Abstract: The force of a piezoelectric element is efficiently transferred to an optical fiber without attenuation, so that the vibration of the optical fiber becomes large. Provided is an optical fiber scanner including an optical fiber which has an elongated cylindrical shape in which illumination light emitted from a light source is guided and can emerge from a distal end thereof and whose distal end can be vibrated in a direction intersecting the longitudinal direction thereof; and at least one piezoelectric element which have a plate shape polarized in a thickness direction thereof and which are separately bonded to an outer circumferential surface of the optical fiber closer to a base side than to a distal end thereof.

Abstract: An endoscope has an insertion portion inserted through a living body, an illumination fiber arranged at a distal end of the insertion portion and irradiates the living body with illumination light, a detection fiber which detects return light from the living body, an actuator which swings a free end of the illumination fiber, and a ferrule which has a through-hole based on a diameter of the illumination fiber and is arranged between the illumination fiber and the actuator. The actuator has an actuator arranged at a first side face of the ferrule and an actuator arranged at a second side face of the ferrule that is different from a face point-symmetric to the first side face with respect to an axial direction of the illumination fiber.

Abstract: A piezoelectric actuator includes a prismatic piezoelectric element body having side surfaces, and external surface electrodes provided on at least three of the side surfaces of the piezoelectric element body.

Abstract: The force of a piezoelectric element is efficiently transferred to an optical fiber without attenuation, so that the vibration of the optical fiber becomes large. Provided is an optical fiber scanner including an optical fiber which has an elongated cylindrical shape in which illumination light emitted from a light source is guided and can emerge from a distal end thereof and whose distal end can be vibrated in a direction intersecting the longitudinal direction thereof; and at least one piezoelectric element which have a plate shape polarized in a thickness direction thereof and which are separately bonded to an outer circumferential surface of the optical fiber closer to a base side than to a distal end thereof.

Abstract: An endoscope has an insertion portion inserted through a living body, an illumination fiber arranged at a distal end of the insertion portion and irradiates the living body with illumination light, a detection fiber which detects return light from the living body, an actuator which swings a free end of the illumination fiber, and a ferrule which has a through-hole based on a diameter of the illumination fiber and is arranged between the illumination fiber and the actuator. The actuator has an actuator arranged at a first side face of the ferrule and an actuator arranged at a second side face of the ferrule that is different from a face point-symmetric to the first side face with respect to an axial direction of the illumination fiber.

Abstract: Substantially uniform rigidity is ensured in all radial directions while achieving a size reduction. An ultrasonic surgical apparatus is provided, including a polygonal columnar elastic body that is formed of an elastic body and that has a substantially regular polygonal cross-section; plate-like piezoelectric elements that are secured to mutually opposing side surfaces of the polygonal columnar elastic body and that are polarized in a plate-thickness direction; a rod-like contactor that is secured to an end of the polygonal columnar elastic body and that has a smaller diameter than the polygonal-columnar elastic body; and a drive-pulse generating circuit that causes the rod-like contactor to ultrasonically vibrate by generating a vertical vibration which expands/contracts the polygonal columnar elastic body in the longitudinal direction by applying an AC voltage to the piezoelectric elements in the plate-thickness direction.

Abstract: Provided is an ultrasonic vibration device with which it is possible to efficiently remove fat by generating vibrations not only in the direction parallel to a probe but also in the direction orthogonal to the probe. Provided is an ultrasonic vibration device including a polygonal columnar elastic body formed of an elastic body; a piezoelectric element that is secured to a side surface of the polygonal columnar elastic body and that is polarized in a plate-thickness direction thereof; a rod-like contactor that is secured to an end portion of the polygonal columnar elastic body and that has a smaller diameter than the polygonal columnar elastic body; and a drive-pulse generating circuit that generates a bending vibration in the polygonal columnar elastic body by applying an AC voltage in the plate-thickness direction of the piezoelectric element, thus generating an ultrasonic vibration in the rod-like contactor.

Abstract: A scanning endoscope includes an optical fiber that illuminates a living body, a holding member that holds the optical fiber, in which the optical fiber is provided so as to extend from a distal end face by a predetermined length, and a concave portion that communicates with the insertion hole is formed on the distal end face, a drive portion that is provided in the holding member, and causes a free end of the optical fiber that extends from the distal end face of the holding member to scan, and an adhesive portion that is coated on or filled in the concave portion to firmly fix the optical fiber and the holding member to each other, and has a plane which is flush with the distal end face of the holding member formed thereon.

Abstract: A piezoelectric actuator includes a prismatic piezoelectric element body having side surfaces, and external surface electrodes provided on at least three of the side surfaces of the piezoelectric element body.

Abstract: In an ultrasonic motor, an elliptical vibration is generated by combining a longitudinal primary resonance vibration resulting from an expansion and a contraction of a vibrator in a direction of a central axis and a torsional secondary resonance vibration or a torsional tertiary resonance vibration resulting from twisting around the central axis. A dimension ratio of a rectangle of the vibrator is chosen such that a resonance frequency of the longitudinal primary resonance vibration and a resonance frequency of the torsional secondary resonance vibration or the torsional tertiary resonance vibration match. The vibrator includes a plurality of regions in a surface orthogonal to the central axis, and deformations of the regions adjacent to each other along the direction of the central axis are mutually different. The vibrator expands and contracts in a direction orthogonal to a polarization direction thereof.

Abstract: In an ultrasonic motor, an elliptical vibration is generated by combining a longitudinal primary resonance vibration resulting from an expansion and a contraction of a vibrator in a direction of a central axis and a torsional secondary resonance vibration or a torsional tertiary resonance vibration resulting from twisting around the central axis. A dimension ratio of a rectangle of the vibrator is chosen such that a resonance frequency of the longitudinal primary resonance vibration and a resonance frequency of the torsional secondary resonance vibration or the torsional tertiary resonance vibration match. The vibrator includes a plurality of regions in a surface orthogonal to the central axis, and deformations of the regions adjacent to each other along the direction of the central axis are mutually different. The vibrator expands and contracts in a direction orthogonal to a polarization direction thereof.

Abstract: An ultrasonic motor, which drives a driven member using an elliptical vibration produced by synthesizing a longitudinal vibrational mode and a flexural vibrational mode as a drive force, is configured as follows. Namely, the ultrasonic motor includes a piezoelectric device, and a feed member feeding the piezoelectric device. An extensional axis of the feed member is set to an axis different from main vibrational axes of the longitudinal vibrational mode and the flexural vibrational mode.

Abstract: When a piezoelectric ceramic sheet is divided into two equal parts in a longitudinal direction and two equal parts in a width direction to form four regions, internal electrodes are disposed over each region and are disposed so that surface areas occupied in each region are substantially the same, and a longitudinal vibration is detected based on a potential difference between the internal electrodes.

Abstract: An ultrasonic motor, which drives a driven member using an elliptical vibration produced by synthesizing a longitudinal vibrational mode and a flexural vibrational mode as a drive force, is configured as follows. Namely, the ultrasonic motor includes a piezoelectric device, and a feed member feeding the piezoelectric device. An extensional axis of the feed member is set to an axis different from main vibrational axes of the longitudinal vibrational mode and the flexural vibrational mode.

Abstract: An ultrasonic motor according to an aspect of the invention includes at least a piezoelectric element that is an oscillator whose section perpendicular to a central axis has a rectangular length ratio, and a rotor that is rotated about the central axis as a rotation axis while being in contact with an elliptic oscillation generating surface of the oscillator. The central axis is orthogonal to the elliptic oscillation generating surface of the oscillator. The elliptic oscillation is formed by combining first longitudinal resonance oscillation in which expansion and contraction are performed in a rotation axis direction of the piezoelectric element and second twisting resonance oscillation in which the rotation axis is a twisting axis.

Abstract: An ultrasonic motor, which rotates a rotor by elastic movement generated by simultaneously exciting vertical oscillation and twisted oscillation in an ultrasonic oscillator, by using expanding and contracting oscillations of a multilayer piezoelectric element formed by laminating two kinds of piezoelectric sheet, is configured as follows. Namely, the multilayer piezoelectric element is formed by alternately laminating a first piezoelectric sheet and a second piezoelectric sheet. The first piezoelectric sheet is provided with a first internal electrode, which is divided into two or more parts, and each divided part is exposed to a peripheral edge of the piezoelectric sheet. The second piezoelectric sheet is provided with an internal electrode, which has a polarity reverse to the first internal electrode, and is divided into two or more parts, and each divided part is exposed to a peripheral edge of the piezoelectric sheet.

Abstract: With the invention, both a longitudinal vibration mode and a flexural vibration mode are independently detected, or only the longitudinal vibration mode is detected, without using a special device. The invention provides an ultrasonic motor including electromechanical transducers for driving, electromechanical transducers for vibration detection, and an ultrasonic vibrator in which, by supplying two-phase alternating voltages with a predetermined phase difference and predetermined driving frequency to the electromechanical transducers for driving, two different vibration modes are simultaneously generated to produce a substantially elliptical vibration at an output. It is possible to independently detect both the longitudinal vibration mode and the flexural vibration mode with the electromechanical transducers for vibration detection.

Abstract: An ultrasonic motor that is capable of stable driving by preventing uneven rotation of a driven body and maintaining the drive efficiency is provided. The ultrasonic motor includes a plurality of ultrasonic transducers including alternately stacked first piezoelectric elements and second piezoelectric elements, and a control unit for applying the same two-phase driving AC voltages to the plurality of ultrasonic transducers. The ultrasonic motor simultaneously generates longitudinal vibration and flexural vibration at the ultrasonic transducers to generate substantially elliptic vibration at output ends of the ultrasonic transducers and relatively moves the ultrasonic transducers and a driven body in contact with the ultrasonic transducers.

Abstract: The invention provides an ultrasonic motor including internal electrodes provided in an ultrasonic vibrator and disposed in regions where electrical charges of the same sign are generated in one vibration mode and where electrical charges of opposite sign and substantially the same amount are generated in another vibration mode; and a control unit configured to detect a phase difference between a vibration detection signal detected on the basis of electrical signals from the internal electrodes and any one of driving AC voltages, and to set a driving frequency such that the phase difference becomes a reference phase difference. Each driving AC voltage with the driving frequency set by the control unit is applied to the ultrasonic vibrator.

Abstract: An ultrasonic motor that is capable of stable driving by preventing uneven rotation of a driven body and maintaining the drive efficiency is provided. The ultrasonic motor includes a plurality of ultrasonic transducers including alternately stacked first piezoelectric elements and second piezoelectric elements, and a control unit for applying the same two-phase driving AC voltages to the plurality of ultrasonic transducers. The ultrasonic motor simultaneously generates longitudinal vibration and flexural vibration at the ultrasonic transducers to generate substantially elliptic vibration at output ends of the ultrasonic transducers and relatively moves the ultrasonic transducers and a driven body in contact with the ultrasonic transducers.