Patents by Inventor Tomonari Sawada
Tomonari Sawada 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: 20240149827Abstract: A security system includes a camera, an illuminator, and a controller. The controller determines whether a first condition is met. The first condition includes a requirement that a moving object has been detected within a first range while a vehicle is parked. The controller determines whether a second condition is met. The second condition includes a requirement that the moving object has been detected within a second range, which is narrower than the first range, while a vehicle is parked. The controller is configured to change one or more controls selected from a control of determining whether to perform recording with the camera, a control of turning on or off the illuminator, and a control of an illuminance of the illuminator, between a state in which the first condition is met but the second is not, and a state in which both the first and second conditions are met.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 3, 2023Publication date: May 9, 2024Inventor: Tomonari SAWADA
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Patent number: 11603034Abstract: A lighting ECU determines whether or not a road sign relating to an urban area or a residential area is detected, while it is performing an automatic high beam control. When the detected road sign is a road sign indicating a start point of the urban area or of the residential area, the lighting ECU terminates the automatic high beam control, and maintain a light distribution pattern to a pattern corresponding to low beam. The lighting ECU restarts the automatic high beam control, when the detected road sign is a road sign indicating an end point of the urban area or of the residential area.Type: GrantFiled: September 1, 2020Date of Patent: March 14, 2023Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Tomonari Sawada, Trenton Boyd Lindholm, Arab Kroubi, Michael Shin Hong
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Patent number: 11268672Abstract: A light distribution control apparatus comprises an irradiating apparatus and an irradiation control apparatus. When a vehicle is travelling on an own lane, the irradiation control apparatus lightens a first region including a region right in front of the vehicle using the irradiating apparatus. When a request for lane change to a target lane occurs under a situation where the vehicle is travelling on the own lane, the irradiation control apparatus lightens a second region using the irradiating apparatus, the second region including a region-at-a-lane-change-side positioned at a target lane side with respect to the first region and a reduced region which is a region where the first region is reduced to a region near the vehicle as well as control the irradiating apparatus so that illuminance in the reduced region becomes less than or equal to illuminance in the reduced region before the request for lane change occurs.Type: GrantFiled: April 9, 2020Date of Patent: March 8, 2022Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Tomonari Sawada, Tatsuya Takagaki
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Patent number: 11214190Abstract: A headlamp control device estimates, in a case where an ambient illuminance of a subject vehicle is equal to or lower than a predetermined switching illuminance when a state of a headlamp is the ON state, a time required for the subject vehicle to travel to an entrance of a tunnel in front of the subject vehicle, as a first time, switches, in a case where the first time is longer than a first determination time, the headlamp state from a low-beam state to a high-beam state, and, keeps, in a case where the first time is equal to or shorter than the first determination time, the headlamp state as the low-beam state.Type: GrantFiled: April 27, 2021Date of Patent: January 4, 2022Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Tomonari Sawada, Fumio Inoue
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Publication number: 20210387567Abstract: A headlamp control device estimates, in a case where an ambient illuminance of a subject vehicle is equal to or lower than a predetermined switching illuminance when a state of a headlamp is the ON state, a time required for the subject vehicle to travel to an entrance of a tunnel in front of the subject vehicle, as a first time, switches, in a case where the first time is longer than a first determination time, the headlamp state from a low-beam state to a high-beam state, and, keeps, in a case where the first time is equal to or shorter than the first determination time, the headlamp state as the low-beam state.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 27, 2021Publication date: December 16, 2021Inventors: Tomonari SAWADA, Fumio INOUE
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Patent number: 10960807Abstract: A vehicle head light control apparatus controls a lighting apparatus included in a headlight of a vehicle to avoid irradiating to an irradiation avoidance region which is a region overlaps with a detected object. The lighting apparatus can irradiate an irradiation region which is a set of irradiation sections. When the vehicle is in a manual driving state, irradiating to the irradiation sections included in an adjacent region which is a region adjacent to the irradiation avoidance region is reduced as a distance between the irradiation section and the irradiation avoidance region becomes shorter. When the vehicle is in an autonomous driving state, the adjacent region is not provided or the adjacent region becomes smaller as compared with a case where the vehicle is in the manual driving state.Type: GrantFiled: May 8, 2020Date of Patent: March 30, 2021Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventor: Tomonari Sawada
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Publication number: 20210061165Abstract: A lighting ECU determines whether or not a road sign relating to an urban area or a residential area is detected, while it is performing an automatic high beam control. When the detected road sign is a road sign indicating a start point of the urban area or of the residential area, the lighting ECU terminates the automatic high beam control, and maintain a light distribution pattern to a pattern corresponding to low beam. The lighting ECU restarts the automatic high beam control, when the detected road sign is a road sign indicating an end point of the urban area or of the residential area.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 1, 2020Publication date: March 4, 2021Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Tomonari SAWADA, Trenton Boyd LINDHOLM, Arab KROUBI, Michael Shin HONG
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Publication number: 20200353858Abstract: A vehicle head light control apparatus controls a lighting apparatus included in a headlight of a vehicle to avoid irradiating to an irradiation avoidance region which is a region overlaps with a detected object. The lighting apparatus can irradiate an irradiation region which is a set of irradiation sections. When the vehicle is in a manual driving state, irradiating to the irradiation sections included in an adjacent region which is a region adjacent to the irradiation avoidance region is reduced as a distance between the irradiation section and the irradiation avoidance region becomes shorter. When the vehicle is in an autonomous driving state, the adjacent region is not provided or the adjacent region becomes smaller as compared with a case where the vehicle is in the manual driving state.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 8, 2020Publication date: November 12, 2020Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventor: Tomonari SAWADA
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Patent number: 10821883Abstract: A control unit of a headlamp control device for a vehicle is configured so that, when an occupant of the vehicle performs a predetermined interruption operation while the illumination mode of a headlamp is a high beam mode during automatic illumination control, the control unit sets the illumination mode to a low beam mode until an interruption time passes. The interruption time is set to a smaller value as a vehicle speed correlation value is larger. The vehicle speed correlation value is a value that increases as a speed at which the vehicle has been traveling since the start of the interruption operation is higher.Type: GrantFiled: March 31, 2020Date of Patent: November 3, 2020Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Yukimi Murase, Kazuhiko Nakashima, Yoshiharu Okabe, Tomonari Sawada, Tomoyuki Watanabe, Haruya Iwatsuki
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Publication number: 20200326049Abstract: A light distribution control apparatus comprises an irradiating apparatus and an irradiation control apparatus. When a vehicle is travelling on an own lane, the irradiation control apparatus lightens a first region including a region right in front of the vehicle using the irradiating apparatus. When a request for lane change to a target lane occurs under a situation where the vehicle is travelling on the own lane, the irradiation control apparatus lightens a second region using the irradiating apparatus, the second region including a region-at-a-lane-change-side positioned at a target lane side with respect to the first region and a reduced region which is a region where the first region is reduced to a region near the vehicle as well as control the irradiating apparatus so that illuminance in the reduced region becomes less than or equal to illuminance in the reduced region before the request for lane change occurs.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 9, 2020Publication date: October 15, 2020Inventors: Tomonari Sawada, Tatsuya Takagaki
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Publication number: 20200317115Abstract: A control unit of a headlamp control device for a vehicle is configured so that, when an occupant of the vehicle performs a predetermined interruption operation while the illumination mode of a headlamp is a high beam mode during automatic illumination control, the control unit sets the illumination mode to a low beam mode until an interruption time passes. The interruption time is set to a smaller value as a vehicle speed correlation value is larger. The vehicle speed correlation value is a value that increases as a speed at which the vehicle has been traveling since the start of the interruption operation is higher.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 31, 2020Publication date: October 8, 2020Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Yukimi MURASE, Kazuhiko NAKASHIMA, Yoshiharu OKABE, Tomonari SAWADA, Tomoyuki WATANABE, Haruya IWATSUKI
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Patent number: 10654401Abstract: A drive assist control apparatus assists a driving of a vehicle by controlling a light image projected on a road surface in front of the vehicle. The drive assist control apparatus includes a light image projector, a change portion detector, and a light image corrector. The light image projector projects an informative light image on the road surface. The informative light image represents information to be displayed to an occupant in the vehicle. The change portion detector detects a gradient change portion where a gradient of the road surface changes. The light image corrector corrects a projection position of the informative light image projected by the light image projector. The light image corrector moves the projection position to a position nearer to the occupant than the gradient change portion detected by the change portion detector.Type: GrantFiled: May 7, 2016Date of Patent: May 19, 2020Assignees: DENSO CORPORATION, TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Koji Hamada, Kazuhiko Nakashima, Tomonari Sawada
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Patent number: 10369922Abstract: A vehicle headlight device includes: a sensor acquiring information on an object in front of a host vehicle; a first lighting; a second lighting including a laser light, a movable mirror element reflecting the laser light, and an actuator driving the movable mirror element; and at least one processor that controls a light distribution pattern formed by the first lighting such that an irradiation suppressed site where the irradiation by the first lighting is reduced is included in a dark region where the irradiation by the first lighting is reduced, the irradiation suppressed site including at least a part of an irradiation suppression target object, set a laser light distribution pattern in a region not including the irradiation suppressed site and included in the dark region, and control the actuator such that the laser light is reflected in the laser light distribution pattern.Type: GrantFiled: August 18, 2016Date of Patent: August 6, 2019Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Kazuhiko Nakashima, Tomonari Sawada
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Publication number: 20180126897Abstract: A drive assist control apparatus assists a driving of a vehicle by controlling a light image projected on a road surface in front of the vehicle. The drive assist control apparatus includes a light image projector, a change portion detector, and a light image corrector. The light image projector projects an informative light image on the road surface. The informative light image represents information to be displayed to an occupant in the vehicle. The change portion detector detects a gradient change portion where a gradient of the road surface changes. The light image corrector corrects a projection position of the informative light image projected by the light image projector. The light image corrector moves the projection position to a position nearer to the occupant than the gradient change portion detected by the change portion detector.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 7, 2016Publication date: May 10, 2018Inventors: Koji Hamada, Kazuhiko Nakashima, Tomonari Sawada
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Publication number: 20180038568Abstract: While an own vehicle is traveling through the tunnel, a lighting ECU detects a side-wall position direction indicating a direction of a side wall of a tunnel T, which is adjacent to a lane in which the own vehicle is traveling, with respect to the own vehicle. The lighting ECU turns ON one of cornering lights respectively provided on a left side and a right side of the own vehicle, which is provided on the side-wall position direction.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 23, 2017Publication date: February 8, 2018Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventor: Tomonari SAWADA
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Publication number: 20170050556Abstract: A vehicle headlight device includes: a sensor acquiring information on an object in front of a host vehicle; a first lighting; a second lighting including a laser light, a movable mirror element reflecting the laser light, and an actuator driving the movable mirror element; and at least one processor that controls a light distribution pattern formed by the first lighting such that an irradiation suppressed site where the irradiation by the first lighting is reduced is included in a dark region where the irradiation by the first lighting is reduced, the irradiation suppressed site including at least a part of an irradiation suppression target object, set a laser light distribution pattern in a region not including the irradiation suppressed site and included in the dark region, and control the actuator such that the laser light is reflected in the laser light distribution pattern.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 18, 2016Publication date: February 23, 2017Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Kazuhiko NAKASHIMA, Tomonari SAWADA
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Patent number: 9245999Abstract: A semiconductor device includes: a semiconductor substrate having a drift layer of a first conductivity type, a body layer of a second conductivity type formed on a surface of the drift layer, and a source layer formed on a portion of a surface of the body layer; a gate insulation film formed on an inner wall of a trench that extends from the surface of the semiconductor substrate through the source layer and the body layer to the drift layer; and a gate electrode housed in the trench and covered with the gate insulation film, the gate electrode including, in a region located at a drift layer side of a boundary between the body and drift layers, at least one first semiconductor layer of the first conductivity type and at least one second semiconductor layer of the second conductivity type that are alternately disposed and joined to each other.Type: GrantFiled: November 20, 2013Date of Patent: January 26, 2016Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventor: Tomonari Sawada
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Patent number: 9231006Abstract: A solid-state imaging device includes a semiconductor region of p-type; a buried region of n-type, configured to serve as a photodiode together with the semiconductor region; a extraction region of n-type, configured to extract charges generated by the photodiode from the buried region, having higher impurity concentration than the buried region; a read-out region of n-type, configured to accumulate charges, which are transferred from the buried region having higher impurity concentration than the buried region; and a potential gradient changing mechanism, configured to control a potential of the channel, and to change a potential gradient of a potential profile from the buried region to the read-out region and a potential gradient of a potential profile from the buried region to the extraction region, so as to control the transferring/extraction of charges.Type: GrantFiled: October 5, 2010Date of Patent: January 5, 2016Assignee: National University Corporation Shizuoka UniversityInventors: Shoji Kawahito, Tomonari Sawada
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Publication number: 20140159147Abstract: A semiconductor device includes: a semiconductor substrate having a drift layer of a first conductivity type, a body layer of a second conductivity type formed on a surface of the drift layer, and a source layer formed on a portion of a surface of the body layer; a gate insulation film formed on an inner wall of a trench that extends from the surface of the semiconductor substrate through the source layer and the body layer to the drift layer; and a gate electrode housed in the trench and covered with the gate insulation film, the gate electrode including, in a region located at a drift layer side of a boundary between the body and drift layers, at least one first semiconductor layer of the first conductivity type and at least one second semiconductor layer of the second conductivity type that are alternately disposed and joined to each other.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 20, 2013Publication date: June 12, 2014Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventor: Tomonari SAWADA
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Publication number: 20120193743Abstract: A solid-state imaging device includes a semiconductor region of p-type; a buried region of n-type, configured to serve as a photodiode together with the semiconductor region; a extraction region of n-type, configured to extract charges generated by the photodiode from the buried region, having higher impurity concentration than the buried region; a read-out region of n-type, configured to accumulate charges, which are transferred from the buried region having higher impurity concentration than the buried region; and a potential gradient changing mechanism, configured to control a potential of the channel, and to change a potential gradient of a potential profile from the buried region to the read-out region and a potential gradient of a potential profile from the buried region to the extraction region, so as to control the transferring/extraction of charges.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 5, 2010Publication date: August 2, 2012Applicant: National University Corporation Shizuoka UniversityInventors: Shoji Kawahito, Tomonari Sawada