Ricoh Company, Ltd.

Mayuka Araumi

Tomoaki Sugawara

Takahiro Imai

Tsuneaki Kondoh

Junichiro Natori

Mizuki Otagiri

Yuko Arizumi

Megumi Kitamura

Makito Nakashima

Yuki Hoshikawa

Yoshikazu Akiyama

Hidenori Tomono

Ikue Kawashima

Hideyuki Miyazawa

Kimio Aoki

Hitoshi Arita

Takanori Tano

Takumi Yamaga

Akishige Murakami

Emergency stop pressure sensorsare installed on both side surfaces of a movable linkof a robot armof an assembly robot. When a worker S unintentionally walks in a swing range Ra of the robot armand contacts the emergency stop pressure sensor, a detection signal is transmitted to a control unit, and the control unitshuts power transmission to a driving source swinging the robot arm. The emergency stop pressure sensorhas a first electrode and a second electrode constituting a pair of electrodes and an intermediate layer formed of rubber or a rubber composition, which is disposed between the pair of electrodes, the intermediate layer generating power upon deformation caused by contact with a contacted body (the worker). A side of the intermediate layer in a laminate direction undergoes surface modification treatment and/or inactivation treatment. With this treatment, the one side and the other side of the intermediate layer have different degrees of deformation to the same deformation adding force.

Emergency stop pressure sensor, safety device, and safety system

An elementincludes a pair of electrodesand, and an intermediate layerhaving deformability, arranged between the pair of electrodesand, and containing, as a material, a silicon compound including an unpaired electron. The intermediate layermay contain a particle including the unpaired electron. The intermediate layermay have rubber elasticity. The intermediate layermay have at least one peak at a g value between 2.070 and 2.001 when being measured at an environment temperature of &#x2212;150&#xb0; C. by using an electron spin resonance (ESR) device. The intermediate layermay have at least one peak at a g value between 2.070 and 2.001 when being measured at an environment temperature of &#x2212;150&#xb0; C. by using the electron spin resonance (ESR) device.

Element, cell, and power generation device

A power generating element is provided. The power generating element includes a pair of electrodes, an intermediate layer being insulating, and a substrate being flexible. The intermediate layer is disposed between the electrodes. The substrate is configured to support the electrodes and the intermediate layer. When the substrate undergoes a deformation, the intermediate layer is separated from or pressed against one of the electrodes.

Power generating element and power generating device

An input element includes: a first electrode and a second electrode that face each other; and an intermediate layer disposed between the first and the second electrodes and made of rubber or a rubber composition, the rubber or rubber composition containing siloxane. The intermediate layer is made of rubber or a rubber composition, the rubber or rubber composition containing siloxane that has a silicon atom bound to three to four oxygen atoms. The intermediate layer has concentration profiles such that, while oxygen increases from one side to the other side of a thickness direction thereof and has a maximal value, carbon decreases from the one side to the other side thereof and has a minimal value.

Input element and input device

A sensor includes a plurality of elements and an insulating layer. The plurality of elements is deformable to generate power. The insulating layer is interposed between the plurality of elements. Each of the plurality of elements includes a pair of electrodes and an intermediate layer. The intermediate layer is disposed between the pair of electrodes and formed of one of a rubber and a rubber composition.

Sensor and sensor system

A power generating device is provided. The power generating device includes an element having flexibility and a support to support at least one portion of the element. The element is capable of undergoing a deformation when receiving a vibration and capable of generating power when undergoing the deformation. The deformation includes at least one of a bending deformation, a torsional deformation, and a bending-torsional complex deformation.

Power generating device

A power generating device including an element and a moving member. The element is deformable and generates power when deforming. The moving member moves when receiving a vibration, and contacts the element when moving. When the moving member contacts the element, the element deforms into another state or returns to a previous state.

Power generating device having a deformable element that generates power when deforming

A sensor includes an electrode, an insulator, a pressure receiver, and a pressure imparting unit. The insulator is disposed at a position facing the electrode and away from the electrode. The pressure receiver is disposed on a surface of the insulator on a side opposite to the electrode. The pressure imparting unit presses a part of the insulator toward the electrode at a position different from the pressure receiver to contact the insulator with the electrode. The insulator generates power by contact charging or separation charging with respect to the electrode, to output the power as a signal.

Sensor including an electrode, insulator, pressure receiver, and pressure imparting unit, and a system including the sensor

A gripping deviceis provided at the front end of an arm of an assembly robot. The gripping deviceincludes a pair of grippersandcapable of opening and closing. The side configured to come into contact with a part, of each gripperincludes a pressure-sensitive sensor. The pressure-sensitive sensorincludes a first electrode and a second electrode serving as a pair of electrodes and an intermediate layer formed of rubber or a rubber composition between the pair of electrodes. The intermediate layer is configured to generate electricity when deformed by contact with an object (part). The side configured to come into contact with the object, of the intermediate layer is subjected to a surface modification treatment and has a higher hardness than the opposite side.

Pressure-sensitive sensor, gripping device, and robot

A power generating element is provided. The power generating element includes an electrode pair and an intermediate layer. The electrode pair includes a first electrode and a second electrode. The intermediate layer is disposed between the first electrode and the second electrode. The intermediate layer is insulating and has a first side facing the first electrode and a second side facing the second electrode. The first electrode and the intermediate layer together operate as a contact/separation mechanism configured to perform a contact/separation operation, when an external force is applied to the power generating element to generate power. In the contact/separation operation, the contact/separation mechanism transitions between a contact or close state in which the first electrode and the first side are brought into contact with each other or close to each other, and a separation state in which the first electrode and the first side are separated from each other.

Power generating element and power generating device utilizing vibration energy

A power generating element is provided. The power generating element includes a piezoelectric body and a pair of electrodes. The piezoelectric body is expandable and contractible in response to a movement of a moving body. The piezoelectric body undergoes a deformation when expanding or contracting and generates power when undergoing the deformation. The pair of electrodes extracts the power generated as the piezoelectric body undergoes the deformation.

Power generating element

A power generating element is provided. The power generating element includes a pair of electrodes and an intermediate layer disposed between the pair of electrodes. The intermediate layer includes an insulating elastic body. The power generating element is flexibly bendable when receiving an external force, while causing a sliding transfer between at least one of the electrodes and at least one surface of the intermediate layer which faces the at least one of the electrodes, due to a difference in curvature between the electrodes and the intermediate layer.

Power generating element, light emitting element, band-like light emitting body, and rescue display device

A handwritten character input device includes a correction amount computation unit which performs, when a characteristic value of handwritten characters input to a designated character writing area of a template image by a handwriting input operation of a user does not meet predetermined character writing requirements, a computation process that computes a correction amount of the characteristic value required to meet the character writing requirements; and a corrected handwritten character information output unit which outputs information of after-correction handwritten characters generated based on the correction amount computed by the correction amount computation unit, the characteristic value of the after-correction handwritten characters meeting the character writing requirements.

Handwritten character input device, remote device, and electronic information terminal

A method of manufacturing an organic transistor active substrate is disclosed. The organic transistor active substrate includes an organic transistor in which a first electrode is formed on a substrate, a first insulating film is formed on the first electrode, a pair of second electrodes is formed on the first insulating film, and an active layer made of an organic semiconductor material is formed on the pair of second electrodes. The organic transistor is laminated with a second insulating film, and the second insulating film is laminated with a third electrode which is electrically coupled to one of the second electrodes via a through-hole provided through the second insulating film. The first electrode is formed by inkjet ejection; the first insulating film is formed by coating; the pair of second electrodes is formed by inkjet ejection; the active layer is formed by inkjet ejection; the second insulating film is formed by screen printing; and the third electrode is formed by screen printing.

Organic transistor active substrate, manufacturing method thereof, and electrophoretic display

A method of manufacturing a multilevel interconnect structure using a screen printing method is disclosed. In the multilevel interconnect structure, an interlayer insulating film having a through hole with a conductive bump therein, and a second interconnect line are stacked on a substrate with a first interconnect line formed thereon. The first interconnect line is electrically connected to the second interconnect line via the conductive bump. The method includes a step of forming a first region of the interlayer insulating film on the substrate with the first interconnect line formed thereon, the first region including a part of a peripheral wall of the through hole; a step of forming a second region of the interlayer insulating film on the substrate with the first region formed thereon, the second region including a remaining part of the peripheral wall of the through hole; and a step of forming the conductive bump.

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Tokyo, Japan

Mayuka Araumi