Patents by Inventor Tomohiko Baba

Tomohiko Baba 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: 20120048664
    Abstract: A multi-cylinder hydraulic shock absorber (D) expands and contracts in accordance with expansion and contraction of a working chamber (R1, R2) provided in a cylinder (1) and having a working fluid sealed therein. An outer periphery of the cylinder (1) is covered by an outer tube (4), and a gas chamber housing (10) projects upward from an upper end of the outer tube (4). A space between the outer tube (4) and the cylinder (1) and an inner side of the gas chamber housing (10) are used as a working fluid reservoir (5). A gas chamber (6) opposing a liquid level (S) of the working fluid is formed inside the gas chamber housing (10). With this constitution, a volume of the gas chamber (6) is secured when the multi-cylinder hydraulic shock absorber (D) is disposed horizontally while suppressing an increase in a diameter of the outer tube (4).
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 1, 2010
    Publication date: March 1, 2012
    Applicant: KAYABA INDUSTRY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Tomohiko Baba, Shigeru Kojima, Syusaku Nogami
  • Patent number: 8074974
    Abstract: A vehicle height adjusting device includes a cylinder (1), a rod (3) inserted in the cylinder (1), a piston (4) connected to the rod (3) and movable within the cylinder (1), and defining a rod side chamber (2a) and an non-rod side chamber (2b) in the cylinder (1), damping parts (4a, 4b) for generating a damping force by the movement of the rod (3), a high pressure chamber (18) and a low pressure chamber (16) charged with gas, a pump chamber (25) for adjusting the vehicle height by supplying the working fluid in the low pressure chamber (16) into the non-rod side chamber (2b), a communicating path (5a) for communicating the non-rod side chamber (2b) and the high pressure chamber (18), and a valve body (20) for increasing and reducing a channel area of the communicating path (5a) depending on the fluid pressure of the high pressure chamber (18).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 23, 2007
    Date of Patent: December 13, 2011
    Assignee: Kayaba Industry Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Syusaku Nogami, Tomohiko Baba
  • Publication number: 20110157724
    Abstract: An optical unit includes a first lens, a second lens, a diaphragm, a third lens, a fourth lens, and a fifth lens, which are arranged in the stated order from an object side to an image plane side. The second lens has a convex shape. The third lens has a meniscus shape. The fourth lens has a convex shape. The fifth lens has a negative power.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 3, 2010
    Publication date: June 30, 2011
    Applicant: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventor: Tomohiko Baba
  • Publication number: 20110157725
    Abstract: An optical unit includes a first lens, a diaphragm, a second lens, a third lens, a fourth lens, and a fifth lens. The first lens is a positive meniscus lens which is convex toward an object side. The second lens has a positive power. The third lens has a negative power. The fourth lens has a positive power. The fifth lens has a negative power. Those are arranged in the stated order from the object side to an image plane side.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 3, 2010
    Publication date: June 30, 2011
    Applicant: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventor: Tomohiko Baba
  • Publication number: 20100328522
    Abstract: An optical unit includes: a first lens group; and a second lens group, which are arranged in order from an object side toward an image surface side, wherein the first lens group includes a first lens element, a first transparent body, and a second lens element, which are arranged in order from the object side toward the image surface side, and the second lens group includes a third lens element, a second transparent body and a fourth lens element, which are arranged in order from the object side toward the image surface side.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 18, 2010
    Publication date: December 30, 2010
    Applicants: SONY CORPORATION, ANTERYON BV
    Inventors: Tomohiko Baba, Louis Sander
  • Publication number: 20100208125
    Abstract: An optical unit which includes (a) a first lens group; and (b) a second lens group, which are arranged in order from an object side toward an image surface side, the first lens group including (i) a first lens element, (ii) a first transparent body, and (iii) a second lens element, which are arranged in order from the object side toward the image surface side, and the second lens group including (i) a third lens element, (ii) a second transparent body and (iii) a fourth lens element, which are arranged in order from the object side toward the image surface side.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 13, 2009
    Publication date: August 19, 2010
    Applicants: Sony Corporation, Anteryon BV
    Inventors: Tomohiko Baba, Louis Sander
  • Patent number: 7667901
    Abstract: A lens unit includes a front group, a stop, and a rear group, in order from the object side toward the image side. The front group includes at least: a first lens having a negative meniscus shape; a negative second lens formed from a plastic and having an aspherical surface; and a positive third lens, in order from the object side toward the image side. The rear group includes at least: a positive first lens; and a negative second lens, in order from the object side toward the image side.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 2007
    Date of Patent: February 23, 2010
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventor: Tomohiko Baba
  • Patent number: 7464799
    Abstract: A gas chamber (G) and a liquid chamber (R) are separated by a free piston (2) in a cylinder (1) of a hydraulic damper. The free piston (2) comprises a hollow main body (3), a metal bellows (4) which elongates and contracts according to a pressure balance between the gas chamber (G) and liquid chamber (R), and a stopper (8) fixed to the main body (3) for preventing the metal bellows (4) from elongating beyond a predetermined length. By compensating for variation in the capacity of the liquid chamber (R) caused by a displacement of the piston (10) in the cylinder (1) by elongation or contraction of the metal bellows (4), the damping characteristic of the damper is prevented from becoming unstable due to a frictional force acting on the free piston (2). The stopper (8) prevents excessive stress from being exerted on the metal bellows (4).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 3, 2006
    Date of Patent: December 16, 2008
    Assignee: Kayaba Industry Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Shigeru Kojima, Tomohiko Baba
  • Publication number: 20070227847
    Abstract: A vehicle height adjusting device includes a cylinder (1), a rod (3) inserted in the cylinder (1), a piston (4) connected to the rod (3) and movable within the cylinder (1), and defining a rod side chamber (2a) and an non-rod side chamber (2b) in the cylinder (1), damping parts (4a, 4b) for generating a damping force by the movement of the rod (3), a high pressure chamber (18) and a low pressure chamber (16) charged with gas, a pump chamber (25) for adjusting the vehicle height by supplying the working fluid in the low pressure chamber (16) into the non-rod side chamber (2b), a communicating path (5a) for communicating the non-rod side chamber (2b) and the high pressure chamber (18), and a valve body (20) for increasing and reducing a channel area of the communicating path (5a) depending on the fluid pressure of the high pressure chamber (18).
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 23, 2007
    Publication date: October 4, 2007
    Applicant: KAYABA INDUSTRY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Syusaku Nogami, Tomohiko Baba
  • Publication number: 20070217035
    Abstract: A lens unit includes a front group, a stop, and a rear group, in order from the object side toward the image side. The front group includes at least: a first lens having a negative meniscus shape; a negative second lens formed from a plastic and having an aspherical surface; and a positive third lens, in order from the object side toward the image side. The rear group includes at least: a positive first lens; and a negative second lens, in order from the object side toward the image side.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 27, 2007
    Publication date: September 20, 2007
    Inventor: Tomohiko Baba
  • Publication number: 20060180418
    Abstract: A gas chamber (G) and a liquid chamber (R) are separated by a free piston (2) in a cylinder (1) of a hydraulic damper. The free piston (2) comprises a hollow main body (3), a metal bellows (4) which elongates and contracts according to a pressure balance between the gas chamber (G) and liquid chamber (R), and a stopper (8) fixed to the main body (3) for preventing the metal bellows (4) from elongating beyond a predetermined length. By compensating for variation in the capacity of the liquid chamber (R) caused by a displacement of the piston (10) in the cylinder (1) by elongation or contraction of the metal bellows (4), the damping characteristic of the damper is prevented from becoming unstable due to a frictional force acting on the free piston (2). The stopper (8) prevents excessive stress from being exerted on the metal bellows (4).
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 3, 2006
    Publication date: August 17, 2006
    Inventors: Shigeru Kojima, Tomohiko Baba
  • Patent number: 7035174
    Abstract: An optical disc drive compatible with optical discs of different types, for example, is provided. For focusing, through an optical system used in common with the different types of optical discs, a laser beam emitted from a selected one of a plurality of light sources disposed apart from each other radially of the optical disc, the optical system is moved radially of the optical disc correspondingly to the selection of the light source for emitting the laser light. Namely, it is possible to prevent the optical property from being deteriorated when a single optical pickup is used in common with such optical discs of different types.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 2003
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2006
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Minoru Hashimoto, Tomohiko Baba
  • Patent number: 7025184
    Abstract: A hydraulic shock absorber with a self leveling function for a vehicle height is provided to prevent drop of a relief valve even if an excessive impulsive pressure is applied thereto. The relief valve is provided with a tubular valve case which is press-fitted into a press-fit bore of a partition wall member to divide an oil storage and a reservoir, and a valve body opening/closing a valve seat of an end portion of a flow passage formed in the partition wall member is urged toward the direction of the valve seat by a spring and is seated at the valve seat. This prevents an oil pressure in an oil chamber of the reservoir from acting directly on an end face of the valve case.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2004
    Date of Patent: April 11, 2006
    Assignee: Kayaba Industry Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Tomohiko Baba
  • Publication number: 20050051398
    Abstract: A hydraulic shock absorber with a self leveling function for a vehicle height is provided to prevent drop of a relief valve even if an excessive impulsive pressure is applied thereto. The relief valve 100 is provided with a tubular valve case 101 which is press-fitted into a press-fit bore 112 of a partition wall member 111 to divide an oil storage 82 and a reservoir 81, and a valve body 104 opening/closing a valve seat 103 of an end portion of a flow passage 113 formed in the partition wall member 111 is urged toward the direction of the valve seat 103 by a spring 106 and is seated at the valve seat 103. This prevents an oil pressure in an oil chamber 86 of the reservoir 81 from acting directly on an end face of the valve case 101.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 29, 2004
    Publication date: March 10, 2005
    Inventor: Tomohiko Baba
  • Patent number: 6760296
    Abstract: The disclosed invention relates to an optical integrated device, an optical pickup, and an optical disk apparatus, and is applicable to an optical disk apparatus for playing back a compact disk (CD) and a DVD (Digital Video Disk), thereby to access a plurality of types of optical disks with a simple arrangement. For dividing feedback light with a hologram 19A and detecting the divided feedback light with a light-detecting element 20, laser sources 15A, 15B having different wavelengths are spaced a predetermined distance D from each other in order to compensate for the difference between the diffraction angles &thgr;A1, &thgr;B of the hologram 19A.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 23, 2000
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2004
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Tomohiko Baba, Katsutoshi Sato, Satoshi Nakano, Satoshi Imai, Hiroaki Yukawa
  • Publication number: 20040052172
    Abstract: An optical disc drive compatible with optical discs of different types, for example, is provided. For focusing, through an optical system used in common with the different types of optical discs, a laser beam emitted from a selected one of a plurality of light sources disposed apart from each other radially of the optical disc, the optical system is moved radially of the optical disc correspondingly to the selection of the light source for emitting the laser light. Namely, it is possible to prevent the optical property from being deteriorated when a single optical pickup is used in common with such optical discs of different types.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 19, 2003
    Publication date: March 18, 2004
    Inventors: Minoru Hashimoto, Tomohiko Baba
  • Patent number: 6657931
    Abstract: An optical disc drive compatible with optical discs of different types, for example, is provided. For focusing, through an optical system used in common with the different types of optical discs, a laser beam emitted from a selected one of a plurality of light sources disposed apart from each other radially of the optical disc, the optical system is moved radially of the optical disc corresponding to the selection of the light source for emitting the laser light. Namely, it is possible to prevent the optical property from being deteriorated when a single optical pickup is used in common with such optical discs of different types.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 23, 2000
    Date of Patent: December 2, 2003
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Minoru Hashimoto, Tomohiko Baba