Delay line

Claim 2

An ultrasonic delay line comprising a solid body having a plurality of energy reflecting edge walls and composed of ultrasonic wave energy transmitting material, said edge walls being arranged to provide a first point for introducing ultrasonic energy and a second point for extracting said energy from the body and further providing a plurality of multiply reflected internal transmission paths for delaying said ultrasonic energy, and an energy reflecting surface positioned in the desired energy transmission path and formed by a wall slit arranged to block the passage therethrough of impinging ultrasonic energy and extending inwards from an outer edge wall of the solid body and positioned so as to provide substantially complete reflection of the desired energy from opposite faces thereof to the edge walls thereby to redirect said energy through the body to increase the delay between said first and second points.

Claim 3

A delay line as claimed in claim 1 wherein the wall slit is arranged relative to one or more reflecting edge walls of the body so as to produce an odd number of said paths between a reflection from one face of the slit and a subsequent reflection from the same or opposite face of said slit.

Claim 4

A delay line as claimed in claim 2 further comprising first and second electromechanical transducers coupled to said body at said first and second points, respectively.

Claim 5

A delay line as claimed in claim 1 further comprising first and second electromechanical transducers coupled to said body at said first and second points, respectively.

Claim 6

A delay line as claimed in claim 1 wherein the wall slit is located in the plane of symmetry of the body, said delay line further comprising first and second electromechanical transducers coupled to said body at said first and second points, respectively.

Claim 7

A delay line as claimed in claim 1 wherein said body includes a second wall slit extending inwards from an outEr edge wall and positioned so that the ultrasonic energy is reflected off of opposite faces of the second slit.

Claim 8

A delay line as claimed in claim 1 wherein the wall slit is arranged in the body relative to one or more reflecting edge walls thereof so as to multiply reflect the desired energy from said wall slit to produce an odd number of said paths between a first reflection from one face of the slit and a second subsequent reflection from a face of the slit.

Claim 9

An ultrasonic delay line comprising a solid body having a plurality of energy reflecting edge walls and composed of ultrasonic wave energy transmitting material, said edge walls being arranged to provide a first point for introducing ultrasonic energy and a second point for extracting said energy from the body and further providing a plurality of multiply reflected internal transmission paths for delaying said ultrasonic energy, and an energy reflecting surface positioned in the desired energy transmission path and formed by a wall slit arranged to block the passage therethrough of impinging ultrasonic energy and extending inwards from an outer edge wall of the solid body to reflect the desired energy to the edge walls thereby to redirect said energy through the body, said wall slit being arranged in the body so as to intercept ultrasonic energy propagating along given undesired transmission paths between said first and second energy points of the body thereby to reduce any direct coupling of scattered secondary ultrasonic energy between said first and second points.

Claim 10

An ultrasonic delay line comprising a solid body having a plurality of energy reflecting edge walls and composed of ultrasonic wave energy transmitting material, said edge walls being arranged to provide a first point for introducing ultrasonic energy and a second point for extracting said energy from the body and further providing a plurality of multiply reflected internal transmission paths for delaying said ultrasonic energy, and an energy reflecting surface positioned in the desired energy transmission path and formed by a wall slit arranged to block the passage therethrough of impinging ultrasonic energy and extending inwards from an outer edge wall of the solid body to reflect the desired energy to the edge walls thereby to redirect said energy through the body, said wall slit being arranged in the body so as to intercept ultrasonic energy propagating along given undesired transmission paths between said first and second energy points of the body thereby to reduce any direct coupling of scattered secondary ultrasonic energy between said first and second points.

Claim 11

An ultrasonic delay line comprising a solid body having at least five energy reflecting edge walls and composed of ultrasonic wave energy transmitting material, two of said edge walls being parallel to each other and orthogonal to a third edge wall, the fourth and fifth edge walls each being at an angle of approximately 135* to a respective one of said parallel edge walls, said edge walls being arranged to provide a first point for introducing ultrasonic energy and a second point for extracting said energy from the body and further providing a plurality of multiply reflected internal transmission paths for delaying said ultrasonic energy, and an energy reflecting surface positioned in the desired energy transmission path and formed by a wall slit extending centrally inwards into the body orthogonal to said third edge wall and arranged to block the passage therethrough of impinging ultrasonic energy thereby to redirect said energy through the body.

Claim 12

An ultrasonic delay line comprising a solid body having at least five energy reflecting edge walls and composed of ultrasonic wave energy transmitting material, two of said edge walls being parallel to each other and orthogonal to a third edge wall, the fourth and fifth edge walls each being at an angle of approximately 135* to a respective one of said parallel edge walls, said edge walls being arranged to provide a first point for introducing ultrasonic energy and a second point for extracting said energy from the body and further providing a plurality of multiply reflected internal transmission paths for delaying said ultrasonic energy, and an energy reflecting surface positioned in the desired energy transmission path and formed by a wall slit extending centrally inwards into the body orthogonal to said third edge wall and arranged to block the passage therethrough of impinging ultrasonic energy thereby to redirect said energy through the body.

Claim 13

A delay line as claimed in claim 9 wherein said wall slit extends inwardly from said third outer edge wall.

Claim 14

A delay line as claimed in claim 9 wherein said fourth and fifth edge walls intersect one another and said wall slit extends inwardly from the intersection of said fourth and fifth edge walls.

Claim 15

A delay line is claimed in claim 1 wherein said body has a generally rectangular shape and a second wall slit extending inwards from an outer edge wall of the body so as to reflect the ultrasonic energy, the first and second wall slits extending inwards from opposite parallel edge walls of the body.

Claim 16

A delay line as claimed in claim 9 further comprising first and second electromechanical transducers coupled to said body at one or more edge walls other than the edge wall from which the wall slit extends.

Claim 17

A delay line as claimed in claim 11 further comprising first and second electromechanical transducers coupled to said body at said fourth and fifth edge walls, respectively, thereby to reduce direct coupling of scattered secondary ultrasonic energy between the transducers.

Claim 18

An ultrasonic delay line comprising a solid body having a plurality of energy reflecting edge walls and composed of ultrasonic wave energy transmitting material, said edge walls being arranged to provide a first point for introducing ultrasonic energy and a second point for extracting said energy from the body and further providing a plurality of multiply reflected inTernal transmission paths for delaying said ultrasonic energy, an energy reflecting surface positioned in the desired energy transmission path and formed by a wall slit arranged to block the passage therethrough of impinging ultrasonic energy and extending inwards from an outer edge wall of the solid body thereby to redirect said energy through the body, and a second wall slit extending inwards from an outer edge wall of the body so as to reflect the ultrasonic energy, the first and second wall slits extending inwards from opposite parallel edge walls of the body, and wherein said body has a parallelogram cross-section and said first and second wall slits extend orthogonally inwards from the longer pair of parallel edge walls.

Claim 19

An ultrasonic delay line comprising a solid body having a plurality of energy reflecting edge walls and composed of ultrasonic wave energy transmitting material, said edge walls being arranged to provide a first point for introducing ultrasonic energy and a second point for extracting said energy from the body and further providing a plurality of multiply reflected inTernal transmission paths for delaying said ultrasonic energy, an energy reflecting surface positioned in the desired energy transmission path and formed by a wall slit arranged to block the passage therethrough of impinging ultrasonic energy and extending inwards from an outer edge wall of the solid body thereby to redirect said energy through the body, and a second wall slit extending inwards from an outer edge wall of the body so as to reflect the ultrasonic energy, the first and second wall slits extending inwards from opposite parallel edge walls of the body, and wherein said body has a parallelogram cross-section and said first and second wall slits extend orthogonally inwards from the longer pair of parallel edge walls.

Claim 20

A delay line as claimed in claim 12 further comprising first and second electromechanical transducers coupled to said body at said first and second points which are located on edge walls other than the edge walls from which the wall slits extend.

Claim 21

An ultrasonic delay line comprising a solid body having at least five energy reflecting edge walls and composed of ultrasonic wave energy transmitting material, two of said edge walls being parallel to each other and two other edge walls being at right angles thereto, a fifth edge wall being at an angle of approximately 135* to each of two adjacent edge walls, said edge walls being arranged to provide a first point for introducing ultrasonic energy and a second point for extracting said energy from the body and further providing a plurality of multiply reflected internal transmission paths for delaying said ultrasonic energy, and an energy reflecting surface positioned in the desired energy transmission path and formed by a wall slit extending into the body centrally of and orthogonal to one of the edge walls located opposite to the fifth edge wall and arranged to block the passage therethrough of impinging ultrasonic energy thereby to redirect said energy through the body.

Claim 22

An ultrasonic delay line comprising a solid body having at least five energy reflecting edge walls and composed of ultrasonic wave energy transmitting material, two of said edge walls being parallel to each other and two other edge walls being at right angles thereto, a fifth edge wall being at an angle of approximately 135* to each of two adjacent edge walls, said edge walls being arranged to provide a first point for introducing ultrasonic energy and a second point for extracting said energy from the body and further providing a plurality of multiply reflected internal transmission paths for delaying said ultrasonic energy, and an energy reflecting surface positioned in the desired energy transmission path and formed by a wall slit extending into the body centrally of and orthogonal to one of the edge walls located opposite to the fifth edge wall and arranged to block the passage therethrough of impinging ultrasonic energy thereby to redirect said energy through the body.

Claim 23

A delay line as claimed in claim 17 further comprising first and second electromechanical transducers coupled to said body at said first and second points, respectively.

Claim 24

A delay line as claimed in claim 18 wherein said first and second energy points are located on the fifth edge wall.