Aspects of self-powered weigh-in-motion systems and methods that utilize piezoelectric components for sensing load as well as powering data acquisition and analysis components. In one example, the weigh-in-motion system includes a number of piezoelectric stacks, each stack including a number of piezoelectric elements. Each stack includes one or more top or upper piezoelectric element that provides vehicle sensing data. Each stack also includes a set of piezoelectric elements used for energy harvesting. The sensing piezoelectric elements are connected to a data input of a microcontroller for vehicle classification, while the energy harvesting piezoelectric elements are connected to a power input of the microcontroller.

Disclosed herein is a piezoresistive pressure sensor, including: a continuous piezoresistive foam layer; an electrode array layer, on one side of which the continuous piezoresistive foam layer is disposed; and an artificial leather layer as cover layer, which is disposed on the continuous piezoresistive foam layer; where the continuous piezoresistive foam layer is made by doping the foam with conductive materials. The piezoresistive pressure sensor can provide overall 2D-pressure mapping in a large area and has good flexibility and reliability to be combined with soft surfaces.

A vehicle brake pad (100) comprising: a support plate (21); a friction pad (20); at least a shear force sensing device; and an electrical circuit configured to collect signals from the shear force sensing device (1); wherein the shear force sensing device (1) comprises: a sheet (2) of piezoelectric material having a first and a second main faces (3, 4) parallel to each other identifying a shear stress direction (S); at least a first digitated reading electrode (5) located on the first main face (3); at least a second digitated reading electrode (6) located on the second main face (4), the first and second reading electrodes (5, 6) having digits (5a, 6a) aligned along a reading direction (R) orthogonal to the stress shear direction (S); at least a first digitated polarizing electrode (7) located on the first main face (3) and interdigitated with the first digitated reading electrode (5); and at least a second digitated polarizing electrode (8) located on the second main face (4) and interdigitated with the second digitated reading electrode (6); and wherein the piezoelectric material has a bulk electric polarization with vector field (E) transversally oriented to the reading direction (R), each pair of aligned digits (5a, 6a) of the first and second reading electrodes (5, 6) enclosing a respective zone (2a) of the piezoelectric material having the

The present invention discloses a piezoelectric device comprising an amino acid crystal.

A control device that controls an electronic device including a top panel having an operation surface, a position detector that detects a position of operational input performed on the operation surface, and a first vibrating element that generates vibration in the top panel, the control device includes a first processor that outputs a first drive signal to the first vibrating element to drive the first vibrating element; a first capacitor inserted in series between the first vibrating element and the first processor; and a first differential amplifier that detects a first voltage of the first capacitor or the first vibrating element, wherein the first processor is configured to determine whether pressing operation to the top panel has been performed based on the first voltage detected by the first differential amplifier.

In a method for calibrating at least one sensor, wherein the sensor includes at least one piezoelectric element with at least one electrode, and wherein at least one electrode is embodied as a measurement electrode, it is provided as essential to the invention that an electrical excitation voltage is applied to at least one further electrode of the piezoelectric element, embodied as a calibration electrode, to create a mechanical deformation of the piezoelectric element, that the voltage induced by the deformation of the piezoelectric element is captured with at least one measurement electrode, and that the applied excitation voltage and captured voltage are compared.

A piezoelectric element and a method of manufacturing the piezoelectric element are provided. The piezoelectric element is provided with a substrate having an intermediate layer disposed between a first substrate layer and a second substrate layer, a first electrode layer of an electrically conductive non-ferroelectric material disposed on the second substrate layer, a ferroelectric, piezoelectric and/or flexoelectric layer disposed on the first electrode layer, and a second electrode layer of an electrically conductive non-ferroelectric material disposed on the ferroelectric, piezoelectric and/or flexoelectric layer. The intermediate layer and/or the first substrate layer is removed below a layer stack formed by the first electrode layer, the ferroelectric, piezoelectric and/or flexoelectric layer, and the second electrode layer so that the layer stack can be moved in a translatory manner along its normal directed along the layer sequence.

A method is provided to measure viscosity of an analyte using a microfluidic piezoelectric sensor including a channel on an active area of a piezoelectric resonator substrate. The microfluidic piezoelectric sensor is driven so that the active area of the piezoelectric resonator substrate generates shear motion in a direction of shear motion displacement that is parallel with respect to a first surface of the piezoelectric resonator substrate. A high shear-rate viscosity of the analyte is determined based on a shift in resonance of the microfluidic piezoelectric sensor while driving the microfluidic piezoelectric sensor with the analyte in the channel. A low shear-rate viscosity of the analyte is determined by detecting flow of the analyte through the channel based on tracking shifts in resonance of the microfluidic piezoelectric sensor. Related sensors are also discussed.

An optical element driving mechanism is provided and includes a fixed assembly, a movable assembly, and a driving assembly. The movable assembly is configured to be connected to an optical element and is movable relative to the fixed assembly. The driving assembly is configured to drive the movable assembly to move along a first axis relative to the fixed assembly.

Provided is a piezoelectric structure including a braid composed of a conductive fiber and piezoelectric fibers, the braid being a covered fiber having the conductive fiber as the core and the piezoelectric fibers covering the periphery of the conductive fiber, wherein the covered fiber has at least one bent section, and when the piezoelectric structure is placed on a horizontal surface, the height from the horizontal surface to the uppermost section of the piezoelectric structure is greater than the diameter of the covered fiber.