Patents by Inventor Toru Nagara

Toru Nagara 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: 20120183231
    Abstract: Provided is an image processing device including a frame image generation unit for generating a frame image in which a first image and a second image are arranged next to each other, and a compression processing unit for compressing the frame image in units of macroblocks. The frame image generation unit arranges the first image and the second image such that a boundary between the first image and the second image coincides with boundaries of the macroblocks.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 6, 2012
    Publication date: July 19, 2012
    Applicant: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Toru Nagara, Tomoya Yamaura
  • Publication number: 20120154386
    Abstract: According to an illustrative embodiment, an apparatus for generating image data is provided. The apparatus includes a communication unit for receiving information related to a display orientation of an image on a display unit of an image display device; and an image generation unit for generating image data according to the information.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 5, 2011
    Publication date: June 21, 2012
    Applicant: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Toru Nagara, Tomoya Yamaura, Kenji Fujisaka, Ban Kawamura
  • Publication number: 20120147799
    Abstract: According to an illustrative embodiment, a data transmission device is provided. The device includes a communication unit for transmitting data to a receiver and transmitting data having a changed characteristic to the receiver, wherein when transmitting the data the device transmits timing information to the receiver indicating a time that the device will begin transmitting the data having a changed characteristic.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 1, 2011
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Applicant: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Toru Nagara, Tomoya Yamaura
  • Publication number: 20120051244
    Abstract: A wireless communication apparatus includes a receiving unit configured to receive a response request signal, a transmitting unit configured to transmit a response signal in response to the response request signal, a measuring unit configured to continuously measure received power of the response request signal received by the receiving unit, and a communication control unit configured to cause the transmitting unit to transmit the response signal to a wireless communication apparatus that has transmitted the response request signal if the received power of the response request signal is higher than a threshold value.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 17, 2011
    Publication date: March 1, 2012
    Applicant: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventor: Toru Nagara
  • Publication number: 20110299461
    Abstract: There is provided a wireless communication device including a determination unit that determines a location region of the wireless communication device, a communication unit that wirelessly communicates with another wireless communication device, and a setting unit that sets a frequency in accordance with the location region of the wireless communication device determined by the determination unit to the communication unit. The determination unit determines a location region of the wireless communication device based on a plurality of pieces of location region information of the wireless communication device acquired by a plurality of different methods.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 26, 2011
    Publication date: December 8, 2011
    Applicant: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Toru Nagara, Tomoya Yamaura
  • Publication number: 20110292300
    Abstract: A system and method for establishing communication between an information processing apparatus and a communication device which are capable of communicating with each other in a plurality of communication modes. The method includes receiving at least one request from the communication device at the information processing apparatus, and transmitting at least one response to the at least one request, the at least one response being transmitted from the information processing apparatus to the communication device when the information processing apparatus is in a first communication mode, and not transmitting at least one response when the information processing apparatus is in a second communication mode.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 18, 2011
    Publication date: December 1, 2011
    Applicant: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Toru Nagara, Kanahiro Shirota
  • Patent number: 8054725
    Abstract: An optical disk apparatus for writing signals on a recording medium by irradiating the recording medium with a laser beam modulated based on the signals includes a first converting unit for converting a first reflected laser beam component from the recording medium into electrical signals; a second converting unit for converting a second reflected laser beam component into electrical signals; a first sample-and-hold unit for sampling and holding the electrical signals from the first converting unit; a second sample-and-hold unit for sampling and holding the electrical signals from the second converting unit; and transmitting devices for transmitting the held signals from the first and the second sample-and-hold units. The sampled signals are averaged, and the averaged signal is held in each of the first and the second sample-and-hold units during signal writing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 15, 2004
    Date of Patent: November 8, 2011
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Toru Nagara, Yoshio Fukutomi
  • Publication number: 20110080942
    Abstract: A transmission apparatus includes: an encode section that encodes image data and is capable of controlling a generated code amount; a transmission section to wirelessly transmit the encoded image data; and a control section to detect a quality of a wireless transmission of the encoded image data and control, based on the detected quality, a wireless transmission rate as a transmission code amount of the transmission section per unit time and an image transmission rate as a generated code amount of the encode section per unit time, the image transmission rate being controlled within a first response time when being lowered and controlled within a second response time longer than the first response time when being raised.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 22, 2010
    Publication date: April 7, 2011
    Applicant: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Toru Nagara, Futoshi Takeuchi, Akihiro Horii, Masanori Sato, Yuji Anami
  • Publication number: 20110007168
    Abstract: An image receiving apparatus includes: an image data receiver which receives image data wirelessly transmitted from an external apparatus; and a transmission path state detector which detects a state of a wireless transmission path on the basis of a degree of deviation from an average value of pixel data of pixels in a time direction in a still image region of the image data received by the image data receiver.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 18, 2010
    Publication date: January 13, 2011
    Applicant: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Toru Nagara, Keigo Ihara, Motosuke Irie
  • Publication number: 20100146134
    Abstract: There is provided a communication device, comprising, a communication unit which mediates a communication connection with another communication device, a memory unit which stores connection history information which indicates history of a connection party connected via the communication unit and connection restriction information to limit the number of connection party changes, and a determination unit which determines connection acceptability with a new connection party based on the connection history information and the connection restriction information stored in the memory unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 13, 2009
    Publication date: June 10, 2010
    Applicant: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Yoshihiro Kobayashi, Toru Nagara
  • Publication number: 20100008504
    Abstract: The present invention provides a data transmitting apparatus in which a device information obtaining unit obtains device information of a device connected to the data transmitting apparatus; a verification unit verifies validity of a data receiving apparatus, based on the device information obtained by the device information obtaining unit; and a control unit performs control as to whether to obtain the device information through a wireless communication unit or obtain the device information through a wire communication unit, and as to whether to transmit image information encrypted by a first encryption unit from the wireless communication unit or transmit image information encrypted by a second encryption unit from the wire communication unit when the verification unit verifies that the data receiving apparatus is authorized.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 9, 2009
    Publication date: January 14, 2010
    Applicant: Sony Corporation
    Inventor: Toru Nagara
  • Patent number: 7590157
    Abstract: A laser noise elimination circuit raises the gain of a first TIA and at the same time reflected light from an optical disc of a laser beam is subjected to photoelectric conversion by means of a photo detector and a second TIA to obtain an RF signal. Then, the direct current component of the FPD signal obtained by photoelectric conversion of part of the laser beam by means of another photo detector and the first TIA is cut out by a high pass filter and then subtracted by a subtracter. The gain of the first TIA is raised in a read mode of operation for reading data from the optical disc and lowered in a write mode of operation for writing data onto the optical disc so as to always effectively eliminate only the laser noise from the RF signal and prevent the circuit from being saturated in a write mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 7, 2004
    Date of Patent: September 15, 2009
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Yoshio Fukutomi, Toru Nagara
  • Patent number: 7570562
    Abstract: In an optical disk apparatus, transmittance and reflectance of a polarization beam splitter 13 to the S polarization and the P polarization of laser beams are adjusted so that a first polarization component level ratio in the laser beam received by a light receiver for reproducing signal 17 from a laser diode 11 via the polarization beam splitter 13, and a second polarization component level ratio in the laser beam received by a light receiver for monitoring light source 18 from the laser diode 11 via the polarization beam splitter 13 become equal or the difference between the first and the second polarization component level ratios becomes within a predetermined permissible range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2004
    Date of Patent: August 4, 2009
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Yoshio Fukutomi, Toru Nagara
  • Patent number: 7372799
    Abstract: A laser diode drive circuit for an optical disc recording and/or reproducing apparatus includes a plurality of laser diodes to output laser beams having different wavelengths, a switch circuit for selectively connecting a required laser diode from a plurality of laser diodes, a laser diode drive power supply circuit for driving the laser diode selectively connected by the switch circuit, a photodiode for detecting at least part of laser beams emitted from the laser diode to convert a detected part of laser beams into an electrical signal, a plurality of current-to-voltage conversion amplifiers connected to an output of the photodiode and whose conversion resistance values can be adjusted and having differently designed center conversion resistance values and an automatic power control circuit connected to outputs of the current-to-voltage conversion amplifiers to output a feedback signal to the laser diode drive power supply circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 20, 2006
    Date of Patent: May 13, 2008
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventor: Toru Nagara
  • Publication number: 20080106169
    Abstract: An actuation device having a wide operating range is provided. An actuation device includes: a movable section arranged so as to be swingable about a shaft; a pair of beam sections arranged on the shaft, and connected to both sides of the movable section, respectively; a swinging electrode connected at least one of the movable section and the beam sections; and a fixed electrode arranged so as to be positioned in the same plane as the swinging electrode when the movable section is in a neutral position, wherein each of the beam sections satisfies the following formula: ?3>ae/50 where ?3 represents the third spring constant of the beam section, and ae represents a maximum value of an excitation force generated in the swinging electrode when a capacitance between the swinging electrode and the fixed electrode is changed according to the swing angle of the movable section.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 5, 2007
    Publication date: May 8, 2008
    Applicant: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventor: Toru Nagara
  • Patent number: 7319221
    Abstract: A signal-detecting light-receiving device formed as an integrated circuit, which receives a light beam reflected from an optical recording medium, and which outputs a signal obtained from the received reflected light beam, through a current-output-type current amplifier circuit. The light-receiving device includes the following components: at least one resistor configured as a part of the integrated circuit, the at least one resistor being an output resistor used as a termination resistor for an output terminal of the light-receiving device, the output terminal being connected to an output of the current amplifier circuit; and a selecting circuit configured as a part of the integrated circuit, which controls the at least one resistor so as to enable/disable connection of the at least one resistor to the output terminal of the light-receiving device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 2006
    Date of Patent: January 15, 2008
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Yoshio Fukutomi, Toru Nagara
  • Patent number: 7307930
    Abstract: An optical disk apparatus includes a digital signal processor, a photo-detector circuit, and a sample-and-hold circuit. By using a sampling-timing signal generated by the sampling-timing signal based on a sampling-timing signal transmitted from the digital signal processor to the photo-detector circuit through a flexible cable, the sample-and-hold circuit can be operated. Based on a sampling-timing signal dedicated for a side spot, the sample-and-hold circuit can be operated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 12, 2004
    Date of Patent: December 11, 2007
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Toru Nagara, Yoshio Fukutomi
  • Publication number: 20070127350
    Abstract: In an optical disk apparatus, transmittance and reflectance of a polarization beam splitter 13 to the S polarization and the P polarization of laser beams are adjusted so that a first polarization component level ratio in the laser beam received by a light receiver for reproducing signal 17 from a laser diode 11 via the polarization beam splitter 13, and a second polarization component level ratio in the laser beam received by a light receiver for monitoring light source 18 from the laser diode 11 via the polarization beam splitter 13 become equal or the difference between the first and the second polarization component level ratios becomes within a predetermined permissible range.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 22, 2004
    Publication date: June 7, 2007
    Applicant: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Yoshio Fukutomi, Toru Nagara
  • Patent number: 7218580
    Abstract: There is employed a configuration to detect, by making use of an optical pick-up (104) when tracking servo is performed along wobble grooves of an optical disc (102), phase errors between main wobble signal outputted as the result of the fact that reflected light beams corresponding to main spot of the optical disc (102) are received at a main light receiving section (321) of light detecting means (32) and side wobble signals outputted every side spot as the result of the fact reflected light beams corresponding to respective side spots of the optical disc (102) are received at a first sub-light receiving section (322) and a second sub-light receiving section (323) to calculate difference between the both phase errors at a difference calculating circuit (59) to generate, from this difference, a skew signal including inclination direction and inclination quantity of the optical disc (102).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 12, 2003
    Date of Patent: May 15, 2007
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Toru Nagara, Kyosuke Miyano
  • Patent number: 7149232
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is a laser noise cancel circuit for reducing laser noises in a reproduction system for an optical disk device including, a gain-variable amplifying noise cancel circuit for amplifying a monitor output signal for laser light, a first low-pass filter for extracting low frequency signal components of a monitor output signal for noise canceling, a second low-pass filter for extracting low frequency signal components, a negative return loop circuit for controlling a gain in the amplifying noise cancel circuit based on the low frequency signal components of the monitor output signal for noise canceling extracted as well as on the low frequency signal components of the reproduced high frequency signal extracted, to determine the low frequency signal component rate of the monitor output signal for noise canceling as identical to the low frequency signal component rate of the reproduced high frequency signal, and an arithmetic circuit for generating the reproduced high frequency signal with the laser
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 12, 2006
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Yoshio Fukutomi, Toru Nagara