The present invention provides a decontamination device capable of accomplishing a decontamination effect with a proper amount of decontamination agent by employing a mist control mechanism and concentrating a mist for decontamination on the surface of an article to be conveyed, and reducing the duration of operations such as aeration to achieve more efficient decontamination works, and a pass box in which the decontamination device is disposed.

The decontamination device of the present invention includes a mist supply means and a mist control mechanism, and the mist supply means converts a chemical for decontamination into a mist for decontamination, and supplies the same to the inside of a working chamber that accommodates the article. The mist control mechanism includes vibration boards disposed adjacent to internal wall surfaces of the working chamber, and the vibration boards are ultrasonically vibrated to generate sound flows from board surfaces by an ultra sound in the vertical direction. The mist for decontamination supplied to the inside of the working chamber is pressed by acoustic radiation pressure to concentrate the mist for decontamination on external surfaces of the article.

The embodiments of the present disclosure disclose an ultrasonic microbubble generation method, apparatus and system. The apparatus comprises a horn-shaped conductor including an upper horn-shaped body and a lower cylindrical body; the horn-shaped body is provided with a cavity having an upper opening, an upper end of the cavity is fixedly connected with a micropore vibration thin sheet, a micropore array of the micropore vibration thin sheet is corresponding to the upper opening of the cavity, and a side wall of the cavity is provided with a through hole for external gas to enter the cavity; the cylindrical body is provided with a transducing ring and an electrode sheet, an outer side of the cylindrical body is insulated and sealed, and a connection wire of the electrode sheet is led out by a steel pipe and connected with an external ultrasonic oscillation controller.

Aspects of this disclosure relate to driving a capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducer (CMUT) with a pulse train of unipolar pulses. The CMUT may be electrically excited with a pulse train of unipolar pulses such that the CMUT operates in a continuous wave mode. In some embodiments, the CMUT may have a contoured electrode.

A sensor includes a first element part and a second element part. The first element part includes a first upper main electrode part, a first upper sub electrode part and a first lower electrode layer. In the second element part, a configuration of electrodes is inverse to that of the first element part. It includes a second lower main electrode part, a second lower sub electrode part and a second upper electrode layer. The first upper main electrode part and the second lower sub electrode part are connected. The first upper sub electrode part and the second lower main electrode part are connected. The first lower electrode layer and the second upper electrode layer are connected.

Aspects of this disclosure relate to driving a capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducer (CMUT) with a pulse train of unipolar pulses. The CMUT may be electrically excited with a pulse train of unipolar pulses such that the CMUT operates in a continuous wave mode. In some embodiments, the CMUT may have a contoured electrode.

A cleaning device includes a housing holding an imaging device, a protective cover located in a field of view of the imaging device, a vibrator to vibrate the protective cover, a piezoelectric driver to drive the vibrator, a cleaning liquid discharger to discharge, onto a surface of the protective cover, a cleaning liquid including an abrasive, and a signal processing circuit to control the piezoelectric driver and the cleaning liquid discharger. When causing the cleaning liquid discharger to discharge the cleaning liquid, the signal processing circuit can control the piezoelectric driver such that the protective cover is vibrated at a vibration acceleration of larger than about 8.0×10.sup.5 m/s.sup.2 and equal to or less than about 21.0×10.sup.5 m/s.sup.2.

A PMUT device includes a membrane element adapted to generate and receive ultrasonic waves by oscillating, about an equilibrium position, at a corresponding resonance frequency. A piezoelectric element is located over the membrane element along a first direction and configured to cause the membrane element to oscillate when electric signals are applied to the piezoelectric element, and generate electric signals in response to oscillations of the membrane element. A damper is configured to reduce free oscillations of the membrane element, and the damper includes a damper cavity surrounding the membrane element, and a polymeric member having at least a portion over the damper cavity along the first direction.

A vibration device is provided that includes a vibration element with a piezoelectric vibrator and a driving device that causes the vibration element to vibrate. The vibration element includes a translucent body and the piezoelectric vibrator is electrically coupled to the driving device. The driving device includes a first circuit that applies an electric signal to the piezoelectric vibrator to render the vibration element in a resonant state, a second circuit that applies an electric signal to the piezoelectric vibrator according to a feedback signal output from the piezoelectric vibrator, and a switch that switches coupling between the first circuit and the piezoelectric vibrator and coupling between the second circuit and the piezoelectric vibrator at a certain timing.

A device for contactless, damage-free, high-precision cell and/or particle extraction and transfer through acoustic droplet ejection includes a substrate having a first surface and a second surface and a focused ultrasonic transducer positioned to focus an acoustic wave onto the substrate such that a droplet that includes at least one cell or particle is ejected from the bulk or from the first surface per each actuation of the focused ultrasonic transducer through droplet ejection. The substrate includes cells or particles inside the substrate or on top of the substrate. The focused ultrasonic transducer includes a piezoelectric substrate having a top face and a bottom face, a Fresnel acoustic lens including a plurality of annular rings of air cavities disposed on the top face, and a first patterned circular electrode disposed over the top face and a second patterned circular electrode disposed over the bottom face. The first patterned circular electrode overlaps the second patterned circular electrode.

A piezoelectric micromachined ultrasonic transducer (PMUT) includes a substrate, a stopper, and a membrane, where the substrate and the stopper are composed of same single-crystalline material. The substrate has a cavity penetrating the substrate, and the stopper protrudes from a top surface of the substrate and surrounds the edge of the cavity. The membrane is disposed over the cavity and attached to the stopper.