An actuator device includes at least one actuator element, which consists at least partially of a magnetically shape-shiftable material and which is configured at least for the purpose of causing a movement of at least one actuation element in at least one direction of movement by means of a contraction, and having a magnetic contraction unit, which is configured for the purpose of supplying a magnetic field acting upon the actuator element in order to generate a contraction of the actuator element. In the region of the actuator element, field lines of the magnetic field are aligned at least substantially parallel to the direction of movement.

A transducer system includes a housing having an opening, an electromechanical transducer within the housing, and an elastomeric boot over the opening. At least a portion of the elastomeric boot includes copper-comprising particles. In some applications, the copper acts as an antifouling agent and/or enhances the thermal conductivity of the elastomeric boot.

Compact and power efficient acoustically actuated magnetoelectric antennas for transmitting and receiving very low frequency (VLF) electromagnetic waves utilize magnetoelectric coupling in a magnetic/piezoelectric heterostructure to provide voltage control of magnetization in transmission mode and magnetic control of electric polarization in receiving mode. The magnetoelectric antennas provide a power efficiency enhanced by orders of magnitude compared to magnetically or mechanically switching the magnetization. The antennas can be used in groups or arrays and can be combined to form VLF communication systems.

A magnetic field sensor includes a magnetic sense element and a shield structure formed on a substrate. The shield structure fully encircles the magnetic sense element for suppressing stray magnetic fields along a first axis and a second axis, both of which are parallel to a surface of the substrate and perpendicular to one another. A magnetic field is oriented along a third axis perpendicular to the surface of the substrate, and the magnetic sense element is configured to sense a magnetic field along the first axis. A magnetic field deflection element, formed on the substrate proximate the magnetic sense element, redirects the magnetic field from the third axis into the first axis to be sensed as a measurement magnetic field by the magnetic sense element. At least two magnetic field sensors, each fully encircled by a shield structure, form a gradient unit for determining a magnetic field gradient.

An electricity generating apparatus applied to footwear and an operating method thereof are disclosed. The electricity generating apparatus includes a stress plate, an electricity generating module and a charging circuit. The stress plate is disposed in footwear to bear a stress. The electricity generating apparatus generates magnetic field changes under the stress and induces the magnetic field changes to generate electricity. The charging circuit is coupled to the footwear and used to receive the electricity and selectively provide the electricity to the footwear.

Provided herein is an FeGa-base magnetostriction element that has specific characteristics with regards to magnetostriction along the longitudinal direction, and that shows a sufficiently high magnetostriction level along the longitudinal direction. The magnetostriction element is formed of a magnetostrictive material that is a monocrystalline alloy represented by Fe.sub.(100-)Ga.sub. ( represents the Ga content (at %), and satisfies 1419) or Fe.sub.(100--)Ga.sub.X.sub. ( and represent the Ga content (at %) and the X content (at %), respectively, X is at least one element selected from the group consisting of Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Cu, and C, and the formula satisfies 1419, and 0.51). The magnetostriction element has a longitudinal direction with a first dimension, and a transverse direction with a second dimension smaller than the first dimension, the transverse direction being orthogonal to the longitudinal direction, and the longitudinal direction being parallel to the <100> crystal orientation of the monocrystalline alloy. The magnetostriction element, under a magnetic field applied parallel to an x-y plane of an x-axis representing the transverse direction and a y-axis representing the longitudinal direction and within an angle of 090 with respect to the x-axis, has an Lmax and an Lmin that satisfy 0LminLmax/10, and 100 ppmLmax1,000 ppm along the y-axis direction.

The invention relates generally to electroactive material actuators (and combined sensor-actuators) having embedded magnetic particles for facilitating enhanced actuation and/or sensing effects.

The invention relates generally to electroactive material actuators (and combined sensor-actuators) having embedded magnetic particles (42) for facilitating enhanced actuation and/or sensing effects.

A magnetostrictive material includes a FeGaC alloy that is represented by Expression (1),

F.sub.(100-x-y)Ga.sub.xC.sub.y(1) (in Expression (1), x and y are respectively a content rate (at. %) of Ga and a content rate (at. %) of C, and satisfy that y0.5x7.75, yx+20, and y0.5).

An actuator device having an expansion unit, which has a magnetic shape memory alloy material (MSM), is configured to interact with a preferably non-magnetic ram unit and executes an expansion movement in an actuating direction as a reaction to an introduced magnetic flow, the expansion unit being oriented towards the ram unit along a longitudinal axis defined by the expansion direction, and being intended to exert an actuating force on said ram unit, wherein the ram unit is guided on the casing side in an associated housing section of the actuator unit, wherein an end section of the expansion unit and/or end section of the ram unit, the end section being realized in a transition region between the expansion unit and the ram unit, is configured such that, at least during the exertion of the actuating force along the longitudinal axis, an overlap that effects a form- and/or force-fit transversely to the longitudinal axis arises in the transition region.