Patents by Inventor Rie Hiramoto

Rie Hiramoto 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: 7624601
    Abstract: A water feeding apparatus (300) has an ion eluter (100) and a shower emitter (200). The shower emitter (200) receives water via a coupling pipe (250) from the ion eluter (100), and sprays the water, in the form of a shower, onto laundry. Liquid droplets in the form of a shower are small and easy to dry, and thus produce crystals having smaller particles (with large surface areas), having more lattice defects, and easier to dissolve. With these crystals attached to the laundry, when the crystals make contact with moisture next time, the silver ion in the liquid droplets easily dissolves. Even when the laundry is made of water-repellent or hydrophobic cloth, the solution dries up on the surface of the cloth before water is repelled. Thus, even this type of laundry can benefit from the antimicrobial effect of the silver ion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 15, 2004
    Date of Patent: December 1, 2009
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Mugihei Ikemizu, Hirofumi Yoshikawa, Rie Hiramoto, Minoru Tadano, Hirokazu Ohe
  • Patent number: 7597718
    Abstract: Provided are a method capable of imparting antistaticity to a fabric structure in a simple manner without causing any color change in the fabric structure, a fabric structure imparted with antistaticity by the method, and a washing machine that imparts antistaticity to a fabric structure according to the method. The method for imparting antistaticity to a fabric structure allows a metal or metal compound to adhere on a surface of the fabric structure by drying the fabric structure in a state where a liquid containing the metal or the metal compound exists on the surface of the fabric structure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 27, 2005
    Date of Patent: October 6, 2009
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hirofumi Yoshikawa, Rie Hiramoto, Kyoko Iimori
  • Publication number: 20070251022
    Abstract: Provided are a method capable of imparting antistaticity to a fabric structure in a simple manner without causing any color change in the fabric structure, a fabric structure imparted with antistaticity by the method, and a washing machine that imparts antistaticity to a fabric structure according to the method. The method for imparting antistaticity to a fabric structure allows metal or metal compound to adhere on a surface of the fabric structure by drying the fabric structure in a state where a liquid containing the metal or the metal compound exists on the surface of the fabric structure.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 27, 2005
    Publication date: November 1, 2007
    Inventors: Hirofumi Yoshikawa, Rie Hiramoto, Kyoko Iimori
  • Publication number: 20060186222
    Abstract: A water feeding apparatus (300) has an ion eluter (100) and a shower emitter (200). The shower emitter (200) receives water via a coupling pipe (250) from the ion eluter (100), and sprays the water, in the form of a shower, onto laundry. Liquid droplets in the form of a shower are small and easy to dry, and thus produce crystals having smaller particles (with large surface areas), having more lattice defects, and easier to dissolve. With these crystals attached to the laundry, when the crystals make contact with moisture next time, the silver ion in the liquid droplets easily dissolves. Even when the laundry is made of water-repellent or hydrophobic cloth, the solution dries up on the surface of the cloth before water is repelled. Thus, even this type of laundry can benefit from the antimicrobial effect of the silver ion.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 15, 2004
    Publication date: August 24, 2006
    Inventors: Mugihei Ikemizu, Hirofumi Yoshikawa, Rie Hiramoto, Minoru Tadano, Hirokazu Ohe
  • Publication number: 20060130533
    Abstract: A laundry machine (1) in which metal ions produced by an ion eluting unit (100) can be input into water at the last rinsing step. The time for the last rinsing step at which metal ions are input is longer than that for the step at which no metal ions are input. When metal ions are input, in the rinsing step, a strong flow time and a weak flow time are provided, or a strong flow time and a rest time are provided. If any imbalance during drying rotation of the washing tub (30) after metal ion input is detected, a processing different from that carried out if an imbalance is detected when no metal ions are input is carried out.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 14, 2003
    Publication date: June 22, 2006
    Inventors: Hirokazu Ooe, Toshihiro Kamii, Rie Hiramoto
  • Patent number: 6886371
    Abstract: A washing machine has a partial washing apparatus, which has a supersonic resonator, which is driven by an oscillator to generate supersonic vibration and a supersonic vibration horn. A washing liquid is fed to the partial washing apparatus so as to be agitated by supersonic waves, which are then fed to an article to be washed to achieve partial washing of the article. The partial washing apparatus is detachably fitted to the washing machine proper at approximately the center of a lid of the washing machine proper. The partial washing apparatus may be used as a handy-type partial washing apparatus when held at a grip portion of the partial washing apparatus.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2002
    Date of Patent: May 3, 2005
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Nobushige Arai, Shinya Takagi, Hirofumi Yoshikawa, Rie Hiramoto, Ichirou Ohshima
  • Patent number: 6820446
    Abstract: A polluted water purifier for collecting a pollutant present in polluted water by flocculating the pollutant with a flocculant has a mixer 5 for mixing the polluted water with the flocculant F and air, an agitator 18 for agitating the polluted water, containing the flocculant F and the air, that flows into a cylindrical agitation chamber 6 along the inner surface thereof by making the polluted water into a spiraling stream so that the flocks formed by the flocculant F hold bubbles, and a separator 10 and 19, connected to the agitator 18, for temporarily storing the polluted water and for separating the flocks holding the bubbles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 16, 2002
    Date of Patent: November 23, 2004
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Nobushige Arai, Hirofumi Yoshikawa, Shinya Takagi, Ichiro Ohshima, Rie Hiramoto, Mugihei Ikemizu
  • Publication number: 20020134117
    Abstract: A washing machine has a partial washing apparatus 5, which has a supersonic resonator 12 driven by an oscillator 17 to generate supersonic vibration and a supersonic vibration horn 13. A washing liquid is fed to the partial washing apparatus 5 so as to be agitated by supersonic waves and then fed to an article 30 to be washed to achieve partial washing thereof. The partial washing apparatus 5 is detachably fitted to the washing machine proper 1 at approximately the center of the lid 3 thereof. The partial washing apparatus 5 may be used as a handy-type partial washing apparatus when held at the grip portion 11a thereof.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 5, 2002
    Publication date: September 26, 2002
    Applicant: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Nobusige Arai, Shinya Takagi, Hirofumi Yoshikawa, Rie Hiramoto, Ichirou Ohshima
  • Publication number: 20020121484
    Abstract: A polluted water purifier for collecting a pollutant present in polluted water by flocculating the pollutant with a flocculant has a mixer 5 for mixing the polluted water with the flocculant F and air, an agitator 18 for agitating the polluted water, containing the flocculant F and the air, that flows into a cylindrical agitation chamber 6 along the inner surface thereof by making the polluted water into a spiraling stream so that the flocks formed by the flocculant F hold bubbles, and a separator 10 and 19, connected to the agitator 18, for temporarily storing the polluted water and for separating the flocks holding the bubbles.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 16, 2002
    Publication date: September 5, 2002
    Inventors: Nobushige Arai, Hirofumi Yoshikawa, Shinya Takagi, Ichiro Ohshima, Rie Hiramoto, Mugihei Ikemizu