An ultrasonic apparatus includes a transmitting circuit, an ultrasonic transducer, a receiving circuit, and a capacitance measuring circuit. The ultrasonic transducer is a three-terminal ultrasonic transducer that includes a transmitting electrode, a receiving electrode, and a common electrode. The transmitting circuit outputs a driving signal to the transmitting electrode to cause the ultrasonic transducer to transmit ultrasonic waves. The receiving circuit receives a receive signal from the receiving electrode. The capacitance measuring circuit is electrically connected to the receiving electrode to measure the electrostatic capacitance of the ultrasonic transducer.

A hybrid actuator is provided in which a piezoelectric element and an actuator are incorporated with each other. The hybrid actuator includes: a housing; a stator secured to the housing and having a coil; a vibrator having a permanent magnet configured to vibrate due to a mutual electromagnetic force with the stator; an elastic member configured to elastically support the vibrator relative to the housing; a piezoelectric element attached to one surface of the housing; and an F-PCB (flexible printed circuit board) applying an electric current to the piezoelectric element and the coil inside the housing. A part of the F-PCB extends outside the housing. Input terminals are formed on the part of the F-PCB which extends outside the housing. The input terminals are configured to receive a vibration signal and an audio signal so that the hybrid actuator can reproduce both the vibration signal and the audio signal.

Described herein is an implantable medical device that includes a body having one or more ultrasonic transducers configured to receive ultrasonic waves and convert energy from the ultrasonic waves into an electrical energy, two or more electrodes in electrical communication with the ultrasonic transducer, and a clip attached to the body that is configured to at least partially surround a nerve and/or a filamentous tissue and position the two or more electrodes in electrical communication with the nerve. In certain examples, the implantable medical device includes two ultrasonic transducers with orthogonal polarization axes. Also described herein are methods for treating incontinence in a subject by converting energy from ultrasonic waves into an electrical energy that powers a full implanted medical device, and electrically stimulating a tibial nerve, a pudendal nerve, or a sacral nerve, or a branch thereof, using the fully implanted medical device.

An ultrasonic transducer and an ultrasonic probe including the same are provided. The ultrasonic transducer includes a piezoelectric layer configured to convert an electric signal and an ultrasound into each other, and a dematching layer having a uniform thickness, the dematching layer being arranged on a partial region of the piezoelectric layer and configured to reflect the second ultrasound wave that is incident on the dematching layer.

A piezoelectric device includes an element substrate that includes a first surface (operating surface) and a second surface (back surface) on a side opposite to the first surface, and includes a recessed opening provided on the first surface and a supporting portion surrounding the recessed opening, a piezoelectric body that is provided on the second surface of the recessed opening, a plurality of connection electrodes (lower connection electrode and upper connection electrode) that are connected to the piezoelectric body and are drawn to the second surface of the supporting portion from the piezoelectric body, a reinforcement plate that is bonded to the second surface side of the element substrate, and a plurality of through electrodes that are provided at a position of the reinforcement plate which faces the supporting portion, pass through the reinforcement plate in a thickness direction, and are respectively connected to the plurality of connection electrodes.

In a linear driving apparatus including a vibration wave motor, a sliding guide method is used as a guiding method for a moving member. The apparatus further includes a driving target body movable in a moving direction, a transmission member configured to engage with the driving target body, abut against the abutment part of the moving member, and transmit the driving force of the vibration wave motor to the driving target body, and a biasing member configured to apply a biasing force between the transmission member and the abutment part. The direction of a frictional contact force that the vibrator receives from the friction member and the direction of a biasing contact force that the abutment part receives from the biasing member are parallel and opposite, and the load center of the distribution load of the biasing contact force exists in the range of the outside shape of the vibrator.

A vibration generating device 90 includes: a housing 30 in a rectangular shape as viewed in a first direction, the housing 30 comprising: a first support portion 31 extending along a first side in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction and; a second support portion 32 extending along a second side opposite to the first side in the second direction; a panel 60 supported by the first support portion and the second support portion; and a piezoelectric element 11 attached to the panel in such a manner as to be shifted in the second direction toward the first side with respect to a central portion of the panel, wherein a width in the second direction of a portion of the panel supported by the first support portion is larger than a width in the second direction of a portion of the panel supported by the second support portion.

A vibration generating device 90 for non-acoustic applications, includes: a piezoelectric element 11; a diaphragm 82 attached to the piezoelectric element 11 on a first side in a first direction; and a first frame body 84 provided along an outer peripheral portion of the diaphragm 82 to transmit vibration of the diaphragm 82 to a vibration object member 60, wherein the first frame body 84 is connectable to the vibration object member 60 in such a manner that the first frame body 84, the diaphragm 82 and the vibration object member 60 form an enclosed space 64.

A vibration structure that includes: a vibration portion; a piezoelectric member having a first end portion and a second end portion; a frame member that surrounds the vibration portion and the piezoelectric member; a vibration portion support portion that connects the vibration portion and the frame member; a first fixing portion connected to the first end portion; a second fixing portion connected to the second end portion; and first to fourth coupling portions, wherein when a combination of the first coupling portion and the second coupling portion is defined as a first connection member and a combination of the third coupling portion and the fourth coupling portion is defined as a second connection member, each of the first and second connection members includes an elastically deformable portion having a locally increased ease of elastic deformation in a plane direction and a thickness direction.

A vibration apparatus may include a vibration generating part including at least one or more vibration parts. The vibration apparatus may further include a first cover member at a first surface of the vibration generating part, a second cover member at a second surface of the vibration generating part, and a signal cable including first and second signal lines connected to the at least one or more vibration parts. The second surface of the vibration generating part is different from the first surface of the vibration generating part. The first and second signal lines may be provided between the second cover member and the vibration generating part.