Patents by Inventor Toshifumi Sugawara

Toshifumi Sugawara 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: 10157758
    Abstract: Provided are a work heating device which is capable of heating a work piece with high soaking properties as well as fine temperature control and which remains highly reliable over a long-term use by preventing the deformation or the like of a chuck member, and a work treating device that uses the work heating device. The work heating device is a work heating device in which the chuck member including a work attraction electrode for work attraction and a heater member including a heating element for work heating are layered, and which is capable of heating with the heater member the work piece stuck by attraction on the chuck member side, in which the heater member includes a chuck attraction electrode for causing the chuck member to stick by attraction, between a surface of the heater member that is opposed to the chuck member and the heating element, so that the chuck member and the heater member are layered detachably.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2011
    Date of Patent: December 18, 2018
    Assignee: CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshiaki Tatsumi, Megumu Kawae, Yasuyuki Temma, Toshifumi Sugawara
  • Patent number: 10005087
    Abstract: A particle collector system includes a dust collection unit, a power source unit, and a capacitance measurement unit. The dust collection unit includes first and second electrodes, a second electrode, and a dielectric body covering the electrodes. The power source unit supplies power source voltage to the first and second electrodes. The capacitance measurement unit measures the capacitance between the first and second electrodes. With this particle collector system and dust collection method using it, particles can be almost completely removed without periodic performance of a particle removal operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 2, 2014
    Date of Patent: June 26, 2018
    Assignee: CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshiaki Tatsumi, Yu Saito, Toshifumi Sugawara
  • Patent number: 9866151
    Abstract: An electrostatic chuck that enables high speed and high quality processing of a plate to be processed, and in which the weight of a base member is reduced and the strength thereof increased so as to maintain the flatness of the base member and prevent the plate to be processed from falling; a glass substrate processing method; and said glass substrate. An electrostatic chuck (1) provided with a base member (2) and an electrostatic suction layer (3). The base member (2) is formed by a lower-surface plate (20), side-surface plates (21-24), and an upper-surface plate (25), and has a part (4) for a plurality of individual structures configured therein. The part (4) for a plurality of individual structures has a honeycomb structure that is caused by regular hexagonal tubes (40) and enables the weight of the base member (2) to be reduced and the strength thereof increased.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 21, 2013
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2018
    Assignee: CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshiaki Tatsumi, Toshifumi Sugawara
  • Patent number: 9689656
    Abstract: Provided are a workpiece holding apparatus capable of detecting lateral displacement of a workpiece (w) in a planar direction, and a method of detecting lateral displacement of a workpiece (w) with use of the workpiece holding apparatus. The workpiece holding apparatus, which is configured to hold the workpiece (w), with an adhesive pad (2) mounted on a support plate, includes: a capacitance measuring device (5) including an electrode pair formed of first and second electrodes (3a, 3b) and arranged at least at a part of a position corresponding to a peripheral edge portion of the workpiece (w), the capacitance measuring device (5) being configured to measure capacitance of the electrode pair; and a comparator circuit (6) configured to compare the measured capacitance with a predetermined reference value, to thereby detect lateral displacement of the workpiece (w) in a planar direction of the support plate (1).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 1, 2013
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2017
    Assignee: CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Toshifumi Sugawara, Eunsun Kim, Yoshiaki Tatsumi
  • Patent number: 9634582
    Abstract: Provided is a detachable generator device which can change the installation location with ease and which can effectively use a solar cell to generate electric power. The detachable generator device includes: a film-like solar cell; and attaching/detaching means for allowing the film-like solar cell to be attached to and detached from an attachment object at an installation location. The attaching/detaching means includes an adhesive film having an attaching/detaching surface which develops Van der Waals force to enable repeated affixation, or an electrostatic chuck for forming an attaching/detaching surface by turning on/off a voltage source connected to an attraction electrode sandwiched between two insulating layers to freely develop electrostatic attraction on a surface of at least one of the insulating layers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2017
    Assignee: CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshiaki Tatsumi, Megumu Kawae, Hiroyuki Moriyama, Toshifumi Sugawara
  • Publication number: 20160207051
    Abstract: Provided are a particle collector system and a dust collection method whereby particles can be almost completely removed without periodic performance of a particle removal operation. A particle collector system (1-1) is provided with a dust collection unit (2), a power source unit (3), and a capacitance measurement unit (4). The dust collection unit (2) comprises first and second electrodes (21, 22) a second electrode (22), and a dielectric body (20) covering the electrodes. The power source unit (3) is a component for supplying power source voltage to the first and second electrodes (21, 22). The capacitance measurement unit (1), which is a component for measuring the capacitance of the dust collection unit (2), measures the capacitance between the first and second electrodes (21, 22).
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 2, 2014
    Publication date: July 21, 2016
    Applicant: CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshiaki Tatsumi, Yu Saito, Toshifumi Sugawara
  • Publication number: 20150295521
    Abstract: In an electrostatic chuck and a power supply system, high-voltage drive is performed without generating electrical discharge even in a vacuum atmosphere, and a structure of the power supply system for the electrostatic chuck is simplified. This power supply system includes: an electrostatic chuck (2) having a booster circuit (3); and an electric contact mechanism (4). Terminals (31a, 32a) of the booster circuit (3) are exposed to the outside. The terminals (31b, 32b) are connected to an attraction electrode (23). The electric contact mechanism (4) is configured from rails (41, 42), and flexible contacts (43, 44) in contact with the rails. The rails (41, 42) are connected to an external power supply (40), and the flexible contacts (43, 44) are provided on conductive plates (45, 46) of the electrostatic chuck (2). The conductive plates (45, 46) are connected to the terminals (31a, 32a) of the booster circuit (3).
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 24, 2013
    Publication date: October 15, 2015
    Applicant: CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshiaki Tatsumi, Toshifumi Sugawara
  • Publication number: 20150288302
    Abstract: An electrostatic chuck that enables high speed and high quality processing of a plate to be processed, and in which the weight of a base member is reduced and the strength thereof increased so as to maintain the flatness of the base member and prevent the plate to be processed from falling; a glass substrate processing method; and said glass substrate. An electrostatic chuck (1) provided with a base member (2) and an electrostatic suction layer (3). The base member (2) is formed by a lower-surface plate (20), side-surface plates (21-24), and an upper-surface plate (25), and has a part (4) for a plurality of individual structures configured therein. The part (4) for a plurality of individual structures has a honeycomb structure that is caused by regular hexagonal tubes (40) and enables the weight of the base member (2) to be reduced and the strength thereof increased.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 21, 2013
    Publication date: October 8, 2015
    Applicant: CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshiaki Tatsumi, Toshifumi Sugawara
  • Publication number: 20150268026
    Abstract: Provided are a workpiece holding apparatus capable of detecting lateral displacement of a workpiece (w) in a planar direction, and a method of detecting lateral displacement of a workpiece (w) with use of the workpiece holding apparatus. The workpiece holding apparatus, which is configured to hold the workpiece (w), with an adhesive pad (2) mounted on a support plate, includes: a capacitance measuring device (5) including an electrode pair formed of first and second electrodes (3a, 3b) and arranged at least at a part of a position corresponding to a peripheral edge portion of the workpiece (w), the capacitance measuring device (5) being configured to measure capacitance of the electrode pair; and a comparator circuit (6) configured to compare the measured capacitance with a predetermined reference value, to thereby detect lateral displacement of the workpiece (w) in a planar direction of the support plate (1).
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 1, 2013
    Publication date: September 24, 2015
    Applicant: CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Toshifumi Sugawara, Eunsun Kim, Yoshiaki Tatsumi
  • Patent number: 8674210
    Abstract: To provide a photoelectric conversion device having a high photoelectric conversion efficiency, a photoelectric conversion device 21 includes a substrate 1, a plurality of lower electrodes 2 on the substrate 1 comprising a metal element, a plurality of photoelectric conversion layers 33 comprising a chalcogen compound semiconductor formed on the plurality of lower electrodes 2 and separated from one another on the lower electrodes 2, a metal-chalcogen compound layer 8 comprising the metal element and a chalcogen element included in the chalcogen compound semiconductor formed between the lower electrode 2 and the photoelectric conversion layer 33, an upper electrode 5 formed on the photoelectric conversion layer 33, and a connection conductor 7 electrically connecting, in a plurality of the photoelectric conversion layers 33, the upper electrode 5 to the lower electrode 2 without interposition of the metal-chalcogen compound layer 8.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2010
    Date of Patent: March 18, 2014
    Assignee: Kyocera Corporation
    Inventors: Daisuke Nishimura, Toshifumi Sugawara, Ken Nishiura, Norihiko Matsushima, Yosuke Inomata, Hisao Arimune, Tsuyoshi Uesugi
  • Publication number: 20140009861
    Abstract: Provided is a detachable generator device which can change the installation location with ease and which can effectively use a solar cell to generate electric power. The detachable generator device includes: a film-like solar cell; and attaching/detaching means for allowing the film-like solar cell to be attached to and detached from an attachment object at an installation location. The attaching/detaching means includes an adhesive film having an attaching/detaching surface which develops Van der Waals force to enable repeated affixation, or an electrostatic chuck for forming an attaching/detaching surface by turning on/off a voltage source connected to an attraction electrode sandwiched between two insulating layers to freely develop electrostatic attraction on a surface of at least one of the insulating layers.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 14, 2012
    Publication date: January 9, 2014
    Applicant: CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshiaki Tatsumi, Megumu Kawae, Hiroyuki Moriyama, Toshifumi Sugawara
  • Publication number: 20130277357
    Abstract: Provided are a work heating device which is capable of heating a work piece with high soaking properties as well as fine temperature control and which remains highly reliable over a long-term use by preventing the deformation or the like of a chuck member, and a work treating device that uses the work heating device. The work heating device is a work heating device in which the chuck member including a work attraction electrode for work attraction and a heater member including a heating element for work heating are layered, and which is capable of heating with the heater member the work piece stuck by attraction on the chuck member side, in which the heater member includes a chuck attraction electrode for causing the chuck member to stick by attraction, between a surface of the heater member that is opposed to the chuck member and the heating element, so that the chuck member and the heater member are layered detachably.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 20, 2011
    Publication date: October 24, 2013
    Applicant: CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshiaki Tatsumi, Megumu Kawae, Yasuyuki Temma, Toshifumi Sugawara
  • Publication number: 20120174957
    Abstract: To provide a photoelectric conversion device having a high photoelectric conversion efficiency, a photoelectric conversion device 21 includes a substrate 1, a plurality of lower electrodes 2 on the substrate 1 comprising a metal element, a plurality of photoelectric conversion layers 33 comprising a chalcogen compound semiconductor formed on the plurality of lower electrodes 2 and separated from one another on the lower electrodes 2, a metal-chalcogen compound layer 8 comprising the metal element and a chalcogen element included in the chalcogen compound semiconductor formed between the lower electrode 2 and the photoelectric conversion layer 33, an upper electrode 5 formed on the photoelectric conversion layer 33, and a connection conductor 7 electrically connecting, in a plurality of the photoelectric conversion layers 33, the upper electrode 5 to the lower electrode 2 without interposition of the metal-chalcogen compound layer 8.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 29, 2010
    Publication date: July 12, 2012
    Applicant: KYOCERA CORPORATION
    Inventors: Daisuke Nishimura, Toshifumi Sugawara, Ken Nishiura, Norihiko Matsushima, Yosuke Inomata, Hisao Arimune, Tsuyoshi Uesugi
  • Patent number: RE46739
    Abstract: To provide a photoelectric conversion device having a high photoelectric conversion efficiency, a photoelectric conversion device 21 includes a substrate 1, a plurality of lower electrodes 2 on the substrate 1 comprising a metal element, a plurality of photoelectric conversion layers 33 comprising a chalcogen compound semiconductor formed on the plurality of lower electrodes 2 and separated from one another on the lower electrodes 2, a metal-chalcogen compound layer 8 comprising the metal element and a chalcogen element included in the chalcogen compound semiconductor formed between the lower electrode 2 and the photoelectric conversion layer 33, an upper electrode 5 formed on the photoelectric conversion layer 33, and a connection conductor 7 electrically connecting, in a plurality of the photoelectric conversion layers 33, the upper electrode 5 to the lower electrode 2 without interposition of the metal-chalcogen compound layer 8.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 2016
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2018
    Assignee: KYOCERA CORPORATION
    Inventors: Daisuke Nishimura, Toshifumi Sugawara, Ken Nishiura, Norihiko Matsushima, Yosuke Inomata, Hisao Arimune, Tsuyoshi Uesugi