Patents by Inventor Takafumi Iizawa

Takafumi Iizawa 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).

  • Vehicle steering system and coupling-mechanism switching method
    Patent number: 11787464
    Abstract: A vehicle steering system provided for a vehicle whose driving state is switchable between a manual driving state and an automatic driving state, the vehicle steering system including a coupling mechanism configured to couple a steering operation member operated by a driver and at least one steerable wheel of the vehicle, wherein, when the driving state of the vehicle is switched from the manual driving state to the automatic driving state, the coupling mechanism is switched from a mechanically coupling state in which the coupling mechanism mechanically couples the steering operation member and the at least one steerable wheel to each other to a mechanically decoupling state in which the coupling mechanism mechanically decouples the steering operation member and the at least one steerable wheel from each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 2021
    Date of Patent: October 17, 2023
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Takafumi Iizawa
  • VEHICLE STEERING SYSTEM AND COUPLING-MECHANISM SWITCHING METHOD
    Publication number: 20210300456
    Abstract: A vehicle steering system provided for a vehicle whose driving state is switchable between a manual driving state and an automatic driving state, the vehicle steering system including a coupling mechanism configured to couple a steering operation member operated by a driver and at least one steerable wheel of the vehicle, wherein, when the driving state of the vehicle is switched from the manual driving state to the automatic driving state, the coupling mechanism is switched from a mechanically coupling state in which the coupling mechanism mechanically couples the steering operation member and the at least one steerable wheel to each other to a mechanically decoupling state in which the coupling mechanism mechanically decouples the steering operation member and the at least one steerable wheel from each other.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 17, 2021
    Publication date: September 30, 2021
    Inventor: Takafumi Iizawa