Patents by Inventor Tetsuro Nagakubo

Tetsuro Nagakubo 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: 6661917
    Abstract: A gradation correcting apparatus which is capable of preventing a luminance distribution from excessively extending over the dynamic range to accomplish an optimal gradation correction in accordance with the partiality of the luminance distribution of a particular video signal. A corrected luminance level is created for each of a plurality of luminance levels based on the frequency data in a luminance distribution such that the luminance distribution of the input luminance signal extends over a predetermined dynamic range, and is stored in an extension correcting table memory. A variance value is calculated for the luminance distribution in accordance with the frequency data to set a mixture ratio based on the variance value. Each of the plurality of luminance levels and the corrected luminance level in the extension correcting table memory corresponding thereto are mixed in the mixture ratio.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2000
    Date of Patent: December 9, 2003
    Assignee: Pioneer Corporation
    Inventors: Tetsuro Nagakubo, Hirofumi Honda
  • Patent number: 6642911
    Abstract: A plasma display panel driving method capable of improving the contrast while preventing spurious borders. Only in the first subfield, a writing discharge is selectively produced only in discharge cells except for those serving to display a luminance level “0” to initialize these discharge cells to a light emitting cell state. Then, only in one of the remaining subfields except for the first subfield, an erasure discharge is selectively produced in the discharge cells remaining in the light emitting cell state in accordance with pixel data, causing the discharge cells to transition to a non-light emitting cell state. Only the discharge cells remaining in the light emitting cell state are driven to emit light the number of light emissions allocated thereto corresponding to a weighting factor applied to the subfield.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 26, 2001
    Date of Patent: November 4, 2003
    Assignee: Pioneer Corporation
    Inventors: Tetsuya Shigeta, Tetsuro Nagakubo, Hirofumi Honda
  • Patent number: 6621474
    Abstract: A plasma display apparatus is configured to display excellent tone by estimating the impedance of the plasma display panel based on picture element data corresponding to a video signal and by changing driving pulse width in accordance with such estimated impedance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 22, 2001
    Date of Patent: September 16, 2003
    Assignee: Pioneer Corporation
    Inventors: Tetsuro Nagakubo, Tetsuya Shigeta, Hirofumi Honda
  • Patent number: 6552736
    Abstract: A display panel driving method capable of realizing a high definition gradation display while reducing power consumption. In each of a plurality of divisional display periods constituting a unit display period in a video signal, a pixel data writing stage is performed for setting each of pixel cells to either a light emitting cell or a non-light emitting cell in accordance with pixel data corresponding to the video signal, and a light emission sustain stage is performed for causing only the light emitting cells to emit light a number of light emissions allocated in correspondence to a weighting factor applied to each of the divisional display periods. A luminance distribution of the video signal is measured every display line on the display panel, and the number of divisional display periods in the unit display period is changed every display line in accordance with the luminance distribution.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 2001
    Date of Patent: April 22, 2003
    Assignee: Pioneer Corporation
    Inventors: Hirofumi Honda, Tetsuya Shigeta, Tetsuro Nagakubo
  • Patent number: 6483248
    Abstract: A display device in which a display panel is driven by converting a video signal of interlaced scanning inputted by field-to-field interpolation processing using fields of the same film frame into a video signal of line sequential scanning in the case that the video signal of the inputted video signal of interlaced scanning is a telecine-converted video signal by unit of field obtained by telecine-converting the film source of 24 frames per second, thinning out the video signal of line sequential scanning after the conversion, writing it in a memory by unit of field, repeatedly reading the video signal of line sequential scanning written into the memory by n times from the memory at a rate of n times as large as 24 Hz, and using the read video signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 1, 2001
    Date of Patent: November 19, 2002
    Assignee: Pioneer Corporation
    Inventors: Tetsuro Nagakubo, Tetsuya Shigeta, Hirofumi Honda
  • Patent number: 6479943
    Abstract: A display panel driving method sequentially writes pixel data of every display line into pixel cells on display lines belonging to a region other than a black display region on a screen, while the method stops writing pixel data into pixel cells on display lines belonging to the black display region or simultaneously sets the pixel cells into a non-light emitting cell state. Since a time spent for each pixel data writing process in one field is reduced, a light emission period (number of times) allocated to each light emission sustain process is increased, or the number of subfields is increased by the reduction in time, thereby making it possible to improve the quality of a displayed image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 10, 2001
    Date of Patent: November 12, 2002
    Assignee: Pioneer Corporation
    Inventors: Tetsuya Shigeta, Tetsuro Nagakubo, Hirofumi Honda
  • Patent number: 6472825
    Abstract: A method for driving a plasma display panel capable of obtaining a good display quality. In a pixel data writing step in a sub-field that is weighted small, discharge cells in the plasma display panel are scanned in a unit of plurality of display lines and are set to one of a light emitting state and a non-light emitting state depending upon the pixel data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 2001
    Date of Patent: October 29, 2002
    Assignee: Pioneer Corporation
    Inventors: Tetsuya Shigeta, Tetsuro Nagakubo, Hirofumi Honda
  • Patent number: 6465970
    Abstract: A plasma display device which improves the contrast of an image displayed. The plasma display device includes a plurality of row electrodes formed in pairs corresponding to each display line, a plurality of column electrodes arranged to cross the row electrodes to form a discharge cell corresponding to one pixel at each intersection with a pair of said row electrodes, and a driving controller for controlling driving of the row and column electrodes. A gradation display of input pixel data is performed by dividing one field display period into a plurality of subfields. The driving controller, when one field of input pixel data is displayed, changes the number of reset discharges for initializing all discharge cells in accordance with an average luminance value of input pixel data in the preceding field.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 24, 2001
    Date of Patent: October 15, 2002
    Assignee: Pioneer Corporation
    Inventors: Tetsuro Nagakubo, Tetsuya Shigeta, Hirofumi Honda
  • Publication number: 20020063662
    Abstract: A plasma display apparatus is configured to display excellent tone by estimating the impedance of the plasma display panel based on picture element data corresponding to a video signal and by changing driving pulse width in accordance with such estimated impedance.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 22, 2001
    Publication date: May 30, 2002
    Applicant: PIONEER CORPORATION
    Inventors: Tetsuro Nagakubo, Tetsuya Shigeta, Hirofumi Honda
  • Publication number: 20020036715
    Abstract: A luminance level compensating apparatus passes only the luminance signal of a pixel in a first detection range in the vertical direction of an image indicated by an input luminance signal, detects and stores a first frequency for each luminance level of the passed luminance signal for each predetermined period, passes only a luminance signal of a pixel in a second detection range including the first detection range in the vertical direction of the image, detects and stores a second frequency for each luminance level of the passed luminance signal for each predetermined period; generates a mixed frequency data based on the first and second frequencies stored.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 20, 2001
    Publication date: March 28, 2002
    Inventors: Hirofumi Honda, Tetsuya Shigeta, Tetsuro Nagakubo
  • Publication number: 20020036603
    Abstract: A display device in which a display panel is driven by converting a video signal of interlaced scanning inputted by field-to-field interpolation processing using fields of the same film frame into a video signal of line sequential scanning in the case that the video signal of the inputted video signal of interlaced scanning is a telecine-converted video signal by unit of field obtained by telecine-converting the film source of 24 frames per second, thinning out the video signal of line sequential scanning after the conversion, writing it in a memory by unit of field, repeatedly reading the video signal of line sequential scanning written into the memory by n times from the memory at a rate of n times as large as 24 Hz, and using the read video signal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 1, 2001
    Publication date: March 28, 2002
    Applicant: PIONEER CORPORATION
    Inventors: Tetsuro Nagakubo, Tetsuya Shigeta, Hirofumi Honda
  • Publication number: 20020030672
    Abstract: A display panel driving method capable of realizing a high definition gradation display while reducing power consumption. In each of a plurality of divisional display periods constituting a unit display period in a video signal, a pixel data writing stage is performed for setting each of pixel cells to either a light emitting cell or a non-light emitting cell in accordance with pixel data corresponding to the video signal, and a light emission sustain stage is performed for causing only the light emitting cells to emit light a number of light emissions allocated in correspondence to a weighting factor applied to each of the divisional display periods. A luminance distribution of the video signal is measured every display line on the display panel, and the number of divisional display periods in the unit display period is changed every display line in accordance with the luminance distribution.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 18, 2001
    Publication date: March 14, 2002
    Inventors: Hirofumi Honda, Tetsuya Shigeta, Tetsuro Nagakubo
  • Publication number: 20020030671
    Abstract: A display panel driving method sequentially writes pixel data of every display line into pixel cells on display lines belonging to a region other than a black display region on a screen, while the method stops writing pixel data into pixel cells on display lines belonging to the black display region or simultaneously sets the pixel cells into a non-light emitting cell state. Since a time spent for each pixel data writing process in one field is reduced, a light emission period (number of times) allocated to each light emission sustain process is increased, or the number of subfields is increased by the reduction in time, thereby making it possible to improve the quality of a displayed image.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 10, 2001
    Publication date: March 14, 2002
    Inventors: Tetsuya Shigeta, Tetsuro Nagakubo, Hirofumi Honda
  • Publication number: 20020021263
    Abstract: A plasma display device capable of providing high luminance display. In each subfield, a non-selected line on which all the discharge cells are not subjected to selective discharge is detected, and pixel data writing scanning is performed only to display lines excluding such non-selected lines.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 29, 2001
    Publication date: February 21, 2002
    Applicant: PIONEER CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hirofumi Honda, Tetsuya Shigeta, Tetsuro Nagakubo
  • Publication number: 20020018030
    Abstract: A plasma display panel driving method capable of improving the contrast while preventing spurious borders. Only in the first subfield, a writing discharge is selectively produced only in discharge cells except for those serving to display a luminance level “0” to initialize these discharge cells to a light emitting cell state. Then, only in one of the remaining subfields except for the first subfield, an erasure discharge is selectively produced in the discharge cells remaining in the light emitting cell state in accordance with pixel data, causing the discharge cells to transition to a non-light emitting cell state. Only the discharge cells remaining in the light emitting cell state are driven to emit light the number of light emissions allocated thereto corresponding to a weighting factor applied to the subfield.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 26, 2001
    Publication date: February 14, 2002
    Inventors: Tetsuya Shigeta, Tetsuro Nagakubo, Hirofumi Honda
  • Publication number: 20020014847
    Abstract: A plasma display device which improves the contrast of an image displayed. The plasma display device includes a plurality of row electrodes formed in pairs corresponding to each display line, a plurality of column electrodes arranged to cross the row electrodes to form a discharge cell corresponding to one pixel at each intersection with a pair of said row electrodes, and a driving controller for controlling driving of the row and column electrodes. A gradation display of input pixel data is performed by dividing one field display period into a plurality of subfields. The driving controller, when one field of input pixel data is displayed, changes the number of reset discharges for initializing all discharge cells in accordance with an average luminance value of input pixel data in the preceding field.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 24, 2001
    Publication date: February 7, 2002
    Applicant: PIONEER CORPORATION
    Inventors: Tetsuro Nagakubo, Tetsuya Shigeta, Hirofumi Honda
  • Publication number: 20020015011
    Abstract: A driving method of a plasma display panel capable of executing a dither processing without lowering display quality. When only discharge cells set to a light emission cell state in accordance with input image signals are allowed to emit light a predetermined number of light emissions allotted in accordance with weighting of sub-fields, the number of light emissions to be allotted is rendered different for each discharge cell inside a discharge cell block.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 19, 2001
    Publication date: February 7, 2002
    Applicant: PIONEER CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hirofumi Honda, Tetsuya Shigeta, Tetsuro Nagakubo
  • Publication number: 20020015112
    Abstract: An infrared remote control device used for a plasma display device in which a light-reception signal is obtained by reception of infrared rays, the light-reception signal is demodulated, a signal component during an emission sustaining period is removed from the modulated output signal by a gate circuit, the output signal is output, the output signal of the gate circuit is delayed by a delaying circuit in the field, the logical sum of the output signal of the gate circuit and the output signal of the delaying circuit is calculated, and the contents of the remote control signal that controls the operation of the plasma display device are judged in accordance with a signal obtained by the calculation of the logical sum.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 6, 2001
    Publication date: February 7, 2002
    Applicant: PIONEER CORPORATION
    Inventors: Tetsuro Nagakubo, Tetsuya Shigeta, Hirofumi Honda
  • Publication number: 20020005842
    Abstract: A display panel driving method capable of performing a good intermediate luminance display corresponding to an input video signal. A unit display period in a video signal is composed of a plurality of divisional display periods. In each of the divisional display periods, a pixel data writing process is performed for setting each of pixel cells to either a light emitting cell or a non-light emitting cell in accordance with pixel data corresponding to the video signal, and a light emission sustain process is performed for causing only the light emitting cells to emit light a number of light emissions allocated in correspondence to a weighting factor applied to each of the divisional display period. A luminance distribution of the video signal is measured every display line on the display panel, and the number of light emissions allocated to each of the light emission sustain process is changed every display line in accordance with the luminance distribution.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 18, 2001
    Publication date: January 17, 2002
    Inventors: Hirofumi Honda, Tetsuya Shigeta, Tetsuro Nagakubo
  • Publication number: 20020005823
    Abstract: A method for driving a plasma display panel capable of obtaining a good display quality. In a pixel data writing step in a sub-field that is weighted small, discharge cells in the plasma display panel are scanned in a unit of plurality of display lines and are set to one of a light emitting state and a non-light emitting state depending upon the pixel data.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 18, 2001
    Publication date: January 17, 2002
    Inventors: Tetsuya Shigeta, Tetsuro Nagakubo, Hirofumi Honda