Patents by Inventor Yoshio Koike

Yoshio Koike 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: 20120120338
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display device comprising a liquid crystal layer including liquid crystal molecules provided between a first substrate and a second substrate; pixels forming a display area; electrodes for applying a voltage across the liquid crystal layer within each of the pixels; a plurality of domain regulating structures for dividing orientations of the liquid crystal molecules and forming multiple domains within each of the pixels, when a predetermined voltage is applied across the liquid crystal layer within each of the pixels; and a structure which is formed in an outer area located next to the display area and is substantially the same as at least one of the plurality of domain regulating structures.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 25, 2012
    Publication date: May 17, 2012
    Applicant: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Arihiro Takeda, Katsufumi Ohmuro, Yoshio Koike, Shingo Kataoka, Takahiro Sasaki, Takashi Sasabayashi, Hideaki Tsuda, Hideo Chida, Makoto Ohashi, Kenji Okamoto, Hisashi Yamaguchi, Minoru Otani, Makoto Morishige, Noriaki Furukawa, Tsuyoshi Kamada, Yoshinori Tanaka, Atuyuki Hoshino, Shougo Hayashi, Hideaki Takizawa, Takeshi Kinjou, Makoto Tachibanaki, Keiji Imoto, Tadashi Hasegawa, Hidefumi Yoshida, Hiroyasu Inoue, Yoji Taniguchi, Tetsuya Fujikawa, Satoshi Murata, Manabu Sawasaki, Tomonori Tanose, Siro Hirota, Masahiro Ikeda, Kunihiro Tashiro, Kouji Tsukao, Yasutoshi Tasaka, Takatoshi Mayama, Seiji Tanuma, Yohei Nakanishi
  • Patent number: 8178171
    Abstract: The invention relates to a liquid crystal display utilizing a vertically aligned state of liquid crystal molecules when no voltage is applied and to a method of manufacturing the same. The invention is aimed at providing a liquid crystal display and a method of manufacturing the same in which the existing step for forming vertical alignment films can be omitted to achieve a cost reduction. The liquid crystal display includes a monofunctional monomer having a structure expressed by X—R (where X represents an acrylate group or a methacrylate group, and R represents an organic group having a steroid skeleton). A liquid crystal material is sandwiched between substrates which is then irradiated with ultraviolet rays to cure the monofunctional monomer, thereby forming a polymer film at an interface of a substrate. The monofunctional monomer has a hydrophobic skeleton such as an alkyl chain and a photoreactive group on one side of the skeleton.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 13, 2010
    Date of Patent: May 15, 2012
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Shingo Kataoka, Hideaki Tsuda, Katsufumi Ohmuro, Jin Hirosawa, Seiji Tanuma, Yoshio Koike
  • Publication number: 20120075567
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display in which a wide angle of view is obtained and a response time at a halftone can be shortened by regulating an alignment orientation of a liquid crystal by the use of a polymer fixation system in which a liquid crystal layer containing a polymerizable component is scaled between substrates. The polymerizable component is polymerized while a voltage is applied to the liquid crystal layer to fix a liquid crystal alignment. A plurality of stripe-like electrode patterns, in which a pattern width is formed to be wider than a width of a space, are arranged so that the liquid crystal molecules are aligned in a longitudinal direction of the pattern when the polymer is formed by solidifying a polymerizable component mixed in the liquid crystal layer while a voltage is applied to the liquid crystal layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 23, 2011
    Publication date: March 29, 2012
    Applicant: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Takahiro Sasaki, Kazutaka Hanaoka, Tsutomu Seino, Yohei Nakanishi, Seiji Tanuma, Kimiaki Nakamura, Yuichi Inoue, Masakazu Shibasaki, Hideaki Tsuda, Yoshio Koike, Yasutoshi Tasaka, Hidefumi Yoshida, Kunihiro Tashiro
  • Patent number: 8134671
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display device including a pair of substrates sandwiching liquid crystal molecules, a plurality of gate bus lines, and a plurality of data bus lines, with each of the data bus lines extending to intersect the gate bus lines and bending in a zigzag manner. A plurality of pixels are formed in areas enclosed by the data and gate bus lines, with a plurality of pixel electrodes, each covering a substantial area of one of the pixels. A plurality of domain regulating structures for regulating orientation directions of the liquid crystal molecules and for forming multiple domains are formed in each of the pixels. At least one of the domain regulating structures bends along a first side edge of the pixel electrode and domains are divided in accordance with the bending of the domain regulating structure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 29, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 13, 2012
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Arihiro Takeda, Katsufumi Ohmuro, Yoshio Koike, Shingo Kataoka, Takahiro Sasaki, Takashi Sasabayashi, Hideaki Tsuda, Hideo Chida, Makoto Ohashi, Kenji Okamoto, Hisashi Yamaguchi, Minoru Otani, Makoto Morishige, Noriaki Furukawa, Tsuyoshi Kamada, Yoshinori Tanaka, Atuyuki Hoshino, Shougo Hayashi, Hideaki Takizawa, Takeshi Kinjou, Makoto Tachibanaki, Keiji Imoto, Tadashi Hasegawa, Hidefumi Yoshida, Hiroyasu Inoue, Yoji Taniguchi, Tetsuya Fujikawa, Satoshi Murata, Manabu Sawasaki, Tomonori Tanose, Siro Hirota, Masahiro Ikeda, Kunihiro Tashiro, Kouji Tsukao, Yasutoshi Tasaka, Takatoshi Mayama, Seiji Tanuma, Yohei Nakanishi
  • Patent number: 8094143
    Abstract: This invention relates to an image processing method for improving the quality of an image to be displayed on a display device and to a liquid-crystal display device using the same, and aims at providing an image processing method for providing wide viewing angle and excellent tonal-intensity viewing angle characteristic and a liquid-crystal display device using the same. Combined together are a higher-luminance pixel to be driven higher in luminance than the luminance data of an image to be displayed and a lower-luminance pixel to be driven lower in luminance than the luminance data, to determine a luminance on the higher-luminance pixel and luminance on the lower-luminance pixel as well as an area ratio of the higher-luminance and lower-luminance pixels in a manner obtaining a luminance nearly equal to a desired luminance based on the luminance data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2012
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Tsuyoshi Kamada, Hidefumi Yoshida, Yoshio Koike, Toshiaki Suzuki, Tetsuya Kobayashi, Yasutoshi Tasaka, Masakazu Shibasaki, Kunihiro Tashiro, Kazuya Ueda, Katsuyoshi Hiraki
  • Publication number: 20110299019
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display apparatus including a pair of substrates having electrodes and vertical alignment layers. A liquid crystal having a negative anisotropy of dielectric is inserted between the substrates. Each substrate has linearly arranged alignment control structures for controlling the alignment of the liquid crystal. The alignment control structures are formed in the form of projections or slits. Each alignment control structure is formed of a plurality of constituent units. In addition, means for forming a boundary of alignment of liquid crystal (singular point in director field) to control the liquid crystal located on the alignment control structures.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 16, 2011
    Publication date: December 8, 2011
    Applicant: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Takahiro Sasaki, Arihiro Takeda, Katsufumi Ohmuro, Hideo Chida, Yoshio Koike, Kimiaki Nakamura, Kunihiro Tashiro
  • Patent number: 8054429
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display device including first and second substrates, with a liquid crystal layer including liquid crystal molecules between the first and second substrates. A first electrode formed on the first substrate and a second electrode formed on the second substrate. An alignment layer is formed on at least one of the substrates, and a polymer is formed on the alignment layer. The liquid crystal molecules are tilted when no voltage is applied to the liquid crystal molecules. The first electrode has a plurality of stripe-like electrode patterns, and the stripe-like electrode patterns have a width that is wider than a width of a space between adjacent strip-like electrode patterns.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 5, 2009
    Date of Patent: November 8, 2011
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Kazutaka Hanaoka, Takahiro Sasaki, Tsutomu Seino, Yohei Nakanishi, Seiji Tanuma, Kimiaki Nakamura, Yuichi Inoue, Masakazu Shibasaki, Hideaki Tsuda, Yoshio Koike, Yasutoshi Tasaka, Hidefumi Yoshida, Kunihiro Tashiro
  • Publication number: 20110261297
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display device is provided which has a pair of substrates and a liquid crystal layer sandwiched between the pair of substrates, in which liquid crystal molecules are vertically aligned with respect to the substrates when no voltage is applied between the substrates and the liquid crystal molecules tilt in a plurality of directions to be almost parallel to the substrates by applying a voltage between the substrates. In the liquid crystal layer, when the voltage is applied, a proportion of a region where the liquid crystal molecules tilt in a direction of 0 degrees to 180 degrees is different from a proportion of a region where the liquid crystal molecules tilt in a direction of 180 degrees to 360 degrees with the angle being defined counterclockwise with the right direction on a screen being 0 degrees.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 1, 2011
    Publication date: October 27, 2011
    Applicant: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hidefumi Yoshida, Takashi Sasabayashi, Arihiro Takeda, Yasutoshi Tasaka, Hideo Chida, Yoshio Koike
  • Patent number: 8044907
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display including two substrates, gate bus lines, liquid crystal molecules, and a polymer that determines directions in which the liquid crystal molecules tilt. A plurality of divisional areas are arranged on one of the substrates. The pixels are aligned in a column between drain bus lines. A pixel electrode is formed at each of the divisional areas. A first thin film transistor drives a first divisional area, and a second thin film transistor drives a second divisional area of the same column. The first and second thin film transistors are electrically connected to the same gate bus line. Either the pixel electrodes formed at each of the divisional areas are electrically insulated from each other, or they are connected to each other through a high resistance. A first threshold voltage within the first divisional area is different from a second threshold voltage of the second divisional area.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 25, 2011
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Takashi Sasabayashi, Arihiro Takeda, Hiroyasu Inoue, Kazuya Ueda, Yoshio Koike, Hideaki Tsuda, Yasutoshi Tasaka, Hidefumi Yoshida, Kunihiro Tashiro, Tsuyoshi Kamada, Kimiaki Nakamura
  • Patent number: 8023085
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display apparatus including a pair of substrates having electrodes and vertical alignment layers. A liquid crystal having a negative anisotropy of dielectric is inserted between the substrates. Each substrate has linearly arranged alignment control structures for controlling the alignment of the liquid crystal. The alignment control structures are formed in the form of projections or slits. Each alignment control structure is formed of a plurality of constituent units. In addition, means for forming a boundary of alignment of liquid crystal (singular point in director field) to control the liquid crystal located on the alignment control structures.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 21, 2010
    Date of Patent: September 20, 2011
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Takahiro Sasaki, Arihiro Takeda, Katsufumi Ohmuro, Hideo Chida, Yoshio Koike, Kimiaki Nakamura, Kunihiro Tashiro
  • Publication number: 20110222007
    Abstract: The invention relates to a liquid crystal display used as a display section of an electronic apparatus and provides a liquid crystal display having high chromaticity characteristics and viewing angle characteristics. A configuration is employed which includes substrates having electrodes on respective surfaces thereof opposite to each other, a liquid crystal sealed between the substrates, and a pixel region including a low effective voltage area in which an effective voltage applied to the liquid crystal is lower than a voltage applied between the electrodes, the low effective voltage area occupying part of the region in a predetermined area ratio, the pixel region having a threshold voltage that varies between the low effective voltage area and another area.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 23, 2011
    Publication date: September 15, 2011
    Applicant: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Kazuya Ueda, Tsuyoshi Kamada, Hidefumi Yoshida, Yoshio Koike, Kenji Okamoto, Yuichi Inoue, Seiji Tanuma
  • Patent number: 8018559
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display apparatus having a plurality of pixels, including: a pair of substrates; a liquid crystal having a negative dielectric anisotropy inserted between the pair of substrates; and first and second electrodes formed on the pair of substrates, respectively. A first alignment control structure is formed linearly on one of the pair of substrates for controlling an alignment of the liquid crystal and a second alignment control structure is formed linearly on the other of the pair of substrates for controlling an alignment of the liquid crystal. The first and second alignment control structures are bent in zigzag fashion and extend parallel with each other. The liquid crystal display apparatus also includes an additional structure for controlling an alignment of the liquid crystal. The additional structure extends from a bent portion of at least one of the first and second alignment control structures.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 2009
    Date of Patent: September 13, 2011
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Takahiro Sasaki, Arihiro Takeda, Katsufumi Ohmuro, Hideo Chida, Yoshio Koike, Kimiaki Nakamura, Kunihiro Tashiro
  • Publication number: 20110216274
    Abstract: In a liquid crystal display device, liquid crystal molecules are oriented in a vertical direction to the first substrate and the second substrate by the first molecule orientation film and the second molecule orientation film, respectively, in a non-driving state. A structural pattern is formed so as to extend in a first direction parallel to a surface of the liquid crystal layer and so as to form, in a driving state, an electric field periodically changing in a second direction that is parallel to the liquid crystal layer and vertical to the first direction. The liquid crystal molecules substantially tilt in the first direction in the driving state.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 18, 2011
    Publication date: September 8, 2011
    Applicant: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Shingo Kataoka, Arihiro Takeda, Takahiro Sasaki, Tsutomu Seino, Yoshio Koike, Hidefumi Yoshida, Yuichi Inoue, Kazutaka Hanaoka, Seiji Tanuma, Takatoshi Mayama, Kimiaki Nakamura, Hideo Chida, Seiji Doi, Tetsuya Fujikawa, Takashi Takagi, Hiroyasu Inoue
  • Patent number: 7999879
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display device is provided which has a pair of substrates and a liquid crystal layer sandwiched between the pair of substrates, in which liquid crystal molecules are vertically aligned with respect to the substrates when no voltage is applied between the substrates and the liquid crystal molecules tilt in a plurality of directions to be almost parallel to the substrates by applying a voltage between the substrates. In the liquid crystal layer, when the voltage is applied, a proportion of a region where the liquid crystal molecules tilt in a direction of 0 degrees to 180 degrees is different from a proportion of a region where the liquid crystal molecules tilt in a direction of 180 degrees to 360 degrees with the angle being defined counterclockwise with the right direction on a screen being 0 degrees.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 12, 2007
    Date of Patent: August 16, 2011
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hidefumi Yoshida, Takashi Sasabayashi, Arihiro Takeda, Yasutoshi Tasaka, Hideo Chida, Yoshio Koike
  • Patent number: 7995175
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display device including first and second substrates sandwiching therebetween a liquid crystal layer, and first and second polarizers. The first polarizer and the second polarizer are disposed such that an optical absorption axis of the first polarizer and an optical absorption axis of the second polarizer cross each other perpendicularly. There is disposed an optically biaxial retardation film having refractive indices nx, ny and nz respectively in x-, y- and z-directions, wherein the optically biaxial retardation film provides an in-plane retardation having a magnitude defined by |nx-ny| • d, with d representing a thickness of the optically biaxial retardation film, and further wherein the in-plane retardation of the optically biaxial retardation film has a value of 20 nm or more but does not exceed 80 nm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 13, 2010
    Date of Patent: August 9, 2011
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Katsufumi Ohmuro, Yoshio Koike, Takahiro Sasaki, Hideaki Tsuda, Hideo Chida
  • Publication number: 20110176098
    Abstract: A vertically alignment mode liquid crystal display device having an improved viewing angle characteristic is disclosed. The disclosed liquid crystal display device uses a liquid crystal having a negative anisotropic dielectric constant, and orientations of the liquid crystal are vertical to substrates when no voltage being applied, almost horizontal when a predetermined voltage is applied, and oblique when an intermediate voltage is applied. At least one of the substrates includes a structure as domain regulating means, and inclined surfaces of the structure operate as a trigger to regulate azimuths of the oblique orientations of the liquid crystal when the intermediate voltage is applied.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 29, 2011
    Publication date: July 21, 2011
    Applicant: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Arihiro Takeda, Katsufumi Ohmuro, Yoshio Koike, Shingo Kataoka, Takahiro Sasaki, Takashi Sasabayashi, Hideaki Tsuda, Hideo Chida, Makoto Ohashi, Kenji Okamoto, Hisashi Yamaguchi, Minoru Otani, Makoto Morishige, Noriaki Furukawa, Tsuyoshi Kamada, Yoshinori Tanaka, Atuyuki Hoshino, Shougo Hayashi, Hideaki Takizawa, Takeshi Kinjou, Makoto Tachibanaki, Keiji Imoto, Tadashi Hasegawa, Hidefumi Yoshida, Hiroyasu Inoue, Yoji Taniguchi, Tetsuya Fujikawa, Satoshi Murata, Manabu Sawasaki, Tomonori Tanose, Siro Hirota, Masahiro Ikeda, Kunihiro Tashiro, Kouji Tsukao, Yasutoshi Tasaka, Takatoshi Mayama, Seiji Tanuma, Yohei Nakanishi
  • Patent number: 7982836
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display device in which a pair of substrates having electrodes face each other, and liquid crystal is sealed between the substrates. The liquid crystal display device includes a insulating layer that varies electric field orientations in a pixel region when a voltage is applied between the pair of substrates.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 7, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2011
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Arihiro Takeda, Yoshio Koike, Takashi Sasabayashi
  • Patent number: 7973894
    Abstract: A transmissive liquid crystal display including a pair of substrates, a common electrode on one of the substrates, a pixel electrode on the other substrate, a liquid crystal sealed between the substrates, a polymer obtained by polymerizing a polymeric component mixed in the liquid crystal, and a pixel region having areas whose electro-optical characteristics are different from each other because of a difference between cell thicknesses. A distance between the pixel electrode and the common electrode, with respect to a direction of the cell thickness, is different in the areas of different cell thicknesses. Also, a liquid crystal display including a pair of substrates provided opposite to each other; a liquid crystal sealed between the pair of substrates; and an alignment film including a polymeric component and a polymerization initiator in a density that varies in each of a plurality of areas in the pixel region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 2, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 5, 2011
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Kazuya Ueda, Tsuyoshi Kamada, Hidefumi Yoshida, Yoshio Koike, Kenji Okamoto, Yuichi Inoue, Seiji Tanuma
  • Patent number: 7965363
    Abstract: A liquid crystal display device including a common electrode on a first substrate, a pixel electrode on a second substrate, and a liquid crystal layer between the first and second substrates. The device also include first and second alignment control structures formed, respectively, on the first and second substrates, for regulating azimuths of orientations of the liquid crystal when a voltage is applied thereto. The first and second alignment control structures each include a first line portion (extending in a first direction) and a second line portion (extending in a second direction, which is different from the first direction). The pixel electrode includes an edge extending in a direction different from both the first and second directions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 19, 2008
    Date of Patent: June 21, 2011
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Arihiro Takeda, Katsufumi Ohmuro, Yoshio Koike, Shingo Kataoka, Takahiro Sasaki, Takashi Sasabayashi, Hideaki Tsuda, Hideo Chida, Makoto Ohashi, Kenji Okamoto, Hisashi Yamaguchi, Minoru Otani, Makoto Morishige, Noriaki Furukawa, Tsuyoshi Kamada, Yoshinori Tanaka, Atuyuki Hoshino, Shougo Hayashi, Hideaki Takizawa, Takeshi Kinjou, Makoto Tachibanaki, Keiji Imoto, Tadashi Hasegawa, Hidefumi Yoshida, Hiroyasu Inoue, Yoji Taniguchi, Tetsuya Fujikawa, Satoshi Murata, Manabu Sawasaki, Tomonori Tanose, Siro Hirota, Masahiro Ikeda, Kunihiro Tashiro, Kouji Tsukao, Yasutoshi Tasaka, Takatoshi Mayama, Seiji Tanuma, Yohei Nakanishi
  • Patent number: RE43123
    Abstract: A vertical alignment mode liquid crystal display device having an improved viewing angle characteristic is disclosed. The liquid crystal display device uses a liquid crystal having a negative anisotropic dielectric constant, and orientations of the liquid crystal are vertical to substrates when no voltage is applied, almost horizontal when a predetermined voltage is applied, and oblique when an intermediate voltage is applied. At least one of the substrates includes a structure as domain regulating means, and inclined surfaces of the structure operate to regulate azimuths of the oblique orientations of the liquid crystal when the intermediate voltage is applied.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 17, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 24, 2012
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Takashi Sasabayashi, Arihiro Takeda, Katsufumi Ohmuro, Yoshio Koike, Shingo Kataoka, Takahiro Sasaki, Kenji Okamoto, Tsuyoshi Kamada, Shougo Hayashi, Hideaki Takizawa, Keiji Imoto, Hidefumi Yoshida, Hiroyasu Inoue, Yoji Taniguchi, Satoshi Murata