Sony Corporation

Hitachi, Ltd.

Mitsubishi Electric Corporation

Other

Sony Group Corporation

Nittan Valve Co., Ltd.

Yasuhito Tanaka

Masaaki Kurebayashi

Toshimitsu Kaku

Kazuhiko Fujiie

Akihiro Asada

Hidehiko Kando

Takashi Hoshino

Tetsuhiro Sakamoto

Makoto Kuriaki

Hideo Ohnuki

Atsushi Fukumoto

Goro Fujita

Shunji Yoshimura

Takeshi Miki

Kensuke Fujimoto

Yohei Hamada

Takeshi Maeda

Hitoshi Watanabe

Shigemi Maeda

Hiroyuki Watanabe

Tetsu Watanabe

Masataka Shinoda

Satoshi Sumi

Tetsuya Nishimura

Makoto Watanabe

Nobuhide Matsubayashi

Kazutomo Miyata

Yoshihiro Muto

Takumi Kijima

Teruyuki Ota

Takashi Shimouma

Koji Kumano

Hisanaga Yokoyama

Michio Matsuura

Hisanobu Miyanaga

Junji Akira

Provided are an imaging apparatus and a control method for an imaging apparatus that can obtain image data with the same image size even with different angle of view sizes. The imaging apparatus includes an image size setting unit that sets an image size selected from multiple settable image sizes, an angle of view size setting unit that sets an angle of view size selected from multiple settable angle of view sizes that include a first angle of view size and a second angle of view size, and a control unit that performs pixel count control on the set image size set by the image size setting unit, to achieve the same or almost the same number of pixels regardless of a difference in the set angle of view size.

Imaging apparatus and control method for imaging apparatus

Provided is an apparatus and method that perform display control to avoid a blackout of a display unit at the time of capturing an image for recording. The apparatus includes an imaging element, a frame memory, a display unit, and a control unit, and the control unit starts exposure preparation processing of the image for recording in response to input detection of image-capturing operation on the imaging apparatus, and executes exposure processing of the image for recording in the imaging element and storage processing of the image for recording in the frame memory after completion of the exposure preparation processing. Moreover, the control unit stops exposure of an image for displaying of the imaging element with the start of the exposure preparation processing, and displays the image for displaying on the display unit until display of the image for recording is enabled, to avoid the blackout.

Imaging apparatus and image processing method

A light source apparatus includes a cooling mechanism driving portion for driving a cooling mechanism in such a manner that an element temperature of a light source element which is detected by an element temperature detecting portion reaches a target temperature, and a control portion for calculating a dew point temperature of the cooling mechanism and controlling the cooling mechanism driving portion and a light source element driving portion by using the calculated dew point temperature and the element temperature.

Light source apparatus

A semiconductor lighting apparatus includes a plurality of semiconductor light emitting devices for outputting light having respective colors, a projector for synthesizing output light of the semiconductor light emitting devices and outputting synthesized light, and a calculating portion. The calculating portion controls a driving current to be supplied to the semiconductor light emitting devices in such a manner that a light quantity detected by optical sensors approximates to a predetermined target light quantity, and calculates a target temperature of the semiconductor light emitting devices to control temperature regulating portions in such a manner that a temperature detected by temperature sensors approximates to the target temperature.

Semiconductor lighting apparatus

A laser light source projector includes a plurality of light sources of color groups each including a plurality of laser light sources. The laser light source projector projects an image by driving the laser light sources in each of the color groups. In response to change of the light output characteristics of one or a plurality of laser light sources in an arbitrary color group, light output from a remaining laser light source in the arbitrary color group is adjusted, thereby keeping white balance constant.

Laser light source projector

A forged exhaust poppet valve and a method of solution heat treating the same are provided. The forged exhaust poppet valve () includes a head portion () which has a seat portion () on the outer periphery thereof and is integral with a diametrically tapered neck portion () connected to a stem portion (). Using a radio-frequency heating apparatus, a solution heat treatment is given to a predetermined transitional region (A) of the neck portion and the stem portion that is exposed to exhaust air during a valve opening period such that the grain size in the region (A) does not exceed ASTM 10, thereby securing a necessary high-temperature creep strength in the region (A) and a necessary hardness (wear resistance) in the seat portion () and thereby rendering the exhaust poppet valve highly durable.

Exhaust poppet valve and solution heat treatment method of the same

A method for manufacturing a magneto-optical recording medium in which reading of recorded information is performed through domain wall displacement in a reproduction layer is provided, in which magnetic separation of groove side-wall portions is performed more reliably; as a result a magneto-optical recording medium with satisfactory recording and reproduction characteristics can be provided. The method is to manufacture a magneto-optical recording medium in which on a substratehaving groovesat least a reproduction layer and a recording layer, each of which is formed of magnetic layers, are deposited and recorded information is reproduced through domain wall displacement in the reproduction layer; and the method includes a first annealing process in which, after depositing at least the reproduction layer and recording layer on the substrateon which are formed landsand grooves, only side-wall portionsbetween adjacent landsand groovesare irradiated with laser light L, and a second magnetization annealing process in which regions including adjacent side-wall portionsand lands between side-wall portionsare irradiated with laser light Lhaving a spot diameter greater than the spot diameter of the laser light in the first annealing process, while applying an external magnetic field H.

Method for manufacturing magneto-optical recording medium

The present invention provides an apparatus and a method for precisely and adequately evaluating actual quality of reproduced data whenever applying a maximum likelihood decoder for converting signal reproduced from a recording medium into binary signal Based on data arrays of a pair of binary data outputted from a 'Viterbi' decoder, SAM values are secured by selecting any of path-metric differential values (00) and (11) being the difference between a pair of values compared when renewing path-metric values PMM (00) and (11) outputted from the 'Viterbi' decoder. The minimum SAM value for an ideally-reproduced signal is outputted from a constant generating circuit. If the SAM values are verified as valid, and yet, if the SAM values coincide with the equation &#x201c;input SAM values&#x201d;&#x2266;&#x201c;data value outputted from the constant generating circuit&#x201d;, then squared values outputted from a square circuit are averaged by an averaging circuit. Finally, the average value is outputted as the reproduced signal evaluation.

Reproduced signal evaluation apparatus and method, reproduction apparatus and method, and recording apparatus and method

A magneto-optical recording medium includes a first magnetic layer (reproduction layer), a second magnetic layer (control layer), a third magnetic layer (blocking layer), and a fourth magnetic layer (recording layer) having respective Curie temperatures T, T, Tand T. The Curie temperatures of the layers satisfy the relationships T&#x3e;T&#x3e;Tand T&#x3e;T. In addition, the magnetic anisotropy of the third magnetic layer Kis greater than that of the second magnetic layer K. A magnetic domain wall in the first magnetic layer in front of the spot irradiated by the reproduction light in the direction of travel is displaced toward the peak temperature portion so that a recorded domain is expanded. Displacement in the spot direction of a domain wall in the first magnetic layer behind the reproduction light spot in the direction of travel is suppressed. The second and third magnetic layers control the magnetic exchange coupling between the first and fourth magnetic layers.

Magneto-optical recording medium and signal reproduction method

A magneto-optical recording/reproducing method is disclosed which causes a laser beam to be emitted to a disc recording medium having information recorded thereon earlier by magnetic field modulation, the laser beam causing the disc recording medium to develop a temperature distribution such as to generate a driving force for moving a domain wall of a magnetic domain in the medium so that the magnetic domain smaller in diameter than a spot of the laser beam is expanded sufficiently to let information recorded in the domain be detected. The method comprises the steps of: recording information to the disc recording medium while rotating the medium in a first rotating direction; and reproducing the information that was recorded to the disc recording medium in the recording step while rotating the medium in a second rotating direction reverse to the first rotating direction.

Method for reproducing information data from a magneto-optical storage medium in reverse direction with recording

The present invention provides an apparatus and a method for precisely and adequately evaluating actual quality of reproduced data whenever applying a maximum likelihood decoder for converting signal reproduced from a recording medium into binary signal. Based on data arrays of a pair of binary data outputted from a 'Viterbi' decoder, SAM values are secured by selecting any of path-metric differential values (00) and (11) being the difference between a pair of values compared when renewing path-metric values PMM (00) and (11) outputted from the 'Viterbi' decoder. The minimum SAM value for an ideally-reproduced signal is outputted from a constant generating circuit. If the SAM values are verified as valid, and yet, if the SAM values coincide with the equation &#x201c;input SAM values&#x201d;&#x2266;&#x201c;data value outputted from the constant generating circuit&#x201d;, then squared values outputted from a square circuit are averaged by an averaging circuit. Finally, the average value is outputted as the reproduced signal evaluation.

A magneto-optical recording medium for recording and reproducing carriers by laser beam irradiation includes a first magnetic layer which is magnetized in the in-plane direction at room temperature and is perpendicularly magnetized at a predetermined temperature T or more; a second magnetic layer which is in contact with the first magnetic layer, has a Curie temperature Tc higher than the predetermined temperature T , and has in-plane magnetic anisotropy up to the Curie temperature Tc ; a third magnetic layer which has a Curie temperature Tc higher than the predetermined temperature T and has perpendicular magnetic anisotropy at least in a predetermined range of a temperature distribution of the magneto-optical recording medium during laser beam irradiation when reproducing; and a rare earth metal layer formed between the third magnetic layer and the second magnetic layer.

Magneto-optical recording medium having multiple magnetic layers capable of reducing reproducing laser power

A laser drive integrated circuit and an optical disk apparatus using the laser drive integrated circuit for forming high-density marks. The optical disk apparatus includes a drive waveform information storage unit for storing at least one information of a drive waveform for driving a laser diode in response to a binary recording signal to be recorded in a recording medium, and a drive waveform decoder for decoding the drive waveform based on the information stored in the drive waveform information storage unit. A recording strategy can be changed in accordance with variations and fluctuations of recording media or characteristics of the recording media, while at the same time reducing a number of signal lines in flexible wiring and alleviating effects of signal distortion in the signal lines.

Laser drive integrated circuit and optical disk apparatus using the same

A laser drive circuit includes a first current supply unit which supplies a first drive current to a first laser diode based on a drive waveform signal generated by a drive waveform generating unit, a second current supply unit which supplies a second drive current to a second laser diode based on the drive waveform signal generated by the drive waveform generating unit, and a switching unit which selectively supplies the drive waveform signal generated by the drive waveform generating unit to one of the first current supply unit and the second current supply unit. The drive waveform generating unit may be part of the laser drive circuit, or may be separate from the laser drive circuit, and may include a drive waveform information storage unit which stores a recording strategy according to a type of disk.

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Tokyo, Japan

Yasuhito Tanaka