Patent classifications
B06B1/0688
VIBRATION DEVICE AND ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT
A vibration device that includes: a fixing part having a flat plate shape; a vibration part having a flat plate shape, the vibration part being disposed around the fixing part as viewed in a normal direction of the fixing part; a coupling part that couples the vibration part and the fixing part and is constructed to elastically deform, the vibration part constructed to be displaced in an orthogonal direction orthogonal to the normal direction of the fixing part with respect to the fixing part; and a vibration film fixed to the vibration part and the fixing part, the vibration film constructed to vibrate the vibration part in the orthogonal direction with respect to the fixing part when an electric signal is applied to the vibration film.
Actuator and tactile sensation providing apparatus
Provided is an actuator having a piezoelectric element, a diaphragm to which the piezoelectric element is bonded and vibrates according to expansion and contraction displacement of the piezoelectric element, and a first spacer and a second spacer configured to fix both ends of the diaphragm in expansion and contraction displacement direction of the piezoelectric element to a base member. The driving characteristics of the actuator are determined by an effective length of the diaphragm between the first spacer and the second spacer.
Wearable transcranial dual-mode ultrasound transducers for neuromodulation
An ultrasound transducer array is incorporated in a light-weight, conformable, and wearable patch that may be used to deliver, monitor, and control localized transcranial focused ultrasound (tFUS). The patch may include full-duplex transmit-receive circuitry that may be used for continuous monitoring of transcranial focused ultrasound (tFUS) application. The circuitry may include a circulator. The ultrasound transducer array may be coupled to an aperture interface having irregularly sized or shaped channel conductors to provide a coarse aperture for the array. The coarse aperture may be designed using a method that provides a reduced channel count.
Signal Processing for Segmented Thin-Film Acoustic Imaging Systems for Portable Electronic Devices
An acoustic imaging system coupled to an acoustic medium to define an imaging surface. The acoustic imaging system includes an array of piezoelectric acoustic transducers formed at least in part from a thin-film piezoelectric material, such as PVDF. The array is coupled to the acoustic medium opposite the imaging surface and formed using a thin-film manufacturing process over an application-specific integrated circuit that, in turn, is configured to leverage the array of piezoelectric actuators to generate an image of an object at least partially wetting to the imaging surface.
MICRO VIBRATION BODY HAVING THREE-DIMENSIONAL CURVED SURFACE SHAPE AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING THE SAME
In a method for manufacturing a micro vibration body having a three-dimensional curved surface, a mold defining a recess part is prepared, and a plate-shaped reflow material is arranged on the mold so as to cover the recess part. Pressure of a space defined by the recess part covered with the reflow material is reduced, and the reflow material is deformed by heating from an upper surface side opposite to a lower surface facing the recess part and by means of the pressure reduced. When the reflow material is deformed, a part of the mold is heated and / or cooled. As another example, when the reflow material is deformed, a mold having a different heat capacity portion is used to generate a temperature gradient in the mold.
Dual frequency ultrasound transducer including an ultrahigh frequency transducer stack and a low frequency ultrasound transducer stack
A dual frequency ultrasound transducer includes a high frequency ultrasound array and a low frequency transducer positioned behind or proximal to the high frequency ultrasound array. In one embodiment, a dampening material is positioned between a rear surface of the high frequency array and the a front surface of the low frequency array. The dampening preferably is high absorbing of signals at the frequency of the high frequency array but passes signals at the frequency of the low frequency transducer with little attenuation. In additional, or alternatively, the low frequency can angled with respect to the plane of the high frequency transducer to reduce inter-stack multipath reflections. Beamforming delays compensate for the differences in physical distances between the elements of the low frequency transducer and the plane of the high frequency transducer.
ELECTRONIC DEVICE
An electronic device is provided that includes a first casing and a second casing, and a distortion sensor attached to an inner wall of the casing. One side of the first casing is opened by a first opening, one side of the second casing is opened by a second opening, the casing is formed by fixing the first casing to the second casing to face each other. Moreover, the first and second casings are fixed by two or more fixing portions, the distortion sensor has a strip shape having first and second ends in the longitudinal direction, and the distortion sensor is attached to an inner wall of the second casing such that the longitudinal direction is a direction along an edge of the second opening, the first end is relatively close to the fixing portion, and the second end is far from the fixing portion.
PMUT ultrasound transducer with damping layer
A PMUT ultrasound transducer includes a number of PMUT transmitting elements in a membrane layer. Behind each PMUT transmitting element is a cavity in the membrane layer. The cavities are partially or completely filled with a damping material to reduce ringing of the PMUT transmitting elements. Suitable damping materials include polymers, e.g., soft epoxies, benzocyclobutene or polyimide that are dispersed into the cavities or a phase changing material such as Parylene that precipitates out of a gas phase as a polymer when cured.
Method for producing piezoelectric element, and piezoelectric element
There is provided a method for producing a piezoelectric element, which allows for forming a columnar microstructure with a small width and a high aspect ratio. The method is intended to produce a piezoelectric element 102 including a three-dimensional structure group 20 having a plurality of the three-dimensional structures 21 and 321 formed in a plate-like or columnar shape with a width of 30 μm or less and a height of 80 μm or more. The production method includes a first process of fabricating a plurality of plate-like or columnar precursor shapes 82a on a bulk material 81 formed of a Pb-based piezoelectric material, and a second process of reducing the width of the precursor shapes 82a to a predetermined value using an etching liquid.
HIGH RESOLUTION INTRAVASCULAR ULTRASOUND (H-IVUS)
High-resolution intravascular ultrasound (H-IVUS) operates under a large acoustic bandwidth, provides high resolution while maintaining good depth penetration, and exhibits other favorable characteristics like focused imaging. A H-IVUS transducer assembly can be manufactured at a low cost using conventional methods commonly utilized in the microelectronics industry. The H-IVUS transducer assembly can include a printed circuit having one or more electrical signal conditioners. One or more convertors made of a polymer and configured to convert electrical energy to acoustic energy and acoustic energy to electrical energy can be formed in place away from the printed circuit. After construction, the one or more formed in place convertors are interfaced to the printed circuit with at least a conductive material.