Alps Electric Co., Ltd.

Tdk Corporation

Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.

Tkd Corporation

Toru Takahashi

Kiyoshi Kobayashi

Hisayuki Yazawa

Kiyoshi Sato

Hideki Gochou

Toshinori Watanabe

Hiroshi Kameda

Minoru Yamada

Junji Hashida

Yusuke Toma

Toru Sawada

Atsushi Matsuda

Katsuya Kikuiri

Sumihito Morita

Suguru Wada

Yoshifumi Masumoto

Hisanobu Ohkawa

Makoto Kobayashi

Minoru Sato

Hisayuki Abe

Akihiro Takeda

Koji Tsukamoto

Kouzou Sasaki

Masayoshi Takeuchi

Noriyuki Saito

Shuumi Kumagai

Yoshitaka Uto

Kenji Shibata

Satoshi Nakajima

Toshihiro Kobayashi

Yoshihiro Nishiyama

Satoshi Hayasaka

Masahiko Ishizone

Tomoki Yamada

Hisanobu Okawa

Daigo Aoki

Shinichi Higuchi

Tomoyuki Yamai

Hiroshi Ishikawa

Akira Miyatake

Kohei Kitagawa

Takenobu Horino

Eiji Ozaki

Masaki Ikegami

Hiromi Ikegami, Legal Representative

Chiaki Ikegami, Legal Representative

Ayako Otsuka

Kazuyoshi Takahashi

Jun Suzuki

Hiromi Ikegami

By Chiaki Ikegami, Legal Represenative

Hiroki Majima

Sadakazu Shiga

Yusuke Umetsu

Tetsuya Suzuki

An electrode member includes a first electrode pattern and a second electrode pattern. In each of the first electrode pattern and the second electrode pattern, first end portion wires of the first thin metal wires form a pair across the insulation gap, and first end surfaces of the paired first end portion wires are located so as to include portions that face each other with a predetermined distance therebetween in a direction that intersects a first direction. In each of the first electrode pattern and the second electrode pattern, second end portion wires of the second thin metal wires form a pair across the insulation gap, and second end surfaces of the paired second end portion wires are located so as to include portions that face each other with a predetermined distance therebetween in a direction that intersects a second direction.

Electrode member

A pressure sensor includes a diaphragm on a silicon substrate and a plurality of piezoelectric element areas that change in resistance according the distortion of the diaphragm. The plurality of piezoelectric element areas of the pressure sensor include a first piezoelectric element area, a second piezoelectric element area, a third piezoelectric element area, and a fourth piezoelectric element area. The diaphragm has a maximum deflection area whose stress becomes 80% or more of a maximum stress when distorted by a predetermined pressure. The first piezoelectric element area, the second piezoelectric element area, the third piezoelectric element area, and the fourth piezoelectric element area are disposed in the maximum deflection area.

Pressure sensor

A transparent electrode member includes a translucent base, and first transparent electrodes that are arranged side by side in a first direction on a first surface of the base. An insulating layer does not overlap partial regions PR when viewed in the direction of the normal to the first surface. A rectangular region in which a part other than the conductive portion is composed of the partial regions over the entire part is defined as a first rectangular region, a rectangular region in which at least the insulating layer is contained is defined as a second rectangular region, and a relationship between an area Sa of the part other than the conductive portion in the first rectangular region and an area Sb of a part other than the conductive portion in the second rectangular region satisfies Sa/Sb=1±0.3.

Transparent electrode member, multilayer transparent electrode member, and capacitive sensor

In an input device capable of reliably detecting, when an operator brings an operating body close to or into contact with an operation plane, absolute position information irrespective of a contact area size, third electrode arrays are disposed closer to the operation plane relative to second electrode arrays in a normal direction of the operation plane, the second electrode arrays have a portion protruding from the corresponding third electrode arrays when viewed in the normal direction, and assuming that a change amount of electrostatic capacitance between first and third electrode arrays occurred by an operation of the operating body is denoted by &#x394;C1 and a change amount of electrostatic capacitance between the first and second electrode arrays occurred by an operation of the operating body is denoted by &#x394;C2, a position of the operating body in the normal direction is calculated based on a ratio &#x394;C1/&#x394;C2.

Input device

A capacitive sensor has first electrodes, a second electrode, and a third electrode, which are disposed at places where a manipulating body that is part of a human body such as a finger is detected. The capacitive sensor also has a capacitance detecting means and a deciding means. The deciding means identifies the number of manipulating bodies and directions (positions) according to the capacitances of the first electrodes, second electrode, and third electrode.

Capacitive sensor

An input device includes a translucent base material having flexibility, translucent first electrode parts arranged in a sensing region on the base material in a first direction, translucent second electrode parts arranged in the sensing region on the base material in a second direction crossing the first direction, and lead wires that are electrically continuous to the first electrode parts and second electrode parts, the lead wires extending from the sensing region on the base material to a peripheral region allocated outside the sensing region. A bent portion is provided in the peripheral region on the base material. Each lead wire has a flexible conductive member on the bent portion. A covering material is provided so as cover at least part of the flexible conductive member on the base material.

An input device that enables wires to be bent together with a base material without deteriorating translucency and conductivity of the wires has: a base material having translucency and flexibility; first electrode parts and second electrode parts, both having translucency, that are provided in a sensing region on the base material; and lead wires that are electrically continuous to the first electrode parts and second electrode parts, the lead wires extending, on the base material, from the sensing region to a peripheral region. A bent portion is provided in the peripheral region on the base material. Each lead wire has a flexible laminated body provided on the bent portion. The flexible laminated body has a first amorphous ITO layer provided on the base material, a conductive layer provided on the first amorphous ITO layer, and a second amorphous ITO layer provided on the conductive layer.

Input device with one directional lead wiring

An input apparatus includes a plurality of electrodes spaced apart from each other, a signal processing unit configured to output an input signal depending on a change in a capacitance of each electrode, and a determination unit configured to determine whether an operation object comes in a proximity of at least one of electrodes based on input signals output from the signal processing unit. The determination unit makes a determination such that in a case where one of the input signals is greater than or equal to a first threshold value and an integral value of another of the plurality of input signals in a predetermined integration period is greater than or equal to a second threshold value, it is determined that an operation object has come in a proximity of an electrode corresponding to the one of the input signals.

Input apparatus, input detection method, and in-vehicle apparatus

An input device includes a light-transmissive panel made of synthetic resin, an electrode layer, a decorative layer disposed on an inner surface of the panel, and an inner resin layer disposed on a surface of the decorative layer. The inner resin layer has a connection pattern on a surface thereof. The connection pattern is in electrical communication with the electrode layer. The input device further includes a flexible printed circuit board joined to the surface of the inner resin layer by thermocompression bonding.

Input device having flexible circuit board

A physical quantity sensor includes an anchor portion, a movable portion displaceable in a height direction, a supporting portion rotatably connected to the anchor portion and the movable portion, and a detection portion. The supporting portion includes a first connection arm connecting the anchor portion and the movable portion to each other and a leg portion extending from the anchor portion in a direction opposite to the first connection arm, the leg portion being displaced in a direction opposite to a displacement direction of the movable portion when the supporting portion rotates. A stopper surface is disposed at a position to which a distal end portion of the leg portion is contactable when the leg portion is displaced in the direction opposite to the displacement direction of the movable portion. Displacement of the movable portion is restricted when the distal end portion of the leg portion contacts the stopper surface.

Physical quantity sensor

A physical quantity sensor includes a support substrate, anchor portions fixed to a top surface of the support substrate, a movable portion positioned above the support substrate and supported by the anchor portions with support portions provided therebetween such that the movable portion is movable in a height direction, and detection portions for detecting a displacement of the movable portion. The support portions include beam portions provided between the movable portion and the anchor portions such that spring portions are provided between the beam portions and each of the movable portion and the anchor portions, the beam portions having a rigidity higher than a rigidity of the spring portions. The movable portion translates in the height direction owing to twisting of the spring portions and displacements in the height direction of distal ends of the beam portions, the movable portion being supported at the distal end.

A MEMS sensor includes a first substrate; a second substrate; a movable electrode portion and a fixed electrode portion which are arranged between the first substrate and the second substrate, wherein: conductive supporting portions of the movable electrode portion and the fixed electrode portion are, respectively, fixedly secured to a surface of the first substrate via a first insulating layer; a second insulating layer, a lead layer buried into the second insulating layer, and connection electrode portions that are electrically connected to the lead layer to be individually connected to the conductive supporting portions are provided on a surface of the second substrate; a metallic connection layer is formed on the surface of one of the respective conductive supporting portions; one of the respective connection electrode portions and the metallic connection layer are bonded together by eutectic bonding or diffusion bonding; and, at least each of the connection electrode portions has a thickness of about 4 &#x3bc;m or smaller.

Substrate bonded MEMS sensor

A perpendicular magnetic recording head is provided capable of suppressing the magnetic field attributable to the edge write phenomenon and improving resistance to an external magnetic field. The perpendicular magnetic recording head includes a magnetic layer that has a main magnetic pole on a surface facing a recording medium; a return yoke layer that is disposed on the magnetic layer with a nonmagnetic layer disposed therebetween and has a large width in the direction of the main magnetic pole; and a coil layer for applying a recording magnetic field to the magnetic layer. The return yoke layer is provided with such a shape that as seen in the plan view, the return yoke layer is exposed from the medium facing surface with a width not greater than the width in the track width direction of a protrusion region of the return yoke layer that covers the coil layer and the width of the return yoke layer gradually increases in the height direction from the medium facing surface.

Perpendicular magnetic recording head with the return yoke layer having gradually increasing the width

A vertical magnetic recording head device includes: a magnetic layer that includes a main magnetic pole exposed from a surface facing a recording medium; a return yoke layer that is provided on the magnetic layer with a non-magnetic layer interposed therebetween; and coil layers that apply a recording magnetic field to the magnetic layer and the return yoke layer. In the vertical magnetic recording head device, the return yoke layer includes thick portions that extend in a height direction in edge regions arranged in a track width direction.

Vertical magnetic recording head device with the return yoke layer having thick portions

A perpendicular magnetic recording head according to the present invention is composed of a first magnetic layer having a main magnetic pole exposed at a facing surface opposite a recording medium, a second magnetic layer adjacent to the first magnetic layer with an intermediary non-magnetic layer disposed therebetween, and a coil layer for applying a recording magnetic field to the first magnetic layer. Since the second magnetic layer has a shape including a substantially arched portion in its cross section along a height direction, it becomes possible to keep an Edge Write magnetic field in a low level and improve external magnetic field resistance.

Perpendicular magnetic recording head and perpendicular magnetic recording/reproducing head with at least one shield layer having a substantially arched portion

Growing community of inventors

Niigata-ken, Japan

Toru Takahashi