A grinding apparatus includes an ultrasonic cleaning unit. The ultrasonic cleaning unit includes a pair of side walls that surround the inside and the outside of a base and grindstones, a bottom surface that connects the pair of side walls, a jet port that is formed in at least either of the side walls or the bottom surface and that jets a cleaning liquid toward at least either of the base or the grindstones, a cleaning liquid supply section that supplies the cleaning liquid to the jet port; an ultrasonic vibrator that applies an ultrasonic wave to the cleaning liquid supplied from the cleaning liquid supply section, and an electric power supply section that applies electric power to the ultrasonic vibrator.

Systems and methods for cleaning transmission surfaces for optical and sensor surfaces in order to maintain optimal performance under a variety of weather and environmental conditions using synthetic jet actuators. The actuators can emit a jet of water or air depending on environmental conditions and the waveform, frequency, amplitude of the actuator can be adjusted based on particle characteristics and transmission signal quality in order to better clean the surfaces.

An ultrasonic stepping motor device for generating ultra-fine single droplet includes a valve housing, a valve core, and a spring. The valve core and the spring are installed inside the valve housing, and the valve core abuts against a liquid inlet of the valve housing under an elastic force of the spring. The valve housing is connected with a injector through a catheter, and the catheter is driven for linear operation by the inverse piezoelectric effect of piezoelectric ceramics through an ultrasonic linear motor. A right end of the catheter is equipped with a rubber piston, and the rubber piston is arranged in a cavity of the injector and matched with the injector. Since the piezoelectric vibrator driven catheter can produce nano feed length, and the volume of droplets overflowed each time can reach micron level, which can meet the requirements of producing micro droplets.

A fluid system includes a fluid active region, a fluid channel, a convergence chamber and plural valves. The fluid active region includes one or plural fluid-guiding units. Each fluid-guiding unit includes an inlet plate, a substrate, a resonance plate, an actuating plate, a piezoelectric element and an outlet plate, which are stacked sequentially. The piezoelectric element is attached on the actuating plate. When the piezoelectric element drives a bending resonance of the actuating plate, the fluid is transported into the fluid-guiding units and pressurized to be discharged out. The fluid channel includes plural branch channels. The fluid discharged from the fluid active region is split by the branch channels. The convergence chamber is in communication with the fluid channel. The valves are disposed in the branch channels. The fluid is transported through the branch channels according to the open/closed states of the valves.

A device is disclosed for the preparation of nebulised droplets, for inhalation. The device has: a surface acoustic wave (SAW) transmission surface; a SAW transducer adapted to generate and propagate SAWs along the SAW transmission surface; and an array of cavities opening at the SAW transmission surface for containing a liquid. In operation, SAWs propagating along the SAW transmission surface interact with the liquid in the cavities to produce nebulised droplets of the liquid. Operation of the device results in a nebulised plume of droplets of average diameter in the range 1-5 μm.

An ultrasonic vibrator driving apparatus performs driving by applying an alternating voltage as a drive voltage to an ultrasonic vibrator that includes a piezoelectric element and has a unique resonance frequency. The drive voltage is generated with a variable frequency in a frequency range including the resonance frequency of the ultrasonic vibrator. The frequency of the drive voltage is repeatedly swept with a predetermined sweep width and a predetermined sweep period so as to include the resonance frequency, based on a reference frequency set according to the resonance frequency of the ultrasonic vibrator. The sweep period and the sweep width are restricted by being associated so as to fall within a predetermined allowed range on a two-dimensional map divided by the sweep period and the sweep width.

Provided is a liquid ejection device that includes a nozzle that ejects a liquid, a liquid conveying tube that conveys the liquid to the nozzle, an outer tube that is internally provided with the nozzle and the liquid conveying tube, and a first vibration applying unit that applies vibration to the nozzle or the liquid conveying tube. The first vibration applying unit is provided between the nozzle and the outer pipe or between the liquid conveying tube and the outer pipe.

A smoking device for aerosol-generation may comprise a device housing, a surface acoustic wave-atomizer (SAW-atomizer), a supply element, and a control system. The device housing may include a storage portion for an aerosol-forming substrate. The SAW-atomizer may include an atomization region, a first transducer, and/or a second transducer. The first transducer is configured to generate first surface acoustic waves that propagate along a surface of the SAW-atomizer. The supply element is arranged to supply the aerosol-forming substrate from the storage portion to the atomization region of the SAW-atomizer. The control system is configured to operate the SAW-atomizer to atomize the aerosol-forming substrate in the atomization region to generate an aerosol. A cartridge for such a smoking device and a method for generating an aerosol in a smoking system are also provided.

This ultrasonic-wave vibration imparting device is configured so as to be attachable to a container that retains a beverage and that has a spout on an upper part thereof. The ultrasonic-wave vibration imparting device includes: an annular engagement part configured so as to engage with the upper part of the container; and an ultrasonic wave generating unit configured so as to be disposed at a position at which the unit comes into contact with a side surface of the container below the spout, as a result of the engagement between the container and the engagement part.

A system and method for tagging, tracking, locating and identifying people and vehicles transporting people using Perfluorocarbon tracers. An on-going problem faced by military as well as law enforcement personnel is that of friendly fire incidents. To prevent possible friendly-fire incidents, troops would separate the two layers of the uniform patch, thereby releasing a controlled release of the Perfluorocarbon vapors. Other “friendly” troops, equipped with sensors tuned to the specific perfluorocarbon characteristics would thus be able to literally view a plume around the tagged person or object. The system may conversely be used to tag enemies. Formulations of mixed perfluorocarbons may be used to provide coding of emissions.