Patents by Inventor Yasuhiro Tanoue

Yasuhiro Tanoue 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: 20110286237
    Abstract: A light guide plate is formed of a light introducing part positioned to face a point light source for confining light and a light guide plate body having a thickness smaller than the thickness of an end of the light introducing part on a point light source side and causing the confined light to be output from a light exit surface to outside. The light introducing part has an inclined surface, and a directivity conversion pattern formed on the inclined surface. The directivity conversion pattern is configured by arranging V grooves in parallel to each other, each having a vertical angle of 120°, and each extends in a direction approximately perpendicular to a light incidence end face of the light guide plate. The length of the inclined surface in a inclination direction where part of light incident to the light introducing part enters the inclined surface at least twice.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 16, 2011
    Publication date: November 24, 2011
    Applicant: OMRON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yasuhiro Tanoue, Gouo Kurata, Masayuki Shinohara
  • Publication number: 20110187967
    Abstract: A surface light source device includes a point source of light and a light guide plate causing light from the point source of light introduced from a light incident end face and emitted from a light emission surface to outside. The light guide plate is formed of a light introducing portion provided at an end of a light guide plate body. The point source of light is placed facing the light incident end face positioned at an end face of the light introducing portion. Along a region of the light introducing portion adjacent to the light guide plate body, a directivity converting portion is provided. The directivity converting portion is configured by arranging V-grooved directivity conversion patterns in an arc shape. A region of the light introducing portion has a thickness equal to that of the light guide plate body and has a surface positioned in the same plane.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 8, 2009
    Publication date: August 4, 2011
    Applicant: OMRON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Masayuki Shinohara, Yasuhiro Tanoue, Takako Ishikawa, Yoshihiro Ueno
  • Publication number: 20110176089
    Abstract: An area light source device that is capable of evenly emitting light by reducing leakage in the vicinity of the light source, and enhancing the light emission luminance by exiting light of narrower directional characteristics. A light guide substrate includes a light introducing section and a light guide plate main body. Diffusion patterns are provided at the light exit surface of the light guide plate main body. A low refraction index layer is formed at the lower surface of the light guide plate main body, and a reflection layer is formed at the lower surface of the low refraction index layer. The point light source is positioned facing an end face of the light introducing section. A directivity conversion unit is arranged on the upper surface of the light introducing section. The directivity conversion unit is configured by radially arraying a directivity conversion pattern having a V groove shape.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 11, 2011
    Publication date: July 21, 2011
    Applicant: OMRON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Takako Ishikawa, Yasuhiro Tanoue, Masayuki Shinohara, Yoshihiro Ueno
  • Publication number: 20110170036
    Abstract: An area light source device that is capable of more evenly emitting light and capable of enhancing the light emission luminance by exiting light of narrower directional characteristics. A light guide substrate includes a light introducing section and a light guide plate main body for exiting the light from a light exit surface. A number of diffusion patterns are formed at the light exit surface. A low refraction index layer is formed at the lower surface of the light guide plate main body, and a reflection layer is formed at the lower surface of the low refraction index layer. The point light source is arranged at a position facing the end face of the light introducing section. A tapered portion inclined to gradually increase the thickness of the light introducing section the farther away from the light source is arranged on the upper surface of the light introducing section.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 11, 2011
    Publication date: July 14, 2011
    Applicant: OMRON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Takako Ishikawa, Yasuhiro Tanoue, Masayuki Shinohara, Yoshihiro Ueno
  • Publication number: 20100208170
    Abstract: A surface light source device has a surface-shaped light source having a light emission surface, a first prism sheet at a side of the light emission surface, and a second prism sheet in an opposite side from the surface-shaped light source with the first prism sheet interposed therebetween. The first prism sheet includes prisms having a greater length in a longitudinal direction and having an apical angle between 72 and 100 degrees which are arranged on a surface facing the surface-shaped light source. The second prism sheet includes prisms having a greater length in a longitudinal direction and having an apical angle between 100 and 125 degrees which are arranged on a surface facing a direction opposite the surface-shaped light source. The first and second prism longitudinal direction form an angle of 15 degrees or less, when the first and second prism sheet are viewed in a perpendicular direction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 7, 2008
    Publication date: August 19, 2010
    Applicant: OMRON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yasuhiro Tanoue, Masayuki Shinohara
  • Publication number: 20100195019
    Abstract: A light guide plate (63) includes a light introducing section (65), which is at a position facing a point light source (62), for confining light from the point light source, and a light guide plate main body (64), which has a thickness smaller than a thickness at an end of the light introducing section on the point light source side, for outputting the confined light to an outside from a light outputting surface by light outputting means (70). The light introducing section (65) has an inclined surface (67), which is inclined from a surface of the light introducing section towards a surface of the light guide plate main body (64). The inclined surface (67) has a directivity converting pattern (68) for converting a directivity expansion in a thickness direction of the light guide plate of the light entered to the light introducing section (65) to directivity characteristics tilted towards a direction parallel to a surface direction of the light guide plate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 10, 2008
    Publication date: August 5, 2010
    Applicant: OMRON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Masayuki Shinohara, Yasuhiro Tanoue, Kazuhide Hirota, Koichi Takemura, Takuma Iwase, Takako Ishikawa, Yoshihiro Ueno, Morihisa Ota, Jun Kishimoto, Gouo Kurata, Yukihiro Takahashi, Hiroyuki Miyamoto
  • Publication number: 20090097274
    Abstract: On a light guide plate (32), a prism sheet (36), an uneven diffuser plate (37) and a correcting optical sheet (38) are placed one over another. Light outputted from the light guide plate (32) in a direction substantially parallel to a light outputting surface (45) is bent to a direction substantially vertical to the light outputting surface (45) by the prism sheet (36). Light which passed through the prism sheet (36) and has a long directivity characteristic in an r axis direction is converted into light having a substantially circular directivity characteristic by passing through the uneven diffuser plate (37). Furthermore, the light which passed through the uneven diffuser plate (37) and has the substantially circular directivity characteristic is converted into light having a directivity characteristic closer to a perfect circle by the correcting optical sheet (38). The correcting optical sheet (38) is formed of a pattern having many polyhedron shapes.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 19, 2007
    Publication date: April 16, 2009
    Applicant: OMRON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Masayuki Shinohara, Yasuhiro Tanoue, Yoshihiro Ueno, Kazuhide Hirota, Tetsuya Minobe
  • Publication number: 20080198621
    Abstract: A semi-permeable/reflective sheet (19) has a lower surface as a flag light incident surface (47) and a surface opposite to the light incident surface (47) where a light reflection area (43a) and a light transmittance area (43b) are provided. The light transmittance area (43b) is a flat surface parallel to the light incident surface (47). The light reflection area (43a) is formed by a convex pattern (42) having a cross section of a rectangular equilateral triangular shape. A part of light (41) coming from the light incident surface (47) to the light transmittance area (43b) transmits the semi-permeable/reflective sheet (19) and goes out of the surface opposite to the light incident surface (47). A part of the remaining light (41) incident from the light incident surface (47) is reflected twice by reflection walls (44, 45) forming the convex pattern (42).
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 9, 2005
    Publication date: August 21, 2008
    Applicant: OMRON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yasuhiro Tanoue, Masayuki Shinohara
  • Patent number: 6967698
    Abstract: To make an efficiency of utilizing light with high efficiency in a plane light source apparatus used along with a liquid crystal display panel of a reflection type as a backlight, light f3 leaked from a rear face of a light guide plate 25 in a skewed direction, is incident on inside of a prism sheet 27 and reflected by a reflecting face 32. Light f3 reflected by the reflecting face 32, is reflected in a direction orthogonal to the prism sheet 27, passes the light guide plate 25 and is emitted from a light emitting face 30 of the light guide plate 25 in a direction orthogonally thereto.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 20, 2002
    Date of Patent: November 22, 2005
    Assignee: Omron Corporation
    Inventors: Yasuhiro Tanoue, Masayuki Shinohara, Junichi Takagi, Junichiro Tsuji
  • Publication number: 20030058382
    Abstract: To make an efficiency of utilizing light with high efficiency in a plane light source apparatus used along with a liquid crystal display panel of a reflection type as a backlight, light f3 leaked from a rear face of a light guide plate 25 in a skewed direction, is incident on inside of a prism sheet 27 and reflected by a reflecting face 32. Light f3 reflected by the reflecting face 32, is reflected in a direction orthogonal to the prism sheet 27, passes the light guide plate 25 and is emitted from a light emitting face 30 of the light guide plate 25 in a direction orthogonally thereto.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 20, 2002
    Publication date: March 27, 2003
    Inventors: Yasuhiro Tanoue, Masayuki Shinohara, Junichi Takagi, Junichiro Tsuji
  • Patent number: 4560511
    Abstract: A method of producing shikonin, having the following chemical structure ##STR1## which method comprises dehydrating 2-(1'-acetoxy-4'-hydroxy-4'-methylpentyl)-5,8-diacetoxy-1,4-naphthoquinone , treating the resulting product with an alkali hydroxide and acidifying the treated product.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 1984
    Date of Patent: December 24, 1985
    Assignee: Kyushu Institute of Technology
    Inventors: Akira Terada, Yasuhiro Tanoue