Patent US3586593A successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
Patent US4242541A successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
US4242541A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Composite type acoustic transducer
Assignee: Olympus Corp
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Filing: 1978-12-18
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Granted: 1980-12-30
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Expires: 1998-12-18
Abstract
Abstract A composite type acoustic transducer of a flat drive type electrodynamic transducer and a piezoelectric type transducer. A diaphragm has a membrane of any suitable shape made of high molecular piezoelectric material such as polyvinylidene fluoride, an electrode layer applied on one surface of a membrane, and a coil like conductor applied on the other surface of the membrane. A supporting member supports the diaphragm along its edge. A permanent magnet device produces a magentic field extending in parallel to a plane of the diaphragm and perpendicular to the coil like conductor. When an audio signal current passes through the coil like member and an audio signal voltage is applied across the electrode layer and the coil like conductor, the piezoelectric membrane shrinks and stretches, and at the same time a force to drive the membrane in a direction perpendicular to the diaphragm is generated due to an electromagnetic interaction between the current flowing through the coil-like conductor and the magnetic field.
Inventors
- 👤 Otaro Ando
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-24 14:10
CPC Classifications
H; H04; H04R; H04R23/00; H04R23/02; H04R17/00; H04R17/005; H04R9/00; H04R9/02; H04R9/04; H04R9/046; H04R9/047; H04R9/025
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 19
Claim 1
Independent Claim
113 words
A composite type acoustic transducer of a flat drive type acoustic transducer and of a piezoelectric type acoustic transducer comprising: a diaphragm including a membrane made of high molecular piezoelectric material, an electrode layer applied on one surface of the membrane and a coil-like conductor applied on the other surface of the membrane; means for supporting the diaphragm along its edge; means for forming a magnetic field extending in parallel with the diaphragm and cooperating electromagnetically with the coil-like conductor; means for supplying an audio signal current through said coil-like conductor; and means for applying a voltage related to an audio signal to be reproduced across the electrode layer and the coil-like conductor.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
113 words
A composite type acoustic transducer of a flat drive type acoustic transducer and of a piezoelectric type acoustic transducer comprising: a diaphragm including a membrane made of high molecular piezoelectric material, an electrode layer applied on one surface of the membrane and a coil-like conductor applied on the other surface of the membrane; means for supporting the diaphragm along its edge; means for forming a magnetic field extending in parallel with the diaphragm and cooperating electromagnetically with the coil-like conductor; means for supplying an audio signal current through said coil-like conductor; and means for applying a voltage related to an audio signal to be reproduced across the electrode layer and the coil-like conductor.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
49 words
A composite type acoustic transducer according to claim 1, wherein the diaphragm is supported in flat and the voltage applied across the electrode layer and the coil-like conductor is of a full-wave rectified audio signal voltage, whereby the diaphragm is caused to stretch upon the application of the voltage.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
49 words
A composite type acoustic transducer according to claim 2 further comprising a resistor connected across the electrode layer and the coil like conductor, said resistor having a resistance value R smaller than 1/2C·fmax, wherein C is a capacitance of the piezoelectric membrane and famx is the highest reproduction frequency.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
102 words
A composite type acoustic transducer according to claim 1, wherein said diaphragm has a bimorph construction having at least two laminated piezoelectric membranes, and polarizing directions of the piezoelectric membranes and polarities of voltages applied across the membranes are so determined that at least one of the membranes stretches and the other one or more membranes shrink and vice versa upon the application of the voltages so as to generate a force for bending the diaphragm in the same direction as that of the force produced by the electromagnetic interaction between the magnetic field and the current flowing through the coil-like conductor.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
64 words
A composite type acoustic transducer according to claim 4, wherein said diaphragm of bimorph construction comprises a first piezoelectric membrane having a first polarization direction, a second piezoelectric membrane having a second polarization direction which is opposite to the first direction, an electrode layer applied on the surface of the first membrane and a coil-like conductor applied on the surface of the second membrane.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
58 words
A composite type acoustic transducer according to claim 4, wherein said diaphragm comprises first and second piezoelectric membrane having the same polarization direction, a first electrode layer sandwiched between the first and second membranes, a second electrode layer applied on the surface of the first membrane and a coil-like conductor applied on the surface of the second membrane.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
50 words
A composite type acoustic transducer according to claim 4, wherein said diaphragm comprises first and second piezoelectric membranes having the same polarization direction, an electrode layer sandwiched between the first and second membranes, and first and second coil-like conductors applied on the surfaces of the first and second membranes, respectively.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
42 words
A composite type acoustic transducer according to claim 1, wherein said diaphragm is supported along a curved plane and a force perpendicular to the diaphragm is generated due to the stretch and shrinkage of the membrane upon the application of the voltage.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
20 words
A composite type acoustic transducer according to claim 8 further comprising a resilient body on which the diaphragm is placed.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
23 words
A composite type acoustic transducer according to claim 9, wherein the resilient body has a curved surface on which said diaphragm is situated.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
38 words
A composite type acoustic transducer according to claim 8, wherein said coil-like conductor comprises a coil-like portion situated at a centeral portion of the diaphragm and an electrode layer portion situated at a peripheral portion of the diaphragm.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
85 words
A composite type acoustic transducer according to claim 1, wherein said coil-like conductor includes a plurality of leg portions which are connected in a zig-zag manner and extend in parallel with each other and said magnetic field forming means comprise a plurality of rod-shaped permanent magnets which arranged on a plane parallel to the diaphragm and extending in parallel with each other in the same direction as that of the leg portions of the coil-like conductor, the adjacent magnets having polarities opposite to each other.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
51 words
A composite type acoustic transducer according to claim 12 further comprising at least one plate made of magnetic material and having a number of apertures formed therein, wherein said magnetic plate is arranged in parallel with the diaphragm and the magnets are secured onto an inner surface of the magnetic plate.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
30 words
A composite type acoustic transducer according to claim 12, wherein said permanent magnets are formed by an integral magnetic plate which has been magnetized in accordance with a given pattern.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
54 words
A composite type acoustic transducer according to claim 1, wherein said coil-like conductor comprises a plurality of concentric circular leg portions and said magnetic field forming means comprise a plurality of ring-shaped permanent magnets which are arranged concentrically on a plane parallel to the diaphragm, the adjacent magnets having polarities opposite to each other.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
45 words
A composite type acoustic transducer according to claim 15 further comprising at least one plate of magnetic material arranged in parallel to the diaphragm and having a number of apertures formed therein, wherein said magnets are secured to the inner surface of the magnetic plate.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
29 words
A composite type acoustic transducer according to claim 15, wherein said magnets are composed of an integral magnetic plate which has been magnetized in accordance with a given pattern.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
21 words
A composite type acoustic transducer according to claim 1, wherein said diaphragm has one of rectangular, circular, oval and elliptical shapes.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
US3947708A
Cited
US4020296A
Cited
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1983-12-30 | 1984-06-30 | 1984-12-30 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1987-12-30 | 1988-06-30 | 1988-12-30 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1991-12-30 | 1992-06-30 | 1992-12-30 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |