Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha Corporation

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.

Panasonic Corporation

Panasonic Healthcare Holdings Co., Ltd.

Takahiro Inoue

Naruichi Yokogawa

Hideki Sato

Noboru Takeuchi

Tadamasa Kimura

Takeshi Nishino

Isamu Kawabe

Koji Nakai

Yasuhiro Maenishi

Takayuki Shimizu

Ikuo Yoshida

Toshiyuki Takada

Hideki Shioe

Susumu Idomoto

Ryosuke Kawashima

Kohji Hamaguchi

Kazuo Noda

Akira Motomura

Yoshitomo Kato

Nobuhiro Takahashi

Satoshi Habu

Kiyoto Ishida

An illuminance sensor detects a flicker with higher accuracy than in the related art. The illuminance sensor includes: a light receiving unit that receives light and outputs a current; a flicker measurement counter circuit that performs AD conversion on the current and outputs a first digital signal to a flicker measurement storage device; an illuminance measurement counter circuit that performs AD conversion on the current and outputs a second digital signal to an illuminance measurement storage device; and a flicker detection unit that detects a flicker by analyzing the first digital signal stored in the flicker measurement storage device. A cycle during which the first digital signal is output from the flicker measurement counter circuit is shorter than a cycle during which the second digital signal is output from the illuminance measurement counter circuit.

Illuminance sensor, proximity sensor, electronic device, and surveillance system

A sensor that is capable of detecting a pulse of a user by using a proximity illumination sensor or a proximity sensor is provided. A proximity sensor () that includes a pulse detection function includes a count adjustment circuit () that performs adjustment such that a digital output value (ADCOUT) from an analog-digital conversion circuit () changes in accordance with each value of a distance at least in a prescribed range of the distance between a photodiode () and a detected object (a finger in the drawing) and a digital filter () for detecting a cycle of the digital output value (ADCOUT) from the analog-digital conversion circuit ().

Sensor, sensor apparatus, and electronic device

A directional characteristic of light that is incident on a light-receiving unit is adjusted in accordance with whether a proximity-illumination sensor is caused to act as a proximity sensor or to act as an illumination sensor. The proximity-illumination sensor () includes a light-receiving area selection unit () that selects light-receiving sensitivity of which of a first light-receiving area and a second light-receiving area is made higher in accordance with whether the proximity-illumination sensor () is caused to act as the proximity sensor or to act as the illumination sensor.

Sensor circuit

The present invention enhances user convenience with regards to a user operation etc. of a robot conducted in response to a notification event. A posture control device () includes a notification event detecting section () configured to detect the notification event having occurred and a driving control section () that controls a driving section () so that in a case where the notification event detecting section () has detected an occurrence of the notification event, a robot () takes on a notification event posture.

Posture control device, robot, and posture control method

A light receiver capable of detecting the intensity of light in a certain wavelength range is provided. The light receiver includes a first light receiving element (PD) and a second light receiving element (PD) that have an identical spectral sensitivity characteristic, and a UV cut filter (). Light that has passed through the UV cut filter () enters the first light receiving element (PD). A subtractor is provided that calculates a difference between a photocurrent of the first light receiving element (PD) and a photocurrent of the second light receiving element (PD).

Light receiver and mobile electronic device

An analog to digital conversion device has a plurality of, two, for example, analog to digital converters, and a reference charge quantity interchange section arranged and configured to interchange, among the plurality of analog to digital converters, reference quantities of electric charge (e.g., reference currents or reference capacitances) to be used therein during an analog to digital conversion period.

Analog to digital conversion device, illuminance sensor device, and electronic apparatus comprising the illuminance sensor device

In order to provide a single-unit sensor which serves as both an illuminance sensor and a proximity sensor, the sensor () includes a light receiving element section (E), an infrared cut-off filter (IRcutF), and a switching section (SWS) for switching spectral characteristics of the light receiving element section (E). The infrared cut-off filter (IRcutF) has an opening, and an infrared light receiving P-N junction (PDir) is provided at a location deeper in a substrate than a visible light receiving P-N junction (PDvis).

Illuminance sensor, proximity sensor, and display device including the sensor

An analog-digital conversion circuit (ADC) includes: a capacitor (C); a charge and discharge control section () that puts, into the capacitor (C), an electric charge corresponding to an input current of a first period and that causes an electric charge corresponding to an input current of a second period to be discharged from the capacitor (C); and a digital conversion section () that converts an amount of electric charge of the capacitor (C) into a digital signal.

Analog-digital conversion circuit, sensor apparatus, cellular phone, and digital camera

A resistor array is provided in an element array. A mean value of a characteristic-value distribution is associated with a median of combined resistance values obtained by the element array. An array of trimming information pieces corresponding to combined resistance values larger than the median is set in a descending order of '15' to '8' in decimal number, and an array of trimming information pieces corresponding to combined resistance values less than the median is set in an ascending order of &#x2018;0&#x2019; to &#x2018;7&#x2019; in decimal number. A circuit converts trimming information derived from the trimming information generation circuit to generate element selection information for selecting turn-off resistors to obtain combined resistance values from the resistor array. Thus, the number of melted-and-cut fuses involved in generation of trimming information associated within the range of 'mean value&#xb1;2&#x3c3;' in the distribution is reduced.

Semiconductor integrated circuit and optical sensor device using the same

A proximity sensor () includes a state updating section () and a control section (). The state updating section () updates state information. In a case where the state information is updated with a state (ST) or a state (ST), the control section () supplies, to the outside of the proximity sensor (), a signal (S) indicating that at an object (B) to be detected does not come close to the proximity sensor (). In a case where the state information is updated with a state (ST) or a state (ST), the control section () supplies, to the outside of the proximity sensor (), a signal (S) indicating that the object (B) to be detected comes close to the proximity sensor ().

Proximity sensor and electronic device

A sensor circuit which is capable of measuring illuminance without causing unevenness in results detected with spectral characteristics and a variation in sensitivity regardless of whether or not light receiving elements are evenly irradiated with light includes a plurality of light receiving elements, the light receiving elements each being set to a single spectral characteristic selected from spectral characteristics that are different from each other, and the single spectral characteristic set in each of the light receiving elements being sequentially switched among the spectral characteristics that are different from each other so that the light receiving elements are set to different spectral characteristics during measurement of the illuminance.

Sensor circuit and electronic apparatus

The present invention provides a sensor device and an electronic apparatus each of which does not make malfunction derived from outside ambient light such as sunlight. In the sensor device, an ADC outputs, to one of two input terminals of a comparison circuit, second data which is a digital value ADCOUT corresponding to a current Iin&#x2212;Ibeing the result of subtraction from a current Ifrom a current Iin and which is larger than a threshold Data_th.

Sensor device and electronic apparatus

Disclosed are an illuminance sensor which has a spectral-response characteristic approximate to the spectral luminous efficacy and which has a low circuit complexity, and a display device including the illuminance sensor. The illuminance sensor includes (i) a current output circuit which, with use of a bitstream signal of a first analog-digital conversion circuit for carrying out an analog-digital conversion with respect to a first current flowing through a first light receiving element, outputs a current corresponding to the first current and (ii) a second analog-digital conversion circuit which receives a third current obtained by subtracting a current from a second current flowing through a second light receiving element and which thus carries out an analog-digital conversion with respect to the third current.

Illuminance sensor and display device including same

An infrared remote control receiverincludes a carrier detection circuit. The carrier detection circuitincludes: a comparatorfor comparing an output signal from a BPFwith a threshold voltage Vthwhich is a noise detection level; a comparatorfor comparing the output signal from the BPFwith a threshold voltage Vthlarger than the threshold voltage Vth, the threshold voltage Vthbeing a first carrier detection level; and a logic circuitfor (i) controlling, based on the output signal Dfrom the comparator, the gain of an amplifierso that an output signal Dfrom the comparatoris not output. An output signal Dfrom the comparatoris output as a carrier. Thus, it is possible to restrain malfunctions attributed to disturbance light noise.

Carrier detection circuit, method for controlling carrier detection circuit, and infrared signal processing circuit having the carrier detection circuit

A variable resistor is connected to each terminal of (2^n)&#x2212;1 resistors R connected in series. The variable resistors have resistances RH and RL determined according to a digital signal containing m lower bits LoB&#x3c;m&#x2212;1:0&#x3e;.

Growing community of inventors

Osaka, Japan

Takahiro Inoue