Sony Corporation

Other

Toshiharu Yanagida

Toru Udaka

Masaru Kawabata

Junichi Sato

Yukihiro Kamide

Keiji Shinohara

Kazuhiro Tanaka

Keiichi Nito

Yoshio Okoshi

Ichiro Kosugi

Keiichi Fujinuma

Kaneyoshi Takeshita

Tetsuji Nagayama

Kuniya Hayashi

Yuko Aoki

Toshifumi Takaoka

An adhesion layer made from Al film or Ti film is formed on Cu electrode pad portions as external connection terminals of a Cu interconnection layer of an LSI formed on the surface layer of a semiconductor substrate. A BLM film having a stacked structure of Cr/Cu/Au or Ti/Cu/Au is formed on the adhesion layer. Solder ball bumps made from Pb and Sn are formed on the BLM film. The adhesion layer ensures a high adhesion strength and a high electric contact characteristic between the Cu electrode pad portions and the BLM film, that is, between the Cu electrode pads and the solder ball bumps.

Semiconductor device and method of fabricating the same

A display portionand a camera portionare disposed in a main body. A housing of the main bodyis made of an non-electroconductive material. One side surface of the main bodyis an information input surfaceof an input apparatus. Disposed in the housing on the side surface of the information input surface is a light, thin-film shaped electrostatic sensor. By moving a finger tipon the information input surfaceupward and downward while contacting thereon, a cursor moves on the display portion. Tap positions U, C, and L into which the information input surfaceis divided in its height direction are defined. When each tap position is lightly tapped one time, releasing and touching states of the finger tipare detected by the sensor and a tap operation is recognized. The tap operation includes a confirmation of a menu at the cursor position, a shutter operation, and so forth. The difference of tap positions can be detected by the sensor.

Input apparatus, information terminal apparatus, and mode switching method

Biogenic information of the user is obtained through a camera unit and an authentication sensor and compared with biogenic information of a person with use authority has previously been stored, thereby discriminating whether or not the user has the use authority. When the user is authenticated, that is, if it is determined that the user is the person with the use authority, an electronic apparatus permits the user to use each function and operate. The authentication of the user is executed when the user wears the electronic apparatus. After he removes it, the authentication result is not held, thereby disabling a person without the use authority to use the electronic apparatus. The biogenic information (physical feature) of the user is detected and the personal authentication can be executed without requiring the user to execute the annoying inputting operation for the personal authentication.

Electronic apparatus and authenticating method

Disclosed herein is a human body communication system for communicating data via an electric field formed by intervention of a human body, the human body communication system including: a transmitter for generating the electric field by transmitting a potential difference signal corresponding to transmission data from a transmitting electrode; and a receiver for receiving the data by reading the potential difference signal in the electric field by a receiving electrode; wherein the transmitter and the receiver use the potential difference signal in a frequency band such that a quasi-electrostatic field formed within the human body is dominant over a radiation field formed outside the human body when the transmitting electrode and the receiving electrode are each disposed in very close vicinity to the human body.

Human body communication system and communication device

An imaging apparatus is comprised of a light controller including a liquid crystal element and a polarizing plate located in front of an optical low-pass filter in the optical path of the imaging apparatus. The polarization direction of the polarizing plate and the orientation for the liquid crystal element are selectively chosen with respect to the rotation of the optical low pass filter elements in order to achieve a desired improvement in the device performance.

Light controller and imaging apparatus

To provide a light control device including a liquid crystal element which does not need a polarizing plate and an alignment layer and is compact and high in contrast ratio, and can be driven at low applied voltage and can exhibit stable performance even if environmental temperature varies, and a driving method for the light control device, as well as an image pickup apparatus using the light control device. A liquid crystal cell () is fabricated by injecting a mixture in which liquid crystal, a polymer precursor, and a polymerization initiator into an empty cell constituted by two transparent substrates () which are stuck together with a gap of 4-11 &#x3bc;m and on each of whose opposed surfaces a transparent electrode () is formed, and the polymer precursor is polymerized and then a random three-dimensional network polymer () is formed in the continuous layer of liquid crystal (). The liquid crystal cell () is driven by applying a voltage according to the environmental temperature. When driving voltage is off, the liquid crystal molecules () are aligned along the wall surfaces of the polymer (), the network polymer () forms light scattering interfaces, on the other hand, when driving voltage is on, the liquid crystal molecules are oriented in a predetermined direction with respect to the electric field, so that the refractive index becomes constant in the traveling direction of light, whereby incident light () passes through without being scattered.

Polymer network liquid crystal element with predetermined gap for dimming device having image processing, temperature detecting and pulse width control units therefor

An image pickup apparatus and recording method that can further improve ease-of-use for the user creates directories according to shooting situations selected from multiple predetermined types of shooting situations, assigns image data produced as a result of photographing a subject to the directories according to the selected shooting situations, attaches identification information to the image data according to the selected shooting situations, and stores the image data to which the identification information is attached, together with an application program of one or more specified applications, so as to associate the image data with the applications.

Image pickup apparatus and recording method

An electrical dimmer device and its driving method applicable to, for example, an image pickup unit and a display unit operate so that when a control signal for stop adjustment is changed from its current value of stop adjustment to a larger value, which occurs when the light transmissivity of a positive type liquid crystal is raised, or when the light transmissivity of a negative type liquid crystal is lowered, the control signal is temporarily varied to an intermediate value that is larger than the larger value. The energy of the varied larger value and a time during which that varied value is applied are determined in accordance with predetermined values. By doing so, it is possible to make a response speed when changing the light transmissivity extremely faster and thus attain a response time, of for example, one field period of time or less required for a stop mechanism of a video camera.

Electric dimming device and its driving method

A process of production of a semiconductor apparatus which can suppress a rise in the electrical resistance and a decline in the joint strength at the bump connection interfaces and improve the connection reliability when using the method of reinforcing the bases of the bumps by a resin film. Bumps are formed on a semiconductor wafer formed with a pattern circuit of a semiconductor chip so as to connect to the circuit pattern, a resin film is formed on the bump forming surface of the semiconductor wafer to a thickness giving a surface lower than the height of the bumps while sealing the spaces between the bumps, plasma cleaning etc., is used to remove the sealing resin components deposited on the surface portions of the bumps or natural oxides or other insulating impurities to clean and activate the surfaces of the bumps, and the chip is mounted on a mounting board.

Semiconductor apparatus and process of production thereof

A light control device and an imaging device suitable for the effective and stabilized driving of a Guest-Host type liquid crystal element. A light control device which is provided with a light controlling GH cell and a UV cut filter provided on the light incident side of the GH cell and which is therefore reduced significantly in the quantity of ultraviolet ray applied to the GH cell, thereby preventing the photodecomposition or photodegradation of materials constituting a liquid crystal layer in the GH cell; and an imaging device such as a CCD camera having this light control device disposed on the optical path thereof.

Guest-host liquid crystal element with removable polarizer

A light control device and an imaging device suitable for the effective and stabilized driving of a Guest-Host type liquid crystal element. A light control device () which is provided with a light controlling GH cell () and a UV cut filter () provided on the light incident side of the GH cell (), and which is therefore reduced significantly in the quantity of ultraviolet ray applied to the GH cell (), thereby preventing the photodecompositon or photodegradation of materials constituting a liquid crystal layer in the GH cell (); and an imaging device such as a CCD camera () having this light control device disposed on the optical path thereof.

A light control device includes a GH cell and a polarizer wherein a host material is made of a negative type liquid crystal whose dielectric anisotropy is negative and a guest material is made of a dichromatic positive type dye. The polarizer is provided at a side of light incident on the polarizer. A cell gap ranges from 2 &mgr;m to 4 &mgr;m, at least, in an effective light path.

Liquid crystal display having liquid crystal cell gap variation

A light control device comprises a liquid crystal cell and a pulse control unit or wherein when a transmittance of light transmitted from said liquid crystal element is changed from an actual light transmittance to an intended light transmittance, the pulse control unit is able to insert beforehand a drive pulse for control corresponding to a minimum light transmittance or a maximum light transmittance, at least, prior to application of a drive pulse corresponding to the intended light transmittance. A method of driving the light control device is also described wherein the light control device is driven by use of the drive pulse for control, along with a pickup device wherein the light control device is arranged in a light path of a pickup system.

Light control device, method for driving same and pickup device using the light control device

There is provided a semiconductor device having a semiconductor chip in which a first protrusion electrode is formed on the semiconductor substrate; and an intermediate substrate which comprises a base substrate, a first external terminal provided in said base substrate, which is joined to said first protrusion electrode, a second external terminal provided in said base substrate, an electrode section being exposed on both surfaces of said base substrate, and a second protrusion electrode formed at one end face of said second external terminal, a plurality of said intermediate substrates being stacked in layers by joining said second protrusion electrode to the other end face of said second external terminal, thus enabling miniaturizing and lightening electronic equipment and realizing high reliability and high performance.

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Tokyo, Japan

Toshiharu Yanagida