Patents by Inventor Yoshimasa Funakawa

Yoshimasa Funakawa 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: 20200248280
    Abstract: A steel sheet is provided, having a tensile strength of 590 MPa or more, a particular composition and a steel structure that contains, in terms of area fraction, particular amounts of ferrite and martensite, in which the ferrite average crystal grain size is 20 ?m or less, the martensite average size is 15 ?m or less, the ratio of the average crystal grain size of the ferrite to the average size of the martensite (ferrite average crystal grain size/martensite average size) is 0.5 to 10.0, the ratio of the hardness of the martensite to the hardness of the ferrite (martensite hardness/ferrite hardness) is 1.0 or more and 5.0 or less, and, in the texture of the ferrite, the inverse intensity ratio of ?-fiber to the ?-fiber is 0.8 or more and 7.0 or less.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 7, 2017
    Publication date: August 6, 2020
    Applicant: JFE Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Hidekazu Minami, Yoshimasa Funakawa, Shinjiro Kaneko
  • Patent number: 10704117
    Abstract: Provided are a cold-rolled steel sheet which can preferably be used for manufacturing a high-strength galvanized steel sheet and methods for manufacturing the steel sheets. The cold-rolled steel sheet has a specified chemical composition, in which the Mn concentration in a surface layer of the steel sheet satisfies relational expression (1) and relational expression (2) below. 8?(Cp/Cc)×Mn . . . (1) (Cmin/Cc)×Mn?2.5 . . . (2) where Cp: maximum Mn concentration in a region within 0.5 ?m of the surface of a steel sheet in the thickness direction; Cc: average Mn concentration in a region from a position located 5 ?m from a surface of a steel sheet in the thickness direction to a position located 5 ?m from an opposite surface in the thickness direction; Cmin: minimum Mn concentration in a region from 0.5 ?m to 5 ?m from the surface of a steel sheet in the thickness direction; and Mn: Mn content (mass %).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 28, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 7, 2020
    Assignee: JFE Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Kenji Kawamura, Noriaki Kohsaka, Yoshimasa Funakawa, Mai Aoyama, Yoshitsugu Suzuki
  • Patent number: 10697039
    Abstract: Provided are a high-strength steel sheet and a method for manufacturing the steel sheet. The high-strength steel sheet has a specified chemical composition with the balance being Fe and inevitable impurities, a microstructure including, in terms of area ratio, 25% or less of a ferrite phase, 75% or more of a bainite phase and/or a martensite phase, and 5% or less of cementite, in which, in a surface layer that is a region within 50 ?m from the surface in the thickness direction, the area ratio of a ferrite phase is 5% to 20%, and a tensile strength is 1180 MPa or more.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 28, 2015
    Date of Patent: June 30, 2020
    Assignee: JFE Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Nobusuke Kariya, Yoshihiko Ono, Yoshimasa Funakawa, Kazuma Mori, Reiko Sugihara, Kenji Kawamura
  • Publication number: 20200172991
    Abstract: Disclosed is a hot-pressed member that can exhibit very high tensile strength after hot pressing, excellent delayed fracture resistance, and high tensile shear stress after resistance spot welding by properly adjusting its chemical composition and its microstructure such that at least 20 Nb-based precipitates having a grain size of less than 0.10 ?m are present on average per 100 ?m2 of a cross section parallel to a thickness direction of the member, a prior austenite average grain size is 8 ?m or less, an average aspect ratio of prior austenite grains is 2.5 or less, and a volume fraction of martensite is 90% or more, and such that a standard deviation of Vickers hardness measured every 200 ?m on a surface of the member is 40 or less.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 30, 2018
    Publication date: June 4, 2020
    Applicant: JFE STEEL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Katsutoshi TAKASHIMA, Takashi KOBAYASHI, Yoshimasa FUNAKAWA, Seiji NAKAJIMA
  • Publication number: 20200165708
    Abstract: A high-strength galvanized steel sheet includes a steel sheet and a particular galvanized layer. The steel sheet has a particular composition and a steel microstructure. The steel microstructure contains ferrite and carbide-free bainite constituting 25% or less (including 0%) by area fraction in total, tempered martensite and carbide-containing bainite constituting 70% to 97% by area fraction in total, martensite and retained austenite constituting 3% to 20% by area fraction in total, and retained austenite constituting 1% to 5% by area fraction. The ferrite, the carbide-free bainite, the martensite, and the retained austenite constitute 3% to 30% by area fraction in total. The retained austenite has a C content of 0.10% to 0.50%. The carbide-containing bainite and the tempered martensite have an average grain size of 5 to 20 ?m.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 30, 2017
    Publication date: May 28, 2020
    Inventors: Hiroshi Hasegawa, Yoshimasa Funakawa, Hiromi Yoshitomi, Katsutoshi Takashima
  • Patent number: 10655201
    Abstract: A high-strength, cold-rolled steel sheet having a tensile strength of 980 MPa or more, the steel sheet having a chemical composition containing, by mass %, C: 0.070% to 0.100%, Si: 0.50% to 0.70%, Mn: 2.40% to 2.80%, P: 0.025% or less, S: 0.0020% or less, Al: 0.020% to 0.060%, N: 0.0050% or less, Nb: 0.010% to 0.060%, Ti: 0.010% to 0.030%, B: 0.0005% to 0.0030%, Sb: 0.005% to 0.015%, Ca: 0.0015% or less, Cr: 0.01% to 2.00%, Mo: 0.01% to 1.00%, Ni: 0.01% to 5.00%, Cu: 0.01% to 5.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 16, 2016
    Date of Patent: May 19, 2020
    Assignee: JFE STEEL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Nobusuke Kariya, Yoshihiko Ono, Yoshimasa Funakawa, Kazuma Mori, Reiko Sugihara
  • Patent number: 10655194
    Abstract: A high-strength steel sheet having a high yield ratio and excellent stretch flangeability, and a method for producing the high-strength steel sheet. The high-strength steel sheet has a composition containing, by mass: C: 0.02% or more and less than 0.10%, Si: less than 0.10%, Mn: less than 1.0%, P: 0.10% or less, S: 0.020% or less, Al: 0.01% or more and 0.10% or less, N: 0.010% or less, Nb: 0.005% or more and less than 0.070%, and the balance being Fe and inevitable impurities; and a microstructure including, by area: ferrite: 85% or more, pearlite: 0% to 15%, and a total of martensite, retained austenite and cementite: 0% to 3%. The average crystal grain diameter of the ferrite is 15.0 ?m or less. The grain diameter of a Nb carbide is 5 to 50 nm. The amount of Nb carbide precipitate is 0.005% to 0.050% in terms of volume fraction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2016
    Date of Patent: May 19, 2020
    Assignee: JFE STEEL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yuma Honda, Yoshimasa Funakawa, Kozo Harada
  • Publication number: 20200131597
    Abstract: Disclosed is a hot-pressed member that can exhibit very high tensile strength after hot pressing as high as TS: 1780 MPa or more, and excellent resistance to resistance welding cracking by properly adjusting its chemical composition and its microstructure such that a prior austenite average grain size is 7.5 ?m or less, a volume fraction of martensite is 95% or more, and at least 10 Nb-based and Ti-based precipitates having a grain size of less than 0.10 ?m are present on average per 100 ?m2 of a cross section parallel to a thickness direction of the member within a range of 100 ?m or less in the thickness direction from the surface of the member, and such that a B concentration in prior austenite grain boundaries is at least 3.0 times a B concentration at a position 5 nm away from the grain boundaries.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 30, 2018
    Publication date: April 30, 2020
    Applicant: JFE STEEL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Katsutoshi TAKASHIMA, Takashi KOBAYASHI, Yoshimasa FUNAKAWA, Seiji NAKAJIMA
  • Publication number: 20200131596
    Abstract: Disclosed is a hot-pressed member that can exhibit very high tensile strength after hot pressing as high as TS: 1780 MPa or more and excellent delayed fracture resistance after projection welding by properly adjusting its chemical composition and its microstructure such that at least 5 Ti-based precipitates having a grain size of 0.10 ?m or less are present on average per 100 ?m2 of a cross section parallel to a thickness direction of the member within a range of 100 ?m in a thickness direction from a surface of the member, a volume fraction of martensite is 95% to 100% within a depth range of 20 ?m to 100 ?m in the thickness direction from the surface of the member, and at least 10 cementite grains having a grain size of less than 0.20 ?m are present on average in a prior austenite grain.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 30, 2018
    Publication date: April 30, 2020
    Applicant: JFE STEEL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Katsutoshi TAKASHIMA, Takashi KOBAYASHI, Yoshimasa FUNAKAWA, Seiji NAKAJIMA
  • Patent number: 10633720
    Abstract: A high-strength galvanized steel sheet having a chemical composition containing, by mass %, C: 0.07% to 0.25%, Si: 0.01% to 3.00%, Mn: 1.5% to 4.0%, P: 0.100% or less, S: 0.02% or less, Al: 0.01% to 1.50%, N: 0.001% to 0.008%, Ti: 0.003% to 0.200%, B: 0.0003% to 0.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 21, 2016
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2020
    Assignee: JFE STEEL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hiroshi Hasegawa, Yoshimasa Funakawa
  • Patent number: 10590504
    Abstract: A high-strength cold-rolled steel sheet having a specified chemical composition and a microstructure including ferrite having an average crystal grain diameter of 2 ?m or less in an amount of 10% to 25% in terms of volume fraction, retained austenite in an amount of 5% to 20% in terms of volume fraction, martensite having an average crystal grain diameter of 2 ?m or less in an amount of 5% to 15% in terms of volume fraction, and the balance being a multi-phase structure including bainite and tempered martensite having an average crystal grain diameter of 5 ?m or less, in which a relational expression, 0.35?V2/V1?0.75 (1), is satisfied, where V1 is a volume fraction of phases which are different from ferrite and V2 is a volume fraction of tempered martensite.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 27, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2020
    Assignee: JFE STEEL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Katsutoshi Takashima, Kohei Hasegawa, Yoshimasa Funakawa
  • Patent number: 10590505
    Abstract: A high-strength steel sheet having a composition containing C: 0.09% to 0.17%, Si: 0.6% to 1.7%, Mn: 3.5% or less, P: 0.03% or less, S: 0.005% or less, Al: 0.08% or less, N: 0.006% or less, Ti: 0.05% or less, and B: 0.0002% to 0.0030% on a mass basis, the remainder being Fe and inevitable impurities. The steel sheet also has a microstructure containing less than 20% (including 0%) of a ferrite phase, 75% or more (including 100%) of a tempered martensite phase, 10% or less (including 0%) of an untempered martensite phase, and less than 5% (including 0%) of a retained austenite phase in terms of area fraction. The tempered martensite phase has a Vickers hardness of 280 to 340 and a tensile strength of 950 MPa to 1,120 MPa.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 14, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2020
    Assignee: JFE STEEL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Noriaki Kohsaka, Yoshimasa Funakawa, Michitaka Sakurai, Yoshikazu Suzuki
  • Publication number: 20200032362
    Abstract: A warm-workable high-strength steel sheet having superior warm workability and residual ductility after warm working, and a method for manufacturing such steel sheets. The warm-workable high-strength steel sheet has a chemical composition including, in mass %, C: 0.05 to 0.20%, Si: not more than 3.0%, Mn: 3.5 to 8.0%, P: not more than 0.100%, S: not more than 0.02%, Al: 0.01 to 3.0% and N: not more than 0.010%, the balance being Fe and inevitable impurities. The steel sheet has a microstructure that includes, in area fractions, 10 to 60% retained austenite, 10 to 80% ferrite, 5 to 50% martensite and 0 to 5% bainite, the C content in the retained austenite being less than 0.40 mass %.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 26, 2017
    Publication date: January 30, 2020
    Applicant: JFE STEEL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hiroshi HASEGAWA, Yoshimasa FUNAKAWA
  • Patent number: 10533236
    Abstract: A method of manufacturing a high-strength hot rolled steel sheet by hot rolling a steel having a chemical composition including, by mass %: C: more than 0.010% and not more than 0.06%, Si: not more than 0.3%, Mn: not more than 0.8%, P: not more than 0.03%, S: not more than 0.02%, Al: not more than 0.1%, N: not more than 0.01% and Ti: 0.05 to 0.10%, the balance including Fe and inevitable impurities, including: after the steel is heated to an austenite single phase region, the steel is finish rolled at a finishing delivery temperature of 860° C. to 1050° C., the steel sheet is cooled at an average cooling rate of not less than 30° C./s in a temperature range of from a temperature after the completion of the finish rolling to 750° C., and the steel sheet is coiled into a coil at a coiling temperature of 580° C. to 700° C.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 11, 2017
    Date of Patent: January 14, 2020
    Assignee: JFE Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Yoshimasa Funakawa, Tetsuo Yamamoto, Hiroshi Uchomae, Hiroshi Nakano, Taro Kizu
  • Patent number: 10494693
    Abstract: A high-strength steel sheet having a high yield ratio and a reduced difference in strength between the center and edges of the steel sheet in the width direction. The high-strength steel sheet includes a composition containing, by mass, C: 0.02% or more and less than 0.10%, Si: less than 0.10%, Mn: less than 1.0%, P: 0.10% or less, S: 0.020% or less, Al: 0.01% or more and 0.10% or less, N: 0.010% or less, Nb: 0.005% or more and less than 0.070%, and the balance being Fe and inevitable impurities. Additionally, the steel sheet has a microstructure including, by area, ferrite: 90% or more, pearlite: 0% to 10%, and the total of martensite, retained austenite, and cementite: 0% to 3%. The average crystal grain diameter dC of the ferrite at the center of the steel sheet in the width direction is 15.0 ?m or less.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 22, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 3, 2019
    Assignee: JFE STEEL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yuma Honda, Yoshimasa Funakawa, Kozo Harada
  • Patent number: 10494689
    Abstract: A high-strength galvanized steel sheet having a chemical composition containing, by mass %, C: 0.07% to 0.25%, Si: 0.01% to 3.00%, Mn: 1.5% to 4.0%, P: 0.100% or less, S: 0.02% or less, Al: 0.01% to 1.50%, N: 0.001% to 0.008%, Ti: 0.003% to 0.200%, B: 0.0003% to 0.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 21, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 3, 2019
    Assignee: JFE STEEL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hiroshi Hasegawa, Yoshimasa Funakawa
  • Patent number: 10450642
    Abstract: A high-strength galvanized steel sheet that includes a chemical composition containing, by mass %, C: 0.15% or more and 0.25% or less, Si: 0.50% or more and 2.5% or less, Mn: 2.3% or more and 4.0% or less, P: 0.100% or less, S: 0.02% or less, Al: 0.01% or more and 2.5% or less, and Fe and inevitable impurities. The steel sheet having a microstructure containing, by an area percentage basis, a tempered martensite phase: 30% or more and 73% or less, a ferrite phase: 25% or more and 68% or less, a retained austenite phase: 2% or more and 20% or less, and other phases: 10% or less (including 0%), the other phases containing a martensite phase: 3% or less (including 0%) and a bainitic ferrite phase: less than 5% (including 0%).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 24, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 22, 2019
    Assignee: JFE STEEL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hiroshi Hasegawa, Hideyuki Kimura, Yoshimasa Funakawa, Yoichi Makimizu, Yoshitsugu Suzuki
  • Publication number: 20190284656
    Abstract: To provide a high-strength steel sheet with excellent ductility and hole expansion formability, a yield ratio of less than 68%, and a tensile strength of 980 MPa or more, by having a predetermined chemical composition and a microstructure where ferrite is 15% or more and 55% or less and martensite is 15% or more and 30% or less in area ratio, retained austenite is 12% or more in volume fraction, the average grain size of ferrite, martensite and retained austenite is 4.0 ?m or less, 2.0 ?m or less and 2.0 ?m or less respectively, the average aspect ratio of crystal grain of ferrite, martensite and retained austenite is each more than 2.0 and 15.0 or less, and the value obtained by dividing the Mn content (mass %) in retained austenite by the Mn content (mass %) in ferrite is 2.0 or more.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 15, 2017
    Publication date: September 19, 2019
    Applicant: JFE STEEL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshiyasu KAWASAKI, Takako YAMASHITA, Masayasu UENO, Yuki TOJI, Takashi KOBAYASHI, Yoshimasa FUNAKAWA
  • Publication number: 20190271051
    Abstract: To provide a high-strength steel sheet with excellent ductility and hole expansion formability, a yield ratio of less than 68%, and a tensile strength of 590 MPa or more, by having a predetermined chemical composition and a microstructure where ferrite is 35% or more and 80% or less and martensite is 5% or more and 25% or less in area ratio, retained austenite is 8% or more in volume fraction, the average grain size of ferrite, martensite and retained austenite is 6.0 ?m or less, 3.0 ?m or less and 3.0 ?m or less respectively, the average aspect ratio of crystal grain of ferrite, martensite and retained austenite is each more than 2.0 and 15.0 or less, and the value obtained by dividing the Mn content (mass %) in retained austenite by the Mn content (mass %) in ferrite is 2.0 or more.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 15, 2017
    Publication date: September 5, 2019
    Applicant: JFE STEEL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshiyasu KAWASAKI, Takako YAMASHITA, Masayasu UENO, Yuki TOJI, Takashi KOBAYASHI, Yoshimasa FUNAKAWA
  • Patent number: 10400316
    Abstract: A high strength hot rolled steel sheet with good formability, which has good magnetic properties, excellent punchability, and a tensile strength of 780 MPa or more. The high strength hot rolled steel sheet having a chemical composition containing C: 0.070% to 0.140%, Si: 0.10% to 1.00%, Mn: 1.00% to 1.80%, P: 0.050% or less, S: 0.0050% or less, N: 0.0080% or less, Al: 0.010% to 0.100%, Ti: 0.050% to 0.150%, and the remainder composed of Fe and incidental impurities, on a percent by mass basis, and 95% or more of bainite microstructure on a volume fraction basis, wherein carbides constituting 80% or more of total precipitation carbides are dispersed at grain boundaries of bainitic ferrite constituting the bainite microstructure and 80% or more of total precipitation carbides have particle grain sizes of 20 to 300 nm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 11, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 3, 2019
    Assignee: JFE STEEL CORPORATION
    Inventors: Katsumi Nakajima, Yoshimasa Funakawa, Nobuyuki Nakamura