Disclosed are devices, systems and methods for touch, force and/or thermal sensing by an ultrasonic transceiver chip. In some aspects, an ultrasonic transceiver sensor device includes a semiconductor substrate; a CMOS layer attached to the substrate; an array of piezoelectric transducers coupled to the CMOS layer to generate ultrasonic pulses; and a contact layer attached to the substrate on a side opposite the substrate for providing a surface for contact with an object, where an ultrasonic pulse generated by a piezoelectric transducer propagates through the substrate and the contact layer, such that when the object is in contact with the surface of the contact layer, a reflected ultrasonic pulse is produced and propagates through the contact layer and the substrate to be received at the array of piezoelectric transducers, and the CMOS layer receive and process outputs from the piezoelectric transducers produced in response to the received reflected ultrasonic pulses.

An environmental condition may be measured with a sensor (10) including a wire (20) having an ultrasonic signal transmission characteristic that varies in response to the environmental condition by sensing ultrasonic energy propagated through the wire using multiple types of propagation, and separating an effect of temperature on the wire from an effect of strain on the wire using the sensed ultrasonic energy propagated through the wire using the multiple types of propagation. A positive feedback loop may be used to excite the wire such that strain in the wire is based upon a sensed resonant frequency, while a square wave with a controlled duty cycle may be used to excite the wire at multiple excitation frequencies. A phase matched cone (200, 210) may be used to couple ultrasonic energy between a waveguide wire (202, 212) and a transducer (204, 214).

A fluid meter has a measuring tube which has a fluid channel allowing a fluid (F) to flow through and which has a measuring section in which at least one area of a measuring tube wall is formed as a waveguide for surface acoustic waves, which forms an interface with the fluid (F), and at least one transmitter for exciting acoustic waves in the waveguide as well as at least one receiver for receiving acoustic waves from the waveguide, wherein acoustic waves excited by the transmitter can propagate through the fluid (F) as a bulk wave (V) and the bulk wave (V) has at least one reflection point (IP) on the measuring tube wall. The measuring tube wall has a first wall thickness (T1) in the area of the transmitter and in the area of the receiver and has a second wall thickness (T2) which differs from the first wall thickness (T1) in the area of all reflection points (IP) of the bulk wave (V).

Systems and methods for analyzing physical characteristics of a battery include arrangements of two or more transducers coupled to the battery. A control module controls one or more of the two or more transducers to transmit acoustic signals through at least a portion of the battery, and one or more of the two or more transducers to receive response acoustic signals. Distribution of physical properties of the battery is determined based at least on the transmitted acoustic signals and the response acoustic signals.

The present invention relates to a method for evaluating the thermal expansion properties of a titania-containing glass body. On the basis of measured values, obtained at a certain temperature, for a physical parameter that changes depending on the titania concentration and a physical parameter that changes depending on the fictive temperature, the thermal expansion coefficient of the titania-containing silica glass body and the slope of the thermal expansion coefficient are calculated using a linear relational expression represented by a plurality of physical properties. The thermal expansion properties of the titania-containing silica glass body are evaluated on the basis of the calculated thermal expansion coefficient and thermal expansion coefficient slope.

A method and a system is provided for measuring mechanical properties of a solid material using standard ultrasonic wave modes propagated in the solid material, which forms a waveguide, where the waveguide is encased a fluid media. The method and system can be at high temperatures. The system includes an ultrasonic transducer placed at one end of the waveguide that generates multiple wave modes, which travel in different paths along a length of the waveguide and are reflected. The system includes a set of corresponding sensors for detecting the amplitude and time of flights, and includes a processor means to analyze the detected signals.

This invention provides an insertion type ultrasonic flow meter, flow measuring system and method, which related to the field of flow measuring and metering. The insertion type ultrasonic flow meter includes a first insertion type sensor and a second insertion type sensor. The first insertion type sensor is equipped with a first ultrasonic transducer; the second insertion type sensor is equipped with a second ultrasonic transducer. The first insertion type sensor and the second insertion type sensor are installed at upstream and downstream of the pipeline respectively. The first ultrasonic transducer and the second ultrasonic transducer are equipped face-to-face. Compared to current technology, the insertion type ultrasonic flow meter provided by this invention has better signal receiving capability and smaller channel noise, therefore lower power consumption that can be powered with battery. It can also conduct accurate measurement to low velocity and flow rate of water in pipeline.

A photoacoustic photon meter includes: a photoacoustic generative array including carbon nanotubes disposed in a photoacoustic generating pattern, such that the carbon nanotubes: receive photons comprising optical energy, and produce thermal energy from the optical energy; and a superstratum including a thermally expandable elastomer on which the photoacoustic generative array is fixedly disposed in position on the superstratum to spatially conserve the photoacoustic generating pattern, and such that the superstratum: is optically transparent to the photons; receives the thermal energy from the photoacoustic generative array; expands and contracts in response to receipt of the thermal energy; and produces photoacoustic pressure waves in response to the expansion and contraction, the photoacoustic pressure waves including a photoacoustic intensity and photoacoustic frequency that are based upon an amount of optical pressure applied to the carbon nanotubes by the photons, a spatial photon fluence of the photons, or a spectral photon fluence of photons.

A computer and an automatic protection method thereof are provided. The automatic protection method includes the following steps. A sound receiving unit of the computer receives a sound signal. Whether a fan error event occurs is determined according to the sound signal. If the fan error event occurs, then a first data protection procedure is performed. Whether a disaster event occurs is determined according to the sound signal. If the disaster event occurs, then a second data protection procedure is performed. Whether the computer is at a locking status is determined. If the computer is at the locking status, then whether an information security hazard event occurs is determined according to the sound signal. If the information security hazard event occurs, then a third data protection procedure is performed.

Methods, apparatus, systems and articles of manufacture are disclosed to measure a resonant sensor based on detection of group delay. An example apparatus includes a modulation manager configured to query the resonant sensor with a modulated signal including a frequency; and a resonance determiner configured to determine a resonance frequency of the resonant sensor based on a group delay associated with the resonant sensor and the frequency.