Abstract: A haptic actuator may include a housing having a top and a bottom. At least one of the top and the bottom may have a shape defining an internal recess therein. The haptic actuator may include a coil carried within the internal recess, and a field member having opposing first and second sides and that includes at least one permanent magnet adjacent the coil. The haptic actuator may also include a respective flexure bearing mounting each of the first and second sides of the field member to be reciprocally movable within the housing responsive to the coil.

Abstract: A haptic actuator may include a housing, at least one coil carried by the housing, and a field member having opposing first and second sides. The haptic actuator may also include a respective at least one flexure bearing mounting each of the first and second sides of the field member to be reciprocally movable within the housing responsive to the at least one coil. Each flexure bearing may include at least one flexible member having a wishbone shape with two diverging arms joined together at proximal ends and having spaced distal ends operatively coupled between adjacent portions of the field member and the housing.

Abstract: In an embodiment, a tile device includes a plurality of piezoelectric transducers elements and a base adjoining and supporting the plurality of piezoelectric transducers elements. The base includes integrated circuitry programmed to successively configure operational modes of the tile, according to a pre-programmed sequence, to successively select respective subsets of the piezoelectric transducers elements for activation. The integrated circuitry includes pulser logic to selectively activate such subsets, and demultiplexer logic to communicate from the tile sense signals resulting from such activation. In another embodiment, the demultiplexer logic is part of a first voltage domain of the tile, and the pulser logic is part of a second voltage domain of the tile. The base may include circuitry to protect the demultiplexer logic from a relatively high voltage level of the second voltage domain.

Abstract: An electronic device may include a haptic actuator that may include a housing and a field member movable within the housing, and a driver capable of driving the haptic actuator and sensing at least one of a drive voltage and drive current for the haptic actuator. The electronic device may also include a closed-loop controller cooperating with the driver. The closed-loop controller may be capable of determining a calibration of the haptic actuator based upon at least one of the drive voltage and drive current, storing a reference pattern of movement for the field member, and driving the haptic actuator in a closed-loop configuration based upon the calibration of the haptic actuator and reference pattern of movement of the field member.

Abstract: A haptic actuator may include a housing having a top and a bottom, and first and second permanent magnets carried by the top and bottom, respectively, of the housing. The haptic actuator may also include a field member carried by the housing. The field member may include a coil between the first and second permanent magnets, first and second ends, and a first mass between the first end and the coil, and a second mass between the second end and the coil. A first shaft may slidably couple the first mass to the housing, and a second shaft may slidably couple the second mass to the housing. The haptic actuator may also include a first set of biasing members between the first end of the field member and the housing and a second set of biasing members between the second end of the field member and the housing.

Abstract: An integrated circuit (IC) chip including an array of asymmetrically distributed magnetic field sensing elements. Additionally, an integrated circuit (IC) chip includes a substrate, a sensing coil supported by the substrate and enclosing a portion of substrate, and a Hall effect sensor supported by the portion of the substrate enclosed by the sensing coil.

Abstract: An electronic device may include a haptic actuator. The haptic actuator may include a haptic actuator housing, at least coil carried by the haptic actuator housing, and a Halbach array of permanent magnets movable within the haptic actuator housing responsive to the at least one coil. The electronic device may also include a controller coupled to the at least one coil.

Abstract: An electronic device may include a device housing, a touch display carried by the device housing and configured to sense a user input at a location thereon, and haptic actuators spaced apart within the device housing. The electronic device may also include a controller coupled to the touch display and the haptic actuators. The controller may be configured to cooperate with the touch display to determine a sensed location of the user input on the touch display, and drive the haptic actuators to focus a haptic sensation at the sensed location on the touch display.

Abstract: An electronic device may include a linear haptic actuator that may include a housing, coils carried by the housing, and a field member linearly movable within the housing and that may include at least one permanent magnet cooperating with the coils. The electronic device may also include a controller configured to drive the coils in a multi-phase arrangement so that at least one coil is driven while at least one other coil is used to sense a position of the field member.

Abstract: A haptic actuator may include a housing, at least one coil carried by the housing, a field member movable within the housing responsive to the at least one coil, and at least one mechanical limit stop between the housing and the field member. The haptic actuator may also include circuitry capable of generating a pulse width modulated (PWM) waveform for the at least one coil to move the field member from an initial at-rest position and without contacting the at least one mechanical limit stop.

Abstract: An electronic device may include a haptic actuator that includes an actuator housing, coils carried within the actuator housing, and a field member movable within the actuator housing responsive to the coils. The haptic actuator may also include spaced apart Hall Effect sensors carried within the actuator housing between the coils and for sensing a temperature of the field member. The electronic device may also include a controller coupled to the haptic actuator and configured to determine a temperature of the field member based upon the spaced apart Hall Effect sensors and drive the haptic actuator based upon the temperature.

Abstract: In an embodiment, a probe device includes a portion having a curved surface and a plurality of tiles variously coupled to the curved surface. The tiles each include a plurality of piezoelectric transducer elements and a base adjoining and supporting the plurality of piezoelectric transducer elements. The probe device further comprises curved lens portions each coupled to a respective one of the plurality of tiles, wherein for each of the tiles, the plurality of piezoelectric transducer elements of the tile are to propagate a wave toward the respective curved lens portion. In another embodiment, the probe device further comprises a sheath material surrounding the curved lens portions.

Abstract: Micromachined ultrasonic transducer (MUT) arrays capable of multiple resonant modes and techniques for operating them are described, for example to achieve both high frequency and low frequency operation in a same device. In embodiments, various sizes of piezoelectric membranes are fabricated for tuning resonance frequency across the membranes. The variously sized piezoelectric membranes are gradually transitioned across a length of the substrate to mitigate destructive interference between membranes oscillating in different modes and frequencies.

Abstract: A haptic actuator may include a housing, at least one permanent magnet carried by the housing, a field member movable within the housing and comprising at least one coil cooperating with the at least one permanent magnet, and at least one mechanical limit stop between the housing and the field member. The haptic actuator may also include circuitry capable of generating a pulse width modulated (PWM) waveform for the at least one coil to move the field member from an initial at-rest position and without contacting the at least one mechanical limit stop.

Abstract: Micromachined ultrasonic transducer (MUT) arrays capable of multiple resonant modes and techniques for operating them are described, for example to achieve both high frequency and low frequency operation in a same device. In embodiments, various sizes of piezoelectric membranes are fabricated for tuning resonance frequency across the membranes. The variously sized piezoelectric membranes are gradually transitioned across a length of the substrate to mitigate destructive interference between membranes oscillating in different modes and frequencies.

Abstract: A haptic actuator may include a housing, at least one coil carried by the housing, and a field member movable within the housing responsive to the at least one coil. The housing, at least one coil, and field member may define a resonant frequency. The haptic actuator may also include drive circuitry coupled to the at least one coil and being capable of generating first and second drive waveforms having respective different frequencies spaced about the resonant frequency to drive the field member at a beat frequency lower than the resonant frequency.

Abstract: Piezoelectric micromachined ultrasonic transducer (pMUT) arrays and techniques for frequency shaping in pMUT arrays are described, for example to achieve both high frequency and low frequency operation in a same device. The ability to operate at both high and low frequencies may be tuned during use of the device to adaptively adjust for optimal resolution at a particular penetration depth of interest. In embodiments, various sizes of piezoelectric membranes are fabricated for tuning resonance frequency across the membranes. The variously sized piezoelectric membranes are lumped together by two or more separate electrode rails, enabling independent addressing between the two or more subgroups of sized transducer elements. Signal processing of the drive and/or response signals generated and/or received from each of the two or more electrode rails may achieve a variety of operative modes for the device, such as a near field mode, a far field mode, and an ultra wide bandwidth mode.

Abstract: A haptic actuator may include a housing having a top and a bottom, and first and second coils carried by the top and bottom, respectively, of the housing. The haptic actuator may also include a field member carried by the housing. The field member may include a permanent magnet between the first and second coils, first and second ends, and a first mass between the first end and the permanent magnet, and a second mass between the second end and the permanent magnet. A first shaft may slidably couple the first mass to the housing, and a second shaft may slidably couple the second mass to the housing. The haptic actuator may also include a first set of biasing members between the first end of the field member and the housing and a second set of biasing members between the second end of the field member and the housing.

Abstract: An electronic device may include a haptic actuator that includes an actuator housing, coils carried within the actuator housing, and a field member movable within the actuator housing responsive to the coils. The haptic actuator may also include spaced apart Hall Effect sensors carried within the actuator housing between the coils and for sensing a temperature of the field member. The electronic device may also include a controller coupled to the haptic actuator and configured to determine a temperature of the field member based upon the spaced apart Hall Effect sensors and drive the haptic actuator based upon the temperature.

Abstract: An electronic device may include a haptic actuator that may include a housing and a field member movable within the housing, and a driver capable of driving the haptic actuator and sensing at least one of a drive voltage and drive current for the haptic actuator. The electronic device may also include a closed-loop controller cooperating with the driver. The closed-loop controller may be capable of determining a calibration of the haptic actuator based upon at least one of the drive voltage and drive current, storing a reference pattern of movement for the field member, and driving the haptic actuator in a closed-loop configuration based upon the calibration of the haptic actuator and reference pattern of movement of the field member.