Patents by Inventor Yasunobu Harazono

Yasunobu Harazono 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: 20230347971
    Abstract: A straddled vehicle, including a vehicle body having a rotatable handlebar; a steerable wheel, operation of which is transmitted mechanically to steer the steerable wheel; an actuator configured to apply a steering assisting force to the steerable wheel in accordance with the operation of the handlebar; and a control device configured to control the actuator by outputting a first physical quantity related to the steering assisting force, in accordance with a second physical quantity related to the operation of the handlebar. The control device performs, in response to an external instruction or fulfillment of a condition, setting or changing a dead band, which is a predetermined range of the second physical quantity in which the first physical quantity is not outputted even with the operation of the handlebar, and/or setting or changing an output increasing range in which as the second physical quantity increases, the outputted first physical quantity increases.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 13, 2023
    Publication date: November 2, 2023
    Inventors: Nobuo HARA, Hidekazu TSUBOI, Yasunobu HARAZONO, Naoya FUJII, Daiki OHARA
  • Patent number: 11235834
    Abstract: A leaning vehicle includes an actuator control unit that causes an actuator to generate an actuator torque in a counterclockwise direction based on a bar-handle-rotation-moment change amount in the case where a bar-handle-rotation-moment change amount in the counterclockwise direction is generated by a rider performing one operation of a right-grip-pushing-force increasing operation, a left-grip-pulling-force increasing operation, a right-grip-pulling-force reducing operation, and a left-grip-pushing-force reducing operation. The actuator control unit causes the actuator to generate an actuator torque in a clockwise direction based on a bar-handle-rotation-moment change amount in the case where a bar-handle-rotation-moment change amount in the clockwise direction is generated by a rider performing one operation of a left-grip-pushing-force increasing operation, a right-grip-pulling-force increasing operation, a left-grip-pulling-force reducing operation, and a right-grip-pushing-force reducing operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 1, 2022
    Assignee: YAMAHA HATSUDOKI KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yasunobu Harazono, Nobuo Hara
  • Publication number: 20200277018
    Abstract: A leaning vehicle includes an actuator control unit that causes an actuator to generate an actuator torque in a counterclockwise direction based on a bar-handle-rotation-moment change amount in the case where a bar-handle-rotation-moment change amount in the counterclockwise direction is generated by a rider performing one operation of a right-grip-pushing-force increasing operation, a left-grip-pulling-force increasing operation, a right-grip-pulling-force reducing operation, and a left-grip-pushing-force reducing operation. The actuator control unit causes the actuator to generate an actuator torque in a clockwise direction based on a bar-handle-rotation-moment change amount in the case where a bar-handle-rotation-moment change amount in the clockwise direction is generated by a rider performing one operation of a left-grip-pushing-force increasing operation, a right-grip-pulling-force increasing operation, a left-grip-pulling-force reducing operation, and a right-grip-pushing-force reducing operation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 16, 2020
    Publication date: September 3, 2020
    Applicant: YAMAHA HATSUDOKI KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yasunobu HARAZONO, Nobuo HARA
  • Patent number: 9920809
    Abstract: A steering damper is configured to adjust a damping force of a rotor covered by a lower casing and an upper casing by changing the viscosity of a magnetic fluid with an electromagnet. Since a magnetic fluid chamber is provided with a volume compensating unit, even when the volume of the magnetic fluid expands, or air entrainment occurs, air bubbles lighter than the magnetic fluid are collected in the volume compensating unit. Thus, characteristic variations of the steering damper due to volume expansion or air entrainment of the magnetic fluid are prevented.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 20, 2018
    Assignee: YAMAHA HATSUDOKI KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yasunobu Harazono, Nobuo Hara, Satoshi Ishikawa, Hiromi Fukuda
  • Patent number: 9233729
    Abstract: A steering damper control apparatus includes an MR damper having an adjustable steering damping force, a suspension pressure sensor that detects a pressure of a front suspension, a command value output unit that determines a damping force command value according to a pressure change rate of the front suspension based on a detection result of the suspension pressure sensor, and a damper driver that causes the MR damper to generate a damping force corresponding to the damping force command value. At a point of time when steering becomes easily shakable, the damping force corresponding to the damping force command value is generated to prevent shaking of the steering beforehand.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 9, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 12, 2016
    Assignee: YAMAHA HATSUDOKI KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yasunobu Harazono, Masashi Matsuo, Nobuo Hara
  • Patent number: 9120527
    Abstract: In a steering damper control apparatus, when a command value output unit detects an idle spin of a rear wheel, a damper driver increases a damping force of an MR damper to be higher than a damping force thereof used when the rear wheel is not spinning idly. Therefore, skidding of the rear wheel is prevented to prevent a posture change of a motorcycle. As a result, a driving direction of the rear wheel deviating from a traveling direction is prevented to efficiently use the drive of the rear wheel during traveling.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 9, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2015
    Assignee: Yamaha Hatsudoki Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yasunobu Harazono, Masashi Matsuo, Nobuo Hara
  • Publication number: 20150090546
    Abstract: A steering damper is configured to adjust a damping force of a rotor covered by a lower casing and an upper casing by changing the viscosity of a magnetic fluid with an electromagnet. Since a magnetic fluid chamber is provided with a volume compensating unit, even when the volume of the magnetic fluid expands, or air entrainment occurs, air bubbles lighter than the magnetic fluid are collected in the volume compensating unit. Thus, characteristic variations of the steering damper due to volume expansion or air entrainment of the magnetic fluid are prevented.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 8, 2013
    Publication date: April 2, 2015
    Inventors: Yasunobu Harazono, Nobuo Hara, Satoshi Ishikawa, Hiromi Fukuda
  • Publication number: 20140058626
    Abstract: A steering damper control apparatus includes an MR damper having an adjustable steering damping force, a suspension pressure sensor that detects a pressure of a front suspension, a command value output unit that determines a damping force command value according to a pressure change rate of the front suspension based on a detection result of the suspension pressure sensor, and a damper driver that causes the MR damper to generate a damping force corresponding to the damping force command value. At a point of time when steering becomes easily shakable, the damping force corresponding to the damping force command value is generated to prevent shaking of the steering beforehand.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 9, 2012
    Publication date: February 27, 2014
    Applicant: YAMAHA HATSUDOKI KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yasunobu Harazono, Masashi Matsuo, Nobuo Hara
  • Publication number: 20140058627
    Abstract: In a steering damper control apparatus, when a command value output unit detects an idle spin of a rear wheel, a damper driver increases a damping force of an MR damper to be higher than a damping force thereof used when the rear wheel is not spinning idly. Therefore, skidding of the rear wheel is prevented to prevent a posture change of a motorcycle. As a result, a driving direction of the rear wheel deviating from a traveling direction is prevented to efficiently use the drive of the rear wheel during traveling.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 9, 2012
    Publication date: February 27, 2014
    Applicant: YAMAHA HATSUDOKI KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yasunobu Harazono, Masashi Matsuo, Nobuo Hara