Patents by Inventor Sota Harada
Sota Harada 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).
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Publication number: 20240083166Abstract: According to an embodiment, an inkjet head includes a piezoelectric element that is configured to change the volume of a pressure chamber from which a liquid is dispensed. A first switch is configured to connect the piezoelectric to a first power line at a first voltage when turned on, and a control circuit is configured to turn on the first switch at a first change time and then turn off the first switch after the voltage of the piezoelectric element reaches the first voltage and then turn on the first switch before a second change time. The control circuit applies a drive waveform to the piezoelectric element in which the voltage of the drive waveform is a second voltage before the first change time, the first voltage after the first change time, and the second voltage after the second change time.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 16, 2023Publication date: March 14, 2024Inventor: Sota HARADA
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Patent number: 11565520Abstract: An actuator drive circuit of a liquid discharge apparatus includes a discharge waveform generating circuit, a sleep waveform generating circuit, and a wake waveform generating circuit. The discharge waveform generating circuit is configured to generate a plurality of drive waveforms to be applied to actuators of the liquid discharge apparatus for liquid discharge. The drive waveforms correspond to gradation values of gradation scale data. The sleep waveform generating circuit is configured to generate a sleep waveform to be applied to the actuators. The sleep waveform causes a voltage of the actuators to transition to a first voltage without liquid discharge. The wake waveform generating circuit is configured to generate a wake waveform to be applied to the actuators. The wake waveform causes the voltage of the actuators to transition to a second voltage higher than the first voltage without liquid discharge.Type: GrantFiled: January 3, 2022Date of Patent: January 31, 2023Assignee: TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Noboru Nitta, Shunichi Ono, Sota Harada
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Patent number: 11331912Abstract: An actuator drive circuit of a liquid discharge apparatus includes a discharge waveform generating circuit, a sleep waveform generating circuit, and a wake waveform generating circuit. The discharge waveform generating circuit is configured to generate a plurality of drive waveforms to be applied to actuators of the liquid discharge apparatus for liquid discharge. The drive waveforms correspond to gradation values of gradation scale data. The sleep waveform generating circuit is configured to generate a sleep waveform to be applied to the actuators. The sleep waveform causes a voltage of the actuators to transition to a first voltage without liquid discharge. The wake waveform generating circuit is configured to generate a wake waveform to be applied to the actuators. The wake waveform causes the voltage of the actuators to transition to a second voltage higher than the first voltage without liquid discharge.Type: GrantFiled: February 4, 2020Date of Patent: May 17, 2022Assignee: TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Noboru Nitta, Shunichi Ono, Sota Harada
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Publication number: 20220118761Abstract: An actuator drive circuit of a liquid discharge apparatus includes a discharge waveform generating circuit, a sleep waveform generating circuit, and a wake waveform generating circuit. The discharge waveform generating circuit is configured to generate a plurality of drive waveforms to be applied to actuators of the liquid discharge apparatus for liquid discharge. The drive waveforms correspond to gradation values of gradation scale data. The sleep waveform generating circuit is configured to generate a sleep waveform to be applied to the actuators. The sleep waveform causes a voltage of the actuators to transition to a first voltage without liquid discharge. The wake waveform generating circuit is configured to generate a wake waveform to be applied to the actuators. The wake waveform causes the voltage of the actuators to transition to a second voltage higher than the first voltage without liquid discharge.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 3, 2022Publication date: April 21, 2022Inventors: Noboru NITTA, Shunichi ONO, Sota HARADA
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Patent number: 11123982Abstract: An actuator drive circuit for a liquid discharge apparatus includes an output switch and a waveform selector circuit. The output switch includes a first transistor configured to supply a first voltage to an actuator when on and a second transistor configured to supply a second voltage higher than the first voltage to the actuator when on. The waveform selector circuit is configured to select, from a plurality of waveforms stored in a waveform memory, a first waveform that causes the output switch to transition to a first state in which the first transistor is on and the second transistor is off, and a second waveform that causes the output switch to transition to a second state in which the first transistor is off and the second transistor is on.Type: GrantFiled: February 4, 2020Date of Patent: September 21, 2021Assignee: TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Noboru Nitta, Shunichi Ono, Sota Harada
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Patent number: 11077657Abstract: A liquid discharge apparatus includes an actuator and a drive circuit. The actuator is configured to cause liquid to be discharged from a nozzle corresponding thereto. The drive circuit is configured to apply a wake waveform to the actuator such that a voltage of the actuator increases to a first voltage and then is maintained at the first voltage without discharge of liquid from the nozzle. A drive waveform is then applied to the actuator for each of one or more discharge cycles such that liquid is discharged from the nozzle for each of the discharge cycles. A time from when the wave waveform starts to be applied to the actuator to when the drive waveform starts to be applied to the actuator is equal to or longer than a period of time of two discharge cycles.Type: GrantFiled: February 4, 2020Date of Patent: August 3, 2021Assignee: TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Noboru Nitta, Shunichi Ono, Sota Harada
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Patent number: 11059287Abstract: A liquid discharge apparatus includes an actuator and a drive circuit. The actuator is configured to cause liquid to be discharged from a nozzle. The drive circuit is configured to apply a waveform to the actuator during a discharge cycle in accordance with a discharge trigger and to cause a voltage of the actuator to be maintained at a value from an end of the discharge cycle until reception of a subsequent discharge trigger.Type: GrantFiled: February 4, 2020Date of Patent: July 13, 2021Assignee: TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Noboru Nitta, Shunichi Ono, Sota Harada
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Patent number: 10933630Abstract: According to one embodiment, a liquid ejection device includes a nozzle plate, an actuator, a liquid supply unit, a waveform generation circuit, a waveform allocation circuit, and a drive signal output circuit. A plurality of nozzles for ejecting liquid is arranged in the nozzle plate. The actuator is provided in each of the nozzles. The waveform generation circuit generates plural kinds of drive waveforms with different generation start timings. The waveform allocation circuit can set the drive waveform among plural kinds of drive waveforms and the actuator of the nozzle to be allocated. The drive signal output circuit drives the actuator with the allocated drive waveform.Type: GrantFiled: August 22, 2019Date of Patent: March 2, 2021Assignee: TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Noboru Nitta, Shunichi Ono, Sota Harada
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Publication number: 20200307187Abstract: A liquid discharge apparatus includes an actuator and a drive circuit. The actuator is configured to cause liquid to be discharged from a nozzle. The drive circuit is configured to apply a waveform to the actuator during a discharge cycle in accordance with a discharge trigger and to cause a voltage of the actuator to be maintained at a value from an end of the discharge cycle until reception of a subsequent discharge trigger.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 4, 2020Publication date: October 1, 2020Inventors: Noboru NITTA, Shunichi ONO, Sota HARADA
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Publication number: 20200307189Abstract: An actuator drive circuit for a liquid discharge apparatus includes an output switch and a waveform selector circuit. The output switch includes a first transistor configured to supply a first voltage to an actuator when on and a second transistor configured to supply a second voltage higher than the first voltage to the actuator when on. The waveform selector circuit is configured to select, from a plurality of waveforms stored in a waveform memory, a first waveform that causes the output switch to transition to a first state in which the first transistor is on and the second transistor is off, and a second waveform that causes the output switch to transition to a second state in which the first transistor is off and the second transistor is on.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 4, 2020Publication date: October 1, 2020Inventors: Noboru NITTA, Shunichi ONO, Sota HARADA
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Publication number: 20200307190Abstract: A liquid discharge apparatus includes an actuator and a drive circuit. The actuator is configured to cause liquid to be discharged from a nozzle corresponding thereto. The drive circuit is configured to apply a wake waveform to the actuator such that a voltage of the actuator increases to a first voltage and then is maintained at the first voltage without discharge of liquid from the nozzle. A drive waveform is then applied to the actuator for each of one or more discharge cycles such that liquid is discharged from the nozzle for each of the discharge cycles. A time from when the wave waveform starts to be applied to the actuator to when the drive waveform starts to be applied to the actuator is equal to or longer than a period of time of two discharge cycles.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 4, 2020Publication date: October 1, 2020Inventors: Noboru NITTA, Shunichi ONO, Sota HARADA
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Publication number: 20200307188Abstract: An actuator drive circuit of a liquid discharge apparatus includes a discharge waveform generating circuit, a sleep waveform generating circuit, and a wake waveform generating circuit. The discharge waveform generating circuit is configured to generate a plurality of drive waveforms to be applied to actuators of the liquid discharge apparatus for liquid discharge. The drive waveforms correspond to gradation values of gradation scale data. The sleep waveform generating circuit is configured to generate a sleep waveform to be applied to the actuators. The sleep waveform causes a voltage of the actuators to transition to a first voltage without liquid discharge. The wake waveform generating circuit is configured to generate a wake waveform to be applied to the actuators. The wake waveform causes the voltage of the actuators to transition to a second voltage higher than the first voltage without liquid discharge.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 4, 2020Publication date: October 1, 2020Inventors: Noboru NITTA, Shunichi ONO, Sota HARADA
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Publication number: 20200070506Abstract: According to one embodiment, a liquid ejection device includes a nozzle plate, an actuator, a liquid supply unit, a waveform generation circuit, a waveform allocation circuit, and a drive signal output circuit. A plurality of nozzles for ejecting liquid is arranged in the nozzle plate. The actuator is provided in each of the nozzles. The waveform generation circuit generates plural kinds of drive waveforms with different generation start timings. The waveform allocation circuit can set the drive waveform among plural kinds of drive waveforms and the actuator of the nozzle to be allocated. The drive signal output circuit drives the actuator with the allocated drive waveform.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 22, 2019Publication date: March 5, 2020Inventors: Noboru Nitta, Shunichi Ono, Sota Harada
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Publication number: 20180264810Abstract: According to one embodiment, an ink jet head includes an actuator configured to cause ink to be discharged from a pressure chamber associated with the actuator, and a control unit configured to apply to the actuator in a droplet ejection process an auxiliary signal that does not cause ink to be discharged from the pressure chamber, and a discharge signal that causes ink to be discharged from the pressure chamber.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 9, 2018Publication date: September 20, 2018Inventor: Sota HARADA
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Publication number: 20170291411Abstract: In accordance with an embodiment, an inkjet head comprises a first actuator and a second actuator, a first electrode, a second electrode, a third electrode, and a drive controller. The first actuator and the second actuator constitute a pressure chamber. The first electrode comes in contact with the first actuator from the outer side of the pressure chamber. The second electrode comes in contact with the first actuator and the second actuator from the inner side of the pressure chamber. The third electrode comes in contact with the second actuator from the outer side of the pressure chamber. The drive control section outputs an auxiliary pulse which generates volume change in the pressure chamber that is smaller than volume change of the pressure chamber generated by an ejection pulse for ejecting ink from the pressure chamber to the first electrode, the second electrode, and the third electrode.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 15, 2016Publication date: October 12, 2017Inventor: Sota Harada