electro-optical material are smaller than distances between the second lens and the electro-optical material.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 6, 2011
    Publication date: June 28, 2012
    Applicant: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Norihiko Ozawa
  • Patent number: 7505190
    Abstract: An electro-optical device substrate includes a first transparent substrate; a second transparent substrate that faces the first transparent substrate, the second transparent substrate including recesses in non-aperture regions of a surface of the second transparent substrate that faces the first transparent substrate, the recesses causing light that is incident to the non-aperture regions to refract toward aperture regions; and an adhesive that bonds the first and second transparent substrates together.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 4, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2009
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Norihiko Ozawa
  • Publication number: 20080137167
    Abstract: An electro-optical device substrate includes a first transparent substrate; a second transparent substrate that faces the first transparent substrate, the second transparent substrate including recesses in non-aperture regions of a surface of the second transparent substrate that faces the first transparent substrate, the recesses causing light that is incident to the non-aperture regions to refract toward aperture regions; and an adhesive that bonds the first and second transparent substrates together.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 4, 2007
    Publication date: June 12, 2008
    Applicant: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Norihiko Ozawa
  • Patent number: 7372631
    Abstract: A method of manufacturing a microlens includes: forming on a transparent substrate an etching stop layer in a lens formation region where a curved lens surface of the microlens is to be formed, the etching stop layer having an island shape as a planar shape thereof; forming an intermediate layer on the etching stop layer; forming an etching mask layer on the intermediate layer, the etching mask layer having an opening at a position facing the etching stop layer; and etching, by means of isotropic etching, the intermediate layer from the opening, and etching the transparent substrate and the intermediate layer from a side of the etching stop layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 7, 2005
    Date of Patent: May 13, 2008
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Norihiko Ozawa
  • Patent number: 7064901
    Abstract: A method of manufacturing a microlens includes: forming on a transparent substrate a first film which has an etching rate higher than the transparent substrate, forming on the first film a mask in which a pit is provided at a position corresponding to a center of the microlens to-be-formed, and wet-etching the first film and the transparent substrate through the mask, to thereby excavate in the transparent substrate a non-spherical recess which defines a curved surface of the microlens.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 13, 2004
    Date of Patent: June 20, 2006
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Norihiko Ozawa
  • Publication number: 20060046486
    Abstract: A method of manufacturing a microlens includes: forming on a transparent substrate an etching stop layer in a lens formation region where a curved lens surface of the microlens is to be formed, the etching stop layer having an island shape as a planar shape thereof; forming an intermediate layer on the etching stop layer; forming an etching mask layer on the intermediate layer, the etching mask layer having an opening at a position facing the etching stop layer; and etching, by means of isotropic etching, the intermediate layer from the opening, and etching the transparent substrate and the intermediate layer from a side of the etching stop layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 7, 2005
    Publication date: March 2, 2006
    Applicant: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventor: Norihiko Ozawa
  • Publication number: 20040246587
    Abstract: A method of manufacturing a microlens includes: forming on a transparent substrate a first film which has an etching rate higher than the transparent substrate, forming on the first film a mask in which a pit is provided at a position corresponding to a center of the microlens to-be-formed, and wet-etching the first film and the transparent substrate through the mask, to thereby excavate in the transparent substrate a non-spherical recess which defines a curved surface of the microlens.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 13, 2004
    Publication date: December 9, 2004
    Applicant: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventor: Norihiko Ozawa