Patents by Inventor Tatsuaki Tanaka

Tatsuaki Tanaka 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: 7375450
    Abstract: A hub unit for use in electrically assisted bicycles has an improved effect to radiate heat from a stator. A hub (7) has inner teeth (66a) meshable with planetary gears (65) and a fixing support shaft (57) projecting from opposite ends of the hub and provided fixedly relative to a motor housing (5). The motor housing (5) has no cylindrical wall (8) covering the outer peripheral surface of the stator (3) but leaves the stator outer peripheral surface exposed to effectively release the heat generated by the windings of the stator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 25, 2005
    Date of Patent: May 20, 2008
    Assignee: Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Tatsuaki Tanaka, Kazuhiro Tomoshige, Ryohei Adachi
  • Publication number: 20050264111
    Abstract: A hub unit for use in electrically assisted bicycles has an improved effect to radiate heat from a stator. A hub (7) has inner teeth (66a) meshable with planetary gears (65) and a fixing support shaft (57) projecting from opposite ends of the hub and provided fixedly relative to a motor housing (5). The motor housing (5) has no cylindrical wall (8) covering the outer peripheral surface of the stator (3) but leaves the stator outer peripheral surface exposed to effectively release the heat generated by the windings of the stator.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 25, 2005
    Publication date: December 1, 2005
    Applicant: Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Tatsuaki Tanaka, Kazuhiro Tomoshige, Ryohei Adachi
  • Publication number: 20050264112
    Abstract: A hub unit wherein the axis is prevented from deflecting for use in electrically assisted bicycles. A single fixing support shaft (57) has opposite ends projecting outward respectively from opposite ends of a hub (7) enclosing a motor (9) and a planetary gear reduction mechanism (6) therein and having inner teeth (66a) in mesh with planetary gears (65). The rotor (4) of the motor (9) has a tubular rotating shaft (44) rotatably fitted around the support shaft (57) and is therefore rotatable free of deflection of its axis relative to the support shaft (57). The hub unit is more simplified in construction and easier to assemble than the conventional hub unit wherein the rotating shaft of the rotor (4) is separate from the support shaft (57).
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 25, 2005
    Publication date: December 1, 2005
    Applicant: Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Tatsuaki Tanaka, Kazuhiro Tomoshige, Ryohei Adachi
  • Patent number: 6015021
    Abstract: An electrically assisted vehicle includes a vehicle body having a driving wheel driven by human driving power and electric driving power, a driving power applying section for applying the human driving power to drive the driving wheel, a torque detection section to detect the human driving power applied to the driving power applying section, a motor to auxiliarily drive the driving wheel by the electric driving power, a battery to supply power for the motor, and a control section to control the motor according to a result detected by the torque detection section, wherein the control section has a plurality of switchable assist modes relating to an assist ratio of the electric driving power to the human driving power.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 1997
    Date of Patent: January 18, 2000
    Assignee: Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Tatsuaki Tanaka, Toshihiro Suhara, Toshihiro Matsumoto, Hiroaki Sagara, Yoshihiko Maeda
  • Patent number: 5984038
    Abstract: A vehicle having a man power driving system in which a driving force by man power is applied through a gear change mechanism to rotate a wheel, an a motor driving system in which the wheel is rotated by a driving force of a motor. The man power driving system is equipped with a torque detector for detecting a man power driving force so as to drive the motor according to a magnitude of the man power driving force detected by the turque detector. A particularly durable gear change mechanism is not required, and thus a common gear change mechanism for bicycle can be used, thereby simplifying construction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 14, 1996
    Date of Patent: November 16, 1999
    Assignee: Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Masakatsu Fujiwara, Masaru Tanaka, Tatsuaki Tanaka, Hiroyasu Ishihara, Toshihiro Suhara, Kazuhisa Matsumoto
  • Patent number: 5971090
    Abstract: A torque limiting device for motors in electrically driven vehicles includes a control device for controlling an electric driving power supplied to a motor in an electrically driven vehicle; a detecting section for detecting a driven state of the motor and outputting an output signal of the motor; and an upper electric driving power limit setting device in which a plurality of restricting values corresponding to the output signal from the detecting section are previously set, wherein the upper electric driving power limit setting device gives a command to the control device to restrict an upper limit of the driving power on the basis of one of the plurality of restricting values when the output signal is outputted, thereby limiting a torque of the motor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 1997
    Date of Patent: October 26, 1999
    Assignee: Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Tatsuaki Tanaka, Toshihiro Suhara, Hiroaki Sagara, Toshihiro Matsumoto, Yoshihiko Maeda
  • Patent number: 5860487
    Abstract: An electrically assisted vehicle includes a vehicle main body having a driving wheel, a human drive system having a driving force applying part to which a human driving force for driving the driving wheel is applied and a torque detecting part for detecting the human driving force applied to the driving force applying part, and an electric drive system having a motor, a control part for controlling the motor and a battery for power supply, wherein the motor has an electric driving force characteristic such that it outputs the electric driving force only at speeds lower than a predetermined speed, and the control part of the electric drive system controls the motor with a predetermined ratio on the basis of detection results from the torque detecting part of the human drive systems thereby executing power assistance control while maintaining the assist ratio to be less than a predetermined value without providing a speed sensor for carrying out control based on the speed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 1996
    Date of Patent: January 19, 1999
    Assignee: Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Tatsuaki Tanaka, Toshihiro Suhara, Toshihiro Matsumoto, Hiroaki Sagara, Yoshihiko Maeda
  • Patent number: 5857537
    Abstract: A motorized bicycle includes an electric motor, a motor current detector, a pedaling force detector and a controller. The controller compares the range of fluctuation in a pedaling force detected by the pedaling force detector with a predetermined range value, and stops the driving of the electric motor if the fluctuation range of the pedaling force is kept smaller than the predetermined range value for more than a predetermined time period.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 1996
    Date of Patent: January 12, 1999
    Assignee: Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Toshihiro Matsumoto, Tatsuaki Tanaka, Toshihiro Suhara
  • Patent number: 5819867
    Abstract: An electrically powered bicycle that is driven by a main driving force generated by pedaling and an auxiliary driving force, including: a motor for generating the auxiliary driving force, a battery for supplying electric power to the motor, an acceleration sensor for detecting running acceleration of the electrically powered bicycle, and control device for controlling the electric power to be supplied to the motor so that the motor outputs the auxiliary driving force in accordance with the running acceleration thus detected.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 1996
    Date of Patent: October 13, 1998
    Assignee: Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Toshihiro Matsumoto, Tatsuaki Tanaka, Toshihiro Suhara