Nec Corporation

Nippon Electric Co., Ltd.

Nec Corporaion

Michihisa Suga

Mitsuo Tsuzuki

Takeshi Inoue

Kazuaki Utsumi

Ichiro Fujieda

Toshihide Kuriyama

Daisuke Manabe

Sadayuki Takahashi

Shuji Asai

Hideo Takamizawa

Osamu Myoga

Providing a fingerprint detection apparatus which is small in size, low in cost and high in reliability. The fingerprint detection apparatus includes a shape transfer unit having a contact face for being contacted by a finger whose fingerprint is to be detected, the shape transfer unit having a thickness which varies, when a finger contacts with a surface which serves as the contact face, in accordance with pressures which are produced by concave and convex patterns of the fingerprint of the finger, and a detection driving circuit unit for detecting a pattern of the fingerprint based on variations of the thickness of the shape transfer unit and outputting results of the detection as electric signals, and detects a fingerprint pattern in accordance with variations of the thickness of the shape transfer unit.

Fingerprint detection apparatus

A fingerprint sensor is disclosed, which employs a plurality of tactile sensors, each has an elastic insulating body between a member of an electrically conductive material, i.e., a gate electrode, and an insulating film deposited on a channel region of a field-effect transistor (FET). The channel region is formed between a source region and a drain region. Each of the tactile sensors is connected in series with a transistor that serves as a source of constant or steady current to form a source follower circuit. With the source follower circuit, output of each of the tactile sensors is converted into source voltage. The source voltage of each of the source follower circuits is extracted via a first switching element at a common output terminal. The source follower circuits are connected via a second switching element to a source of electric power.

Tactile sensor and fingerprint sensor using same

A fingerprint detecting device includes a flat transparent body, a light source, a thin surface film layer, a fluid layer, and an image detection unit. The transparent body on which a skin surface of a finger is pressed has a surface constituted by a scattering surface with a fine three-dimensional unevenness. The light source irradiates incident light from an inside of the transparent body on the skin surface pressed against the surface of the transparent body. The surface film layer is formed on the surface of the transparent body via a small gap, on which a three-dimensional pattern of the skin surface is transferred by pressing the finger. The fluid layer is formed by sealing one of a gas and a liquid in the gap between the surface of the transparent body and the surface film layer, and is pressed by the surface film layer on which the three-dimensional pattern of the skin surface is transferred. The image detection unit detects an image fingerprint pattern on the basis of the light from the light source, the reflection of which is changed at the surface of the transparent body, when the surface film layer comes into contact with the surface of the transparent body in accordance with the three-dimensional pattern of the skin surface.

Fingerprint detecting device having a fluid layer sealed in a gap

In a fingerprint detecting device, the skin surface of a finger is pressed against a transparent body. A light source irradiates incident light from an inside of the transparent body on the skin surface. A thin surface film layer is formed on the surface of the transparent body, on which a three-dimensional pattern of the skin surface is transferred by pressing the finger, to pass the incident light from the light source an area where the surface film layer contacts the surface of the transparent body. A fluid layer is formed by sealing one of a gas and a liquid between the surface of the transparent body and the surface film layer. The fluid layer is pressed by the surface film layer on which the three-dimensional pattern of the skin surface is transferred and totally reflects the incident light from the light source in an area where the fluid layer contacts the surface of the transparent body. An image detection unit detects an image fingerprint pattern on the basis of the light from the light source, which is reflected by the surface of the transparent body, when the surface film layer comes into contact with the surface of the transparent body in accordance with the three-dimensional pattern of the skin surface. A method for this device is also disclosed.

Fingerprint detecting device and method

An image input device has a optical guide plate exposed to a window of a photo-shield case, a pair of light emitting diodes attached to side surfaces of the optical guide plate for radiating light into it, an area image sensor provided under the optical guide plate, a gradient index lens unit provided between the optical guide plate and the area image sensor and a filter connected to the area image sensor for eliminating a low frequency component from an image carrying signal; when a person presses a finger on the optical guide plate, the fingerprint scatters the light toward the gradient index lens unit, and the area image sensor produces the image carrying signal from the incident light; the reflection on valley lines is gradually varied along the width of the finger, and the elimination of the low frequency component makes the contrast of the image clear.

Small reliable image input apparatus incorporated in finger-print

The present invention provides a piezoelectric rotation driving apparatus wherein the number of the piezoelectric driving bodies is reduced so as to reduce the size of the apparatus. The apparatus is capable of achieving high efficiency and high torque by extinguishing an inertia rotation period. In are preferred embodiment of the invention, a set of the piezoelectric driving bodies including stacked piezoelectric elements are pressed against a cylindrical rotation body serving as a rotor, which is fitted to a rotation shaft, with leaf springs. The piezoelectric driving bodies are combined integrally with each other by a fitting pin such that action directions of forces of action members in the piezoelectric driving bodies driven by the stacked piezoelectric elements are opposite to each other.

Piezoelectric rotation driving apparatus

An ultrasonic sheet feeder includes a convex shell, piezoelectric ceramic elements, a base, a roller, and a driving power source. The convex shell has a protruding middle portion. Each piezoelectric ceramic element has one end in contact with a corresponding one of the two ends of the convex shell. The base serves to fix the other end of each of the piezoelectric ceramic elements. The roller is arranged to oppose the protruding middle portion of the convex shell so as to urge a paper sheet against the convex shell when the paper sheet is loaded. The coefficient of friction of a contact portion of the roller with respect to the paper sheet is smaller than that of a contact portion of the convex shell with respect to the paper sheet. The driving power source applies AC voltages having a phase difference to the two piezoelectric ceramic elements. A low-profile ultrasonic motor used for the ultrasonic sheet feeder and methods of driving the motor and the sheet feeder are also disclosed.

Ultrasonic sheet feeder, low-profile ultrasonic motor, and method of

An on-demand type ink-jet print head requires only a small amount of energy for the droplet formation. A pressure chamber is filled with ink and a transducer or electromechanical conversion element applies a pressure on the ink pressure chamber. A fluid rectifier element (here, a check valve) is provided between the ink supply inlet and the pressure chamber so that a forwardly directed resistance is applied to ink flowing from the ink supply inlet to the pressure chamber and a reversely directed resistance is applied to ink flowing from the pressure chamber to the ink supply inlet. A fluid resistance element (here, a plate with many pinholes) is provided between the pressure chamber and the nozzle. The resistance of the fluid resistance element is greater than the forwardly directed resistance of the rectifier element.

On demand type ink-jet print head having fluid control means

A photoresist and etch method is used to manufacture valve elements of an ink jet printer. The method involves the building of successive layers upon a substrate, with the layers including conductive spacer layers which may be dissolved and plated layers that resist the dissolving. The resulting structure is a very small structure manufactured to extreme accuracy.

Method of manufacturing valve element for use in an ink-jet printer head

A method of manufacturing a ceramic electronic device includes the steps of: forming a pattern of a predetermined shape made of a photosensitive resin; forming an electrical circuit element on a ceramic green sheet; stacking and pressing the pattern, the ceramic green sheet having the electrical circuit element thereon, and at least one ceramic green sheet to prepare a laminated body; and sintering the laminated body. A ceramic electronic device integrally including a cavity and the electrical circuit element therein is manufactured by this method.

Method of manufacturing ceramic electronic device

An on-demand type ink-jet printer with a thin cylindrical tip end coaxially projecting into a cylindrical passageway. Ink droplet formation is controlled by a piezoelectric transducer. A stream of air is forced through an annular space formed between the tip end and passageway. The air pressures acting on a meniscus at the tip end is controlled by the position of the tip end within the passageway. A solvent for the ink saturates a porous member surrounding the end of the passageway to control drying of the ink.

On-demand type ink-jet print head having an air flow path

An ink-jet recording apparatus applies a pressure, which is higher than atmospheric pressure, to an ink supply. A recording head includes a nozzle for jetting ink droplets. A valve is disposed between the pressurized ink supply and the nozzle in order to control the ink flow to the nozzle. The valve is opened in response to a recording signal only when ink droplets are to be jetted from said nozzle.

Ink-jet recording apparatus

A printer head, for an ink-on-demand type ink-jet printer, squirts ink droplets onto a printing medium. The printer head includes a nozzle for delivering the ink droplets and a passage for supplying ink from an ink tank. The ink is pressurized in accordance with an electric signal which commands the delivery of the ink droplets. Fluid control valves are deformed under the action of the ink pressure.

Printer head for an ink-on-demand type ink-jet printer

An ink-jet printer for recording information by jetting ink droplets on a recording medium has a plurality of ink-jet nozzles arranged so that ink droplets projected therefrom combine in flight at a space between the nozzles and the recording medium. The amplitude and the pulse width of driving signals used to deflect piezoelectric elements which contract to expel the ink droplets from the nozzles are appropriately varied to vary the momentum of the individual ink droplets projected from each nozzle so that the combined ink droplets will have a velocity and direction representative of the information to be recorded.

On-demand type ink-jet printer

A print head for an on-demand type ink-jet printer for jetting ink droplets from a nozzle has a plurality of pressure chambers interconnected with a single nozzle via a plurality of rectifying elements. The rectifying elements have a fluid resistance which is dependent on the direction of the fluid flow therethrough so that the pressure chambers can operate independent of one another to jet ink droplets at an increased frequency from the nozzle.

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Michihisa Suga