Canon Kabushiki Kaisha

Junji Terada

Kazuhiro Arai

Noriyuki Nakai

Shigeru Hashimoto

Jun-ichi Sakamoto

Junichi Sakamoto

Makoto Kameyama

Masahide Iwakata

Takeshi Sekiguchi

Toshiaki Yoshikawa

Mitsuharu Sawamura

Masaaki Nakabayashi

Senichi Hayashi

Miwa Takachi

Yu Kameno

Noboru Sugahara

A liquid residual-amount detecting device includes an optical sensor having a pair of a light emitting portion and a light receiving portion; and a plurality of liquid cartridges, each having a containing portion, a float disposed in the containing portion, and a light shielding portion displaced on a path that crosses an optical path of detection light in synchronization with displacement of the float, wherein the light shielding portions each having a size such that a light amount of the detection light, which the light receiving portion receives, cannot be made smaller than a predetermined light amount by alone; and wherein when the float is at a highest position, they are disposed to be aligned in a direction crossing the optical path so as to shield the optical path, and the light amount, which the light receiving portion receives, is made smaller than the predetermined light amount.

Liquid residual-amount detecting device

In a toric lens comprising a toric surface having a fine uneven structure, the fine uneven structure includes a plurality of holes, the plurality of holes have a hole depth H and a surface opening diameter &#x3c6;t which satisfy an expression of 0.3&#x2264;H/&#x3c6;t&#x2264;0.6, and (a) the plurality of holes have a hole structure having a cylindrical shape on a bottom surface side and a circular truncated cone shape having an opening diameter increasing toward a surface side, or (b) an angle &#x3b8; formed between an opening portion and the surface of the plurality of holes satisfies 78&#xb0;&#x2264;&#x3b8;&#x2264;85&#xb0;.

Toric lens, optical element, and image forming apparatus

Provided are an optical element and a method of producing an optical element in which sufficient adhesion with an upper layer can be secured without damaging spectral characteristics. The production method includes the step of forming a first structural body in which a space part and a structural part are alternately and repeatedly arranged, the step of forming an etching stopper layer on an upper part of the structural part, and the step of forming a second structural body on the etching stopper layer by etching.

Method of producing optical element and optical element

An optical element having a three-dimensional structure which can function in a visible range and can improve adherence at a structural interface of the element, and a method of manufacturing the optical element. The optical element includes a substrate, and at least a first layer and a second layer on the substrate are manufactured such that each of the first layer and the second layer has a repetition structure of spaces and structural parts at a pitch equal to or less than a wavelength of visible light, and at an interface between the first layer and the second layer, overlapped structures are provided in which the repetition structure of the first layer and the repetition structure of the second layer overlap in a stack direction of the layers.

Optical element and method of manufacturing optical element with each of first and second layers having a repetition structure

Provided is a method of producing an optical element, including: forming a frame portion on a substrate and forming a structural body in a space portion surrounded by the frame portion to thereby form a first optical member; disposing a second optical member on the first optical member in a reduced pressure environment to form an optical element in which the space portion is sealed in a pressure-reduced state; and exposing the optical element to the atmosphere to thereby bring the structural body and the second optical member into close contact with each other by a differential pressure between the atmosphere and the space portion sealed in the pressure-reduced state. Accordingly, it is possible to, when the optical element is bonded, suppress damage to the optical element during the bonding and further improve the function and strength of the optical element without use of an adhesive.

Optical element and method of producing same

A method for producing an optical element having a three-dimensional structural part that can resolve problems associated with deterioration of optical characteristics that is caused by variations in the element shape in the conventional process and poor endurance caused by insufficient joining strength and the optical element produced by the method are provided. A method for producing an optical element configured by joining at least a first optical member and a second optical member formed from an oxide material includes the processes of forming a refractive index periodic structural part with a period equal to or less than a visible light wavelength on at least one of the first optical member and the second optical member, forming a joining layer composed of an oxygen-deficient oxide on the first optical member and the second optical member, tightly joining the first optical member and the second optical member by the joining layer, and oxidizing the joining layer after the tight joining.

Method for producing optical element and the optical element

A method of manufacturing a micro-structure having a plurality of step-like elements, includes the steps of etching a first region of a substrate, corresponding to a lowest step of the step-like element, with an appropriate depth, whereby a surface of the lowest step of the step-like element is defined, and etching, subsequently, a second region of the substrate, corresponding to another step of the step-like element, with an appropriate depth, whereby a surface of that step of the step-like element is defined.

Method of manufacturing diffractive optical element

An electrochromic device and a method for manufacturing the same, which device at least comprises a pair of opposed transparent substrates provided with a pair of opposed transparent electrodes therebetween; and an oxidative coloring electrochromic layer, a layer comprising an oxidative coloring electrochromic material and a metal oxide, a transparent ion conductive layer, and a reductive coloring electrochromic layer provided between the pair of transparent electrodes. Thereby, an electrochromic device can be provided, which device exhibits high optical transmittance during discoloring and shows excellent response speed and repeated-durability when being driven at high contrast ratio.

Electrochromic device

An electrochromic device and a method for manufacturing same, which device has at least a pair of opposed transparent electroconductive layers, a first transparent ion conductive layer provided between the pair of opposed electroconductive layers, a second transparent ion conductive layer adjacent to the first ion conductive layer, a reductive coloring electrochromic layer adjacent to the second ion conductive layer, wherein the first transparent ion conductive layer is formed in an atmosphere containing water vapor and the second transparent ion conductive layer is formed in an atmosphere containing oxygen. Thereby an electrochromic device can be provided, which device exhibits excellent durability when being driven at a high contrast ratio and high resistance to such environments as high temperature and humidity.

Electrochromic device and method for manufacturing the same

There is provided an electrochromic device comprising a pair of transparent substrates facing each other, a pair of transparent electrodes facing each other between the pair of transparent substrates, and an electrochromic layer and a transparent ion conductive layer sandwiched by the pair of transparent electrodes, wherein at least the electrochromic layer and the transparent ion conductive layer are coated with a resin in a state that carrier precursor in the electrochromic layer and in the transparent ion conductive layer is ionized. As a result, film breakage of the electrochromic device and peeling off of the sealing resin and the sealing substrate are prevented, thus improving the durability of the electrochromic device.

An antireflection film is procided on a plastic optical element as follows. An undercoat composed principally of unsaturated silicon exide SiO.sub.x (2&gt;x&gt;1) with a thickness within a range of 200 to 300 nm is formed on the optical element. A multi-layered film of a repeating structure is formed on the undercoat. The multi-layerd film has antireflective characteristics. The undercoat has a refractive index within a range of 1.49 to 1.59. The multi-layered film is composed of alternate lamination of a layer of a material which has a high refractive index and which is composed principally of TiO.sub.2, ZrO.sub.2 or a mixture thereof, and a layer of a material which has a low refractive index and which is composed principally of SiO.sub.x (2.gtoreq.x.gtoreq.1).

Antireflection film for plastic optical element

An evaporation material is employed to form an optical thin film which is adapted to be formed on an optical element such as a lens or the like. The evaporation material is provided such that zirconium oxide (ZrO.sub.2) is mixed with a titanium oxide (TiO.sub.A) having a molar ratio A(O/Ti) of oxygen to titanium in a range of 1.0 to 1.75 so that the mixture assumes a molar ratio (Ti/Zr) of titanium to zirconium in a range of 1.0 to 4.0. The mixture is sintered or fused and solidified.

Evaporating material for producing optical thin film

In an optical reflection preventing film comprised of a plurality of layers provided on an optical element, one of the plurality of layers is formed by a transparent electrically conductive layer, and the optical film thickness of the transparent electrically conductive layer is 45-120 nm.

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Junji Terada