Patents by Inventor Shohichi Fukutome

Shohichi Fukutome 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: 20150229800
    Abstract: A driving device is used in an image reading apparatus, and reciprocates a scanning unit for reading an image on an original. The driving device comprises a pull member, a driving pulley which transmits driving force to the pull member, a following pulley which applies tension to the pull member and a pulley holder having a pulley axis which holds the following pulley rotatably. Then, the pulley axis has a lock pawl capable of locking an upper end portion of the following pulley and canceling engagement with the following pulley by being tilted toward a side of an axial center by elastic deformation. Furthermore, the lock pawl is arranged at a side of a tension acting direction from the pull member to the following pulley except the farthest position from the driving pulley among positions in a circumferential direction of the pulley axis. It is possible to attach and detach the following pulley easily at a time of maintenance or the like.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 29, 2015
    Publication date: August 13, 2015
    Inventors: Masahiro IMOTO, Yasuhiro SUTO, Shohichi FUKUTOME, Kenji NAKANISHI, Kazuhiro IGUCHI
  • Patent number: 9106782
    Abstract: An image reader is provided, in its housing, with a first scanning unit made up of an LED array of a plurality of LED elements that are arranged in a row in the horizontal scanning direction and that emit light to a document. An air intake port and an air exhaust port are disposed on the housing of the image reader. An imaginary line of an air flow path coupling the air intake port and the air exhaust port to one another is configured to pass adjacent a center of the LED array of the first scanning unit in the horizontal scanning direction with the first scanning unit stopped at a reading position of the document transferred by a document transfer device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 9, 2014
    Date of Patent: August 11, 2015
    Assignee: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hisashi Yamanaka, Mitsuharu Yoshimoto, Kenji Nakanishi, Yasuhiro Suto, Shohichi Fukutome, Masahiro Imoto
  • Patent number: 9097830
    Abstract: An illuminating device capable of stably illuminating an irradiated object such as a document while suppressing light loss with a simply structure is provided. An LED array and a reflective plate are disposed sandwiching a slit (St) through which light reflected by a document MS passes and a light-guiding member is disposed on the side of the LED array. The light-guiding member includes a direct emission unit disposed between an illumination range y centered on a document reading position and the LED array and an indirect emission unit disposed between the reflective plate and the LED array, a light incidence face of the direct emission unit and a light incidence face of the indirect emission unit are disposed at mutually different position around the LED array, and the LED array is disposed on a side of an interior angle formed by the light incidence faces.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 30, 2014
    Date of Patent: August 4, 2015
    Assignee: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yasuhiro Suto, Mitsuharu Yoshimoto, Tomohiko Okada, Hisashi Yamanaka, Shohichi Fukutome, Kenji Nakanishi
  • Publication number: 20150098744
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image reading unit, an image forming unit, a discharge unit, and a discharge tray. The image reading unit is configured to read a document placed on a document placement table by moving and scanning of a scanning body in a sub-scanning direction. The image forming unit is configured to form an image read by the image reading unit on a paper sheet. The discharge unit is configured to discharge the paper sheet on which an image is formed by the image forming unit to a direction perpendicular to the sub-scanning direction. The discharge tray is on which the paper sheet from the discharge unit is to be placed with a space portion at a lower side of the image reading unit. A bottom surface of a housing of the image reading unit facing the discharge tray is constituted of a first surface and a second surface. The first surface is a surface at a front side of the discharge unit in a discharging direction and high with respect to the discharge tray.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 5, 2013
    Publication date: April 9, 2015
    Inventors: Kenji Nakanishi, Masahiro Imoto, Yasuhiro Suto, Shohichi Fukutome, Hisashi Yamanaka, Mitsuharu Yoshimoto
  • Publication number: 20150055195
    Abstract: A light guiding body includes a long translucent body, a light incident surface formed at an end of the body in a longitudinal direction of the body, a light emitting surface formed on one side surface of the body along the longitudinal direction of the body, and a light emitting quantity adjusting portion formed on the other side surface of the body along the longitudinal direction of the body so as to be opposite to the light emitting surface. The light guiding body guides, in the body, light incident to the light incident surface, reflects the light by the light emitting quantity adjusting portion, and emits the light from the light emitting surface. A width of the light emitting quantity adjusting portion of the body in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the body is varied according to a position in the width in the longitudinal direction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 11, 2014
    Publication date: February 26, 2015
    Inventors: Yasuhiro SUTO, Shohichi FUKUTOME, Masahiro IMOTO
  • Patent number: 8964264
    Abstract: An illuminating device capable of stably illuminating an irradiated object such as a document while suppressing light loss with a simply structure is provided. An LED array (71) and a reflective plate (73) are disposed sandwiching a slit (St) through which light reflected by a document MS passes and a light-guiding member (72) is disposed on the side of the LED array (71). The light-guiding member (72) includes a direct emission unit (77) disposed between an illumination range y centered on a document reading position and the LED array (71) and an indirect emission unit (78) disposed between the reflective plate (73) and the LED array (71), a light incidence face of the direct emission unit (77) and a light incidence face of the indirect emission unit (78) are disposed at mutually different position around the LED array (71), and the LED array (71) is disposed on a side of an interior angle formed by the light incidence faces.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 5, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 24, 2015
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yasuhiro Suto, Mitsuharu Yoshimoto, Tomohiko Okada, Hisashi Yamanaka, Shohichi Fukutome, Kenji Nakanishi
  • Publication number: 20150022843
    Abstract: An image reader is provided, in its housing, with a first scanning unit made up of an LED array of a plurality of LED elements that are arranged in a row in the horizontal scanning direction and that emit light to a document. An air intake port and an air exhaust port are disposed on the housing of the image reader. An imaginary line of an air flow path coupling the air intake port and the air exhaust port to one another is configured to pass adjacent a center of the LED array of the first scanning unit in the horizontal scanning direction with the first scanning unit stopped at a reading position of the document transferred by a document transfer device.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 9, 2014
    Publication date: January 22, 2015
    Inventors: HISASHI YAMANAKA, MITSUHARU YOSHIMOTO, KENJI NAKANISHI, YASUHIRO SUTO, SHOHICHI FUKUTOME, MASAHIRO IMOTO
  • Publication number: 20140376068
    Abstract: An image reading apparatus includes an image scanning unit that is provided with a holding portion holding a flexible flat cable. The holding portion is protruded toward an upstream side in a sub scanning direction, and provided with a second wall part. The flexible flat cable that is extended from a connector is brought into contact with the second wall part. As for the flexible flat cable, a downward movement is regulated by a lower holding portion and an upward movement is regulated by an upper holding portion. Accordingly, the flexible flat cable does not rise.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 23, 2014
    Publication date: December 25, 2014
    Inventors: Masahiro IMOTO, Yasuhiro SUTO, Hisashi YAMANAKA, Kenji NAKANISHI, Shohichi FUKUTOME, Kazuhiro IGUCHI
  • Patent number: 8897667
    Abstract: An image reader is provided, in its housing, with a first scanning unit made up of an LED array of a plurality of LED elements that are arranged in a row in the horizontal scanning direction and that emit light to a document. An air intake port and an air exhaust port are disposed on the housing of the image reader. An imaginary line of an air flow path coupling the air intake port and the air exhaust port to one another is configured to pass adjacent a center of the LED array of the first scanning unit in the horizontal scanning direction with the first scanning unit stopped at a reading position of the document transferred by a document transfer device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 26, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 25, 2014
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hisashi Yamanaka, Mitsuharu Yoshimoto, Kenji Nakanishi, Yasuhiro Suto, Shohichi Fukutome, Masahiro Imoto
  • Publication number: 20140285857
    Abstract: An illuminating device (210) according to an embodiment of the invention included in an image reading apparatus (100) and an image forming apparatus (D) includes light source portions (211a1), (211b1), (211a2) and (211b2), light-guiding members (213a) and (213b) for illuminating an illumination target (G) from an elongated light emitting face (M) that extends in a longitudinal direction (Y), by guiding light from the light source portions, and holding members (216a) and (216b) for holding the light-guiding members. The holding members include holding portions (2161a) and (2161b) for removably holding the light-guiding members, and tilted portions (2162a) and (2162b) that reflect light emitted from the light emitting face (M), the tilted portions extending from a front end on the light emitting face (M) side of the holding portions, obliquely widening with increasing distance from the light-guiding members.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 6, 2014
    Publication date: September 25, 2014
    Inventors: Yoshihisa YAMADA, Mitsuharu YOSHIMOTO, Yasuhiro SUTO, Kenji NAKANISHI, Shohichi FUKUTOME, Hisashi YAMANAKA
  • Publication number: 20140286046
    Abstract: An illuminating device capable of stably illuminating an irradiated object such as a document while suppressing light loss with a simply structure is provided. An LED array and a reflective plate are disposed sandwiching a slit (St) through which light reflected by a document MS passes and a light-guiding member is disposed on the side of the LED array. The light-guiding member includes a direct emission unit disposed between an illumination range y centered on a document reading position and the LED array and an indirect emission unit disposed between the reflective plate and the LED array, a light incidence face of the direct emission unit and a light incidence face of the indirect emission unit are disposed at mutually different position around the LED array, and the LED array is disposed on a side of an interior angle formed by the light incidence faces.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 30, 2014
    Publication date: September 25, 2014
    Applicant: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yasuhiro SUTO, Mitsuharu YOSHIMOTO, Tomohiko OKADA, Hisashi YAMANAKA, Shohichi FUKUTOME, Kenji NAKANISHI
  • Publication number: 20140240797
    Abstract: An illuminating device capable of stably illuminating an irradiated object such as a document while suppressing light loss with a simply structure is provided. An LED array (71) and a reflective plate (73) are disposed sandwiching a slit (St) through which light reflected by a document MS passes and a light-guiding member (72) is disposed on the side of the LED array (71). The light-guiding member (72) includes a direct emission unit (77) disposed between an illumination range y centered on a document reading position and the LED array (71) and an indirect emission unit (78) disposed between the reflective plate (73) and the LED array (71), a light incidence face of the direct emission unit (77) and a light incidence face of the indirect emission unit (78) are disposed at mutually different position around the LED array (71), and the LED array (71) is disposed on a side of an interior angle formed by the light incidence faces.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 5, 2014
    Publication date: August 28, 2014
    Applicant: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yasuhiro SUTO, Mitsuharu YOSHIMOTO, Tomohiko OKADA, Hisashi YAMANAKA, Shohichi FUKUTOME, Kenji NAKANISHI
  • Patent number: 8787799
    Abstract: An illuminating device (210) according to an embodiment of the invention included in an image reading apparatus (100) and an image forming apparatus (D) includes light source portions (211a1), (211b1), (211a2) and (211b2), light-guiding members (213a) and (213b) for illuminating an illumination target (G) from an elongated light emitting face (M) that extends in a longitudinal direction (Y), by guiding light from the light source portions, and holding members (216a) and (216b) for holding the light-guiding members. The holding members include holding portions (2161a) and (2161b) for removably holding the light-guiding members, and tilted portions (2162a) and (2162b) that reflect light emitted from the light emitting face (M), the tilted portions extending from a front end on the light emitting face (M) side of the holding portions, obliquely widening with increasing distance from the light-guiding members.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 9, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 22, 2014
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yoshihisa Yamada, Mitsuharu Yoshimoto, Yasuhiro Suto, Kenji Nakanishi, Shohichi Fukutome, Hisashi Yamanaka
  • Patent number: 8780421
    Abstract: A transparent sheet is attached onto an inclined surface of an original guide plate of an image reading apparatus, and similarly, a transparent sheet is attached onto an inclined surface at an edge portion of a reading guide plate, thereby preventing an original from being chipped by the ground glass-like inclined surfaces and illumination light from being diffused by the ground glass-like inclined surfaces.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 6, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 15, 2014
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Kenji Nakanishi, Hiroshi Nakatani, Hisashi Yamanaka, Shohichi Fukutome, Yoshihisa Yamada, Masahiro Imoto, Yasuhiro Suto
  • Patent number: 8755095
    Abstract: An illuminating device capable of stably illuminating an irradiated object such as a document while suppressing light loss with a simply structure is provided. An LED array (71) and a reflective plate (73) are disposed sandwiching a slit (St) through which light reflected by a document MS passes and a light-guiding member (72) is disposed on the side of the LED array (71). The light-guiding member (72) includes a direct emission unit (77) disposed between an illumination range y centered on a document reading position and the LED array (71) and an indirect emission unit (78) disposed between the reflective plate (73) and the LED array (71), a light incidence face of the direct emission unit (77) and a light incidence face of the indirect emission unit (78) are disposed at mutually different position around the LED array (71), and the LED array (71) is disposed on a side of an interior angle formed by the light incidence faces.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 15, 2010
    Date of Patent: June 17, 2014
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yasuhiro Suto, Mitsuharu Yoshimoto, Tomohiko Okada, Hisashi Yamanaka, Shohichi Fukutome, Kenji Nakanishi
  • Patent number: 8665503
    Abstract: A document reading section includes a document load table, a document load tray, a first document receiving tray, a linear conveyance path, a first guide member and a first reading section. The linear conveyance path, inclining downward from the document load tray, reaches the first document receiving tray. The first guide member is disposed in the linear conveyance path, and its top surface inclines downward along the linear conveyance path toward a downstream side in a document conveying direction in relation to the document load table. The first guide member is disposed in such a manner that part of its top surface intersects with a plane containing a top surface of the document load table.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 1, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 4, 2014
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Mitsuharu Yoshimoto, Yasuhiro Suto, Shohichi Fukutome, Kenji Nakanishi, Hisashi Yamanaka, Sohichi Takata
  • Patent number: 8625170
    Abstract: The present invention provides an illuminating device including a plurality of light-emitting elements arranged in a line, the illuminating device illuminates an irradiation target by irradiating the irradiation target with light that is emitted from the light-emitting elements via a first and a second optical paths. In the illuminating device, a light diffusing portion for diffusing light is provided in one of the first optical path and the second optical path, and an irradiation light amount of said one of the first optical path and the second optical path in which the light diffusing portion is provided is larger than an irradiation light amount of the other optical path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 7, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 7, 2014
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Masahiro Imoto, Mitsuharu Yoshimoto, Yasuhiro Suto, Shohichi Fukutome, Kenji Nakanishi, Hisashi Yamanaka, Yoshihisa Yamada
  • Patent number: 8619339
    Abstract: An image reading apparatus includes a reading glass, a second guide member, and a control section. The reading glass and the second guide member together form a document feed path. The second guide member includes a white reference plate. The control section performs, when it is determined that shading correction image data is affected by a stain, a stain location determination of whether the stain is attached to the reading glass or the second guide member according to a tone value variation in the portion of the shading correction image data that corresponds to the stain edge, the variation being along a predetermined distance in the main scanning direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 19, 2011
    Date of Patent: December 31, 2013
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Shohichi Fukutome, Hironori Ogasawara, Mitsuharu Yoshimoto, Kenji Nakanishi, Masahiro Imoto, Yasuhiro Suto
  • Patent number: 8599447
    Abstract: In a light source unit (210) serving as an embodiment of an illuminating apparatus, when P is a light-emitting element pitch [mm], and H is an optical axis distance [mm] between light-emitting elements (212) and an original (G), and when, in an illuminance cycle (T) representing repetition of bright and dark areas in a main scanning direction (X) on a light-irradiated face (Gs) of the original (G) caused by the light-emitting elements (212), the light-emitting element pitch (P) and the optical axis distance (H) are set such that unevenness [%] (M) (=(L1?L2)/L3 [%]) obtained by dividing a value obtained by subtracting a minimum illuminance value (L2) from a maximum illuminance value (L1) by an average illuminance value (L3) and an inter-unevenness distance [mm] (N) which is a half cycle of the illuminance cycle (T) satisfy the relation M?N/2?5.5, and more preferably, M?N/2?7.5.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2009
    Date of Patent: December 3, 2013
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yasuhiro Suto, Tomohiko Okada, Shohichi Fukutome, Hisashi Yamanaka, Kenji Nakanishi, Yoshihisa Yamada, Mitsuharu Yoshimoto, Eiji Kurimoto, Keiji Sakai
  • Patent number: 8564859
    Abstract: An image reading apparatus comprises: an image reading unit that includes a platen glass and a color contact image sensor configured by a line image sensor for reading red, a line image sensor for reading green, and a line image sensor for reading blue, the line image sensors being disposed in a sub-scanning direction of an original; and an automatic original feeder. In the image reading apparatus, the line image sensor for reading red and the line image sensor for reading green are disposed so that a line gap therebetween is two lines, and in a monochrome mode in which a color original is read and output as a monochrome image, the color original is read using the line image sensor for reading red and the line image sensor for reading green.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 28, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 22, 2013
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Mitsuharu Yoshimoto, Kenji Tanaka, Kenji Nakanishi, Shohichi Fukutome