Patents Examined by Thomas M. Dougherty
  • Patent number: 10786988
    Abstract: An electromechanical transducer element includes a first electrode on a substrate, an electromechanical transducer film on the first electrode, and a second electrode on the electromechanical transducer film. The electromechanical transducer film includes a thin line pattern. The thin line pattern includes a plurality of thin lines that are spaced away from each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 4, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2020
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Atsushi Takeuchi, Osamu Machida, Akira Shimofuku, Shuya Abe, Masahiro Ishimori, Takuma Hirabayashi
  • Patent number: 10790797
    Abstract: An acoustic resonator includes: a substrate; a resonance part mounted on the substrate and including resonance part electrodes, the resonance part being configured to generate acoustic waves; a cavity disposed between the resonance part and the substrate; a frame part disposed on at least one electrode among the resonance part electrodes, and being configured to reflect the acoustic waves; and a connection electrode configured to connect the at least one electrode to an external electrode, and having a thickness less than a thickness of the at least one electrode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 23, 2016
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2020
    Assignee: Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Won Han, Moon Chul Lee, Jae Chang Lee, Sang Uk Son, Tae Hun Lee
  • Patent number: 10788358
    Abstract: Apparatus and related methods are provided for automatically recalibrating a SAW scale for changing environmental factors. During a period of time when there is no change to a weight applied to the scale, readings of SAW transducers which relate to weight indications and environmental factor indications are taken for two adjacent operating modes of the scale, and two calibrated weight calculations are made utilizing those readings. The difference in calibrated weight calculations is then related to a variable utilized to transform the readings into weights, which is updated, thereby recalibrating the scale.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 3, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2020
    Assignee: Circuits & Systems, Inc.
    Inventor: Vyacheslav D. Kats
  • Patent number: 10784434
    Abstract: A piezoelectric element includes a plate-shaped piezoelectric body having one principal face and the other principal face which are opposite to each other; and a first surface electrode mounted on the one principal face and a second surface electrode mounted on the other principal face, at least one of the first surface electrode and the second surface electrode including a center part and a peripheral part which is greater in thickness than the center part, the peripheral part having a thicker region and a thinner region which is thinner than the thicker region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 20, 2016
    Date of Patent: September 22, 2020
    Assignee: KYOCERA Corporation
    Inventor: Hidekazu Sanada
  • Patent number: 10784436
    Abstract: A transmitting piezoelectric element and receiving piezoelectric elements and are arranged on a vibrating plate opposed to each opening of openings of a piezoelectric sensor, and, when an external force is applied in a vertical direction with respect to the vibrating plate opposed to the openings, a region which has a maximum principal stress which is a maximum value of the stress of the vibrating plate is a first region, and a region which has a minimum principal stress which is a minimum value of the stress of the vibrating plate is a second region, the receiving piezoelectric elements and are arranged in the first region and the transmitting piezoelectric element is arranged in the second region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 5, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 22, 2020
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Yasuhiro Itayama
  • Patent number: 10784836
    Abstract: A piezoelectric vibration device that includes a piezoelectric vibrator having excitation electrodes formed thereon; a base having the piezoelectric vibrator on a first surface thereof; outer electrodes formed to continuously extend from the first surface of the base through a side face of the base to a second surface of the base opposite the first surface; and a lid having a recess opening that faces the first surface of the base, the lid being joined to the base to hermetically seal the piezoelectric vibrator in an internal space defined by the recess and the base. An edge portion of a corresponding one of the outer electrodes, formed by the first surface and the side face of the base, is at least partly covered by a covering member having insulating properties.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 15, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 22, 2020
    Assignee: MURATA MANUFACTURING CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Hiroaki Kaida, Keiichi Kami
  • Patent number: 10772603
    Abstract: An ultrasound probe comprising a housing, a transducer assembly operable to transmit ultrasonic energy towards a zone of the probe adapted to be acoustically coupled to an object or area of interest, a cooling system comprising a heat transfer device arranged to transfer heat generated by the transducer assembly to one or more regions or areas located outside such transducer assembly. The heat transfer device comprises graphene.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 27, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 15, 2020
    Assignee: Esaote S.p.A.
    Inventors: Lorenzo Spicci, Paolo Palchetti, Francesca Gambineri
  • Patent number: 10778181
    Abstract: Aspects of this disclosure relate to an elastic wave device. The elastic wave device includes a sub-wavelength thick piezoelectric layer, an interdigital transducer electrode on the piezoelectric layer, and a high velocity layer configured to inhibit an elastic wave from leaking from the piezoelectric layer at anti-resonance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 18, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 15, 2020
    Assignee: Skyworks Solutions, Inc.
    Inventors: Rei Goto, Jie Zou, Hiroyuki Nakamura, Chun Sing Lam
  • Patent number: 10777731
    Abstract: An element, including a first electrode, an intermediate layer, and a second electrode, the first electrode, the intermediate layer, and the second electrode being laminated in this order, wherein the intermediate layer has flexibility, and wherein a deformation amount on a side of the first electrode of the intermediate layer is different from a deformation amount on a side of the second electrode of the intermediate layer when a pressure is applied to the intermediate layer in a direction orthogonal to a surface of the intermediate layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 27, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 15, 2020
    Assignee: RICOH COMPANY, LTD.
    Inventors: Tsuneaki Kondoh, Junichiro Natori, Tomoaki Sugawara, Yuko Arizumi
  • Patent number: 10775583
    Abstract: A value obtained by adding an output of a speed feedforward calculation unit that uses a speed calculated from a change over time in an instruction value to a stage downstream from a feedback calculation unit that uses a positional deviation is used as a control amount, and at least one of an elliptic ratio of elliptical motion and a driving direction is controlled.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 11, 2016
    Date of Patent: September 15, 2020
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Jun Sumioka
  • Patent number: 10770640
    Abstract: According to one aspect of the invention, there is proposed a capacitive radiofrequency MicroElectroMechanical System or capacitive RF MEMS comprising a metallic membrane suspended above an RF transmission line and resting on ground planes, and exhibiting a lower face, an upper face opposite to the lower face and a first layer comprising a refractory metallic material at least partially covering the upper face of the membrane so as to prevent the heating of the membrane.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 8, 2020
    Assignee: THALES
    Inventors: Afshin Ziaei, Matthieu Le Baillif, Paolo Martins, Shailendra Bansropun
  • Patent number: 10770058
    Abstract: Matching layers configured for use with ultrasound transducers are disclosed herein. In one embodiment, a transducer stack can include a capacitive micromachined ultrasound transducer (CMUT), an acoustic lens, and a matching layer therebetween. The matching layer can be made from a compliant material (e.g. an elastomer and/or an liquid) and configured for use with CMUTs. The matching layer can include a bottom surface overlying a top surface of the transducer and a top surface underlying a bottom surface of the lens.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 8, 2020
    Assignee: FUJIFILM SONOSITE, INC.
    Inventors: Wei Li, Paul Dunham, Chak-Yoon Aw, N. Chris Chaggares
  • Patent number: 10770643
    Abstract: A MEMS actuator device of a piezoelectric type formed on a substrate, with a base unit including a base beam element having a main extension in a extension plane and a thickness in a thickness direction perpendicular to the extension plane, smaller than the main extension. A piezoelectric region extends over the beam element. An anchor region is rigid to the base beam element and to the substrate. A base constraint structure is connected to one end of the base beam element and is configured to allow a deformation of the base beam element in the extension plane and substantially reduce a deformation of the base beam element in the thickness direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 29, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 8, 2020
    Assignee: STMICROELECTRONICS S.R.L.
    Inventors: Domenico Giusti, Anna Alessandri
  • Patent number: 10770645
    Abstract: An oriented piezoelectric film, wherein a crystal forming the oriented piezoelectric film, is a perovskite type crystal of the general formula of Ba1-xCaxTi1-yZryO3 (0?x?0.2, and 0?y?0.2), and the oriented piezoelectric film has (111) orientation according to a pseudocubic crystal notation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 8, 2020
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yoshihiro Ohashi, Yoshinori Kotani, Motokazu Kobayashi
  • Patent number: 10763821
    Abstract: A crystal resonator vibrates in a thickness-shear mode. The crystal resonator includes excitation electrodes being disposed on a front surface and a back surface of a crystal element. The excitation electrodes are disposed on the crystal element to have a positional relationship, where a displacement distribution at an edge of the excitation electrode on the front surface is identical to a displacement distribution at an edge of the excitation electrode on the back surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 21, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: NIHON DEMPA KOGYO CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Shigetaka Kaga, Yoshiro Teshima, Kazuhiro Hirota
  • Patent number: 10763818
    Abstract: An acoustic wave device includes: a piezoelectric substrate; a comb-shaped electrode located on the piezoelectric substrate; a wiring layer located on the piezoelectric substrate and electrically connected with the comb-shaped electrode; a first insulating film located on the piezoelectric substrate, the first insulating film covering the comb-shaped electrode, having an aperture on the wiring layer, and being thicker than the comb-shaped electrode; a second insulating film covering an upper surface of the first insulating film and at least a part of a side surface of the first insulating film in the aperture and having a higher moisture resistance than the first insulating film; and a pad being in contact with the wiring layer exposed by the aperture.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 1, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: TAIYO YUDEN CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Takeshi Sakashita, Jun Tsutsumi
  • Patent number: 10763762
    Abstract: A vibrator includes a piezoelectric element including a piezoelectric ceramic having an electrode, a vibration plate, and an adhesive layer between the piezoelectric element and the vibration plate, wherein the adhesive layer is obtained by a resin containing 50 parts by mass or more and 80 parts by mass or less of organic particles having a number average particle size of 5 ?m or more and 15 ?m or less, relative to 100 parts by mass of the resin.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 12, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Yasuhiro Tanaka
  • Patent number: 10763819
    Abstract: In an embodiments, an electronic device 1 has a panel 20 of roughly rectangular shape, a housing 10 that holds the panel 20, and a piezoelectric element 30 installed on the rear face side of the panel 20, wherein the panel 20 is bonded to the housing 10 with its edges supported on the housing 10, and it also has at least one side 21 not bonded to the housing 10 (non-bonded side). The electronic device is capable of causing an entire panel to vibrate in a stable manner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 5, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: TAIYO YUDEN CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Keiichi Kobayashi, Yukihiro Matsui, Fumihisa Ito, Shigeo Ishii
  • Patent number: 10751755
    Abstract: An apparatus comprises an ultrasonic transducer having a first and second electrode and switches which configured to selectively connect the first and second electrodes to a transmit voltage source or to a receive amplifier. The switches are configured to selectively connect a first input of the amplifier to the first electrode of the transducer and to selectively connect a second input of the amplifier to the second electrode of the transducer. The switches are also configured to selectively connect the voltage source to the first and second electrodes of the transducer. The transducer may include a piezoelectric layer attached to and sandwiched between the first electrode and the second electrode, and a flexible membrane attached to the first electrode. The piezoelectric layer may be patterned to form an annular ring at the outer diameter of the flexible membrane.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 22, 2017
    Date of Patent: August 25, 2020
    Assignee: Chirp Microsystems, Inc.
    Inventors: David A. Horsley, Andre Guedes, Meng-Hsiung Kiang, Richard Przybyla, Stefon Shelton
  • Patent number: 10756253
    Abstract: A high temperature piezoelectric sensor device such as a high temperature accelerometer, force sensor, pressure sensor, temperature sensor, acoustic sensor and/or acoustic transducer for use at temperatures up to 1000° C. The high temperature device includes a base, a piezoelectric element attached to the base and a pair of electrodes in electrical communication with the piezoelectric element. The piezoelectric element can have a d15 piezoelectric coefficient between 16.0-18.0 pC/N for all temperatures between 25 to 700° C., and a rotated d33 piezoelectric coefficient of 8.0-9.5 pC/N with zero face shear/thickness shear piezoelectric coefficients d34. d35 and d36 in the same temperature range. The piezoelectric element can also have an electromechanical coupling factor k15 variation of less than 7%, and d15 and rotated d33 piezoelectric coefficient variations of less than 5% for temperatures between 25 to 700° C.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 2017
    Date of Patent: August 25, 2020
    Assignee: The Penn State Research Foundation
    Inventors: Shujun Zhang, Thomas R. Shrout, Chuanying Shen