Piezoelectric loudspeaker and a method for manufacturing the same

• US 5,684,884 A
• Filed: 05/30/1995
• Issued: 11/04/1997
• Est. Priority Date: 05/31/1994
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd., Hitachi Metals (Thailand) Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi Metals (Thailand) Ltd.
• Inventors: Jomura, Shigeru, Nakaya, Chitose, Endo, Juro
• Primary Examiner(s): Kuntz, Curtis
• Assistant Examiner(s): Barnie, Rexford N.
• Application Number:
  US08/456,101
• Time in Patent Office: 889 Days
• Field of Search: 310/111, 310/158, 310/190, 310/317, 310/321, 310/322, 310/358, 310/800, 310/324, 381/173, 381/190, 381/191
• US Class Current: 381/190
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 17/00 Piezoelectric transducers; Electrostrictive transducers piezoelectric or electrostrictive elements in general H10N30/00; details of piezoelectric or electrostrictive motors, generators or positioners H10N30/00

Abstract

Disclosed is a piezoelectric loudspeaker.

According to the present invention, a piezoelectric loudspeaker comprises: a flat compound piezoelectric sheet in which multiple piezoelectric devices are arranged in an organic material; electrodes which are provided on respective surfaces of the compound piezoelectric sheet; an acoustic impedance matching support layer for maintaining the flat compound piezoelectric sheet in a curved shape and for matching an acoustic impedance; and a support frame for supporting the compound piezoelectric sheet at its circumference. Thus, sound reproduction with a desirable frequency properties that have little distortion can be performed.

Claims

1. A piezoelectric loudspeaker comprising:

a compound piezoelectric sheet normally having a flat shape wherein multiple piezoelectric devices are arranged in an organic material;

an electrode provided on each face of said compound piezoelectric sheet;

an acoustic impedance matching support layer, extended to cover said electrodes, for maintaining said compound piezoelectric sheet in a curved shape and for matching an acoustic impedance, the acoustic impedance matching support layer being in direct contact with a face of the piezoelectric sheet; and

a support frame for supporting said compound piezoelectric sheet around a circumference thereof.

2. A piezoelectric loudspeaker according to claim 1, wherein a protective film for protecting one of said electrodes is provided on a side opposite to that on which said acoustic impedance matching support layer is formed, the protective film being in direct contact with the face of the piezoelectric sheet.

3. A piezoelectric loudspeaker according to claim 2, wherein the thickness of said acoustic impedance matching support layer differs from the thickness of said protective film.

4. A piezoelectric loudspeaker according to claim 3, wherein the thickness of said protective layer is one half or less than the thickness of said acoustic impedance matching layer.

5. A piezoelectric loudspeaker according to claim 1, wherein when said organic material of said compound piezoelectric sheet is a polyurethane resin, the thickness of said acoustic impedance matching support layer is between 0.5 mm and 5.0 mm.

6. A piezoelectric loudspeaker according to claim 1, wherein when said organic material of said compound piezoelectric sheet is an epoxy resin, the thickness of said acoustic impedance matching support layer is between 0.1 mm and 5.0 mm.

7. A piezoelectric loudspeaker according to claim 1, wherein a volume ratio of said piezoelectric sheet is between 30% and 80%.

8. A piezoelectric loudspeaker according to claim 1, wherein a hardness of said organic material of said compound piezoelectric sheet is between A60 and A95 according to Japanese Industrial Standards.

9. A piezoelectric loudspeaker according to claim 1, wherein an adhesive for bonding together said compound piezoelectric sheet and said support frame has a hardness, after the adhesive is hardened, of between A70 and A94 according to Japanese Industrial Standards.

10. A piezoelectric loudspeaker comprising:

a compound piezoelectric sheet normally having a flat shape wherein multiple piezoelectric devices are arranged in an organic material;

an electrode provided on each face of said compound piezoelectric sheet;

an acoustic impedance matching support layer, extended to cover said electrodes, for maintaining said compound piezoelectric sheet in a curved shape and for matching an acoustic impedance;

a protective film for protecting one of said electrodes, said film being provided on a side of said piezoelectric sheet opposite to that on which said acoustic impedance matching support layer is formed, wherein the sum of the thicknesses of said acoustic impedance matching support layer and of said protective film is within the range of from 0.1 mm to 5.0 mm; and

a support frame for supporting said compound piezoelectric sheet around a circumference thereof.

11. A piezoelectric loudspeaker comprising:

a compound piezoelectric sheet normally having a flat shape wherein multiple piezoelectric devices are arranged in an organic material;

an electrode provided on each face of said compound piezoelectric sheet;

an acoustic impedance matching support layer, extended to cover said electrodes, for maintaining said compound piezoelectric sheet in a curved shape and for matching an acoustic impedance, wherein said acoustic impedance matching support layer is formed of a comparatively soft polyurethane resin, and said organic material of said compound piezoelectric sheet is made of a comparatively hard epoxy resin; and

a support frame for supporting said compound piezoelectric sheet around a circumference thereof.

12. A piezoelectric loudspeaker according to claim 11, wherein said comparatively soft resin has a hardness within a range of A60 to A95 according to Japanese Industrial Standards.

13. A piezoelectric loudspeaker comprising:

a compound piezoelectric sheet normally having a flat shape wherein multiple piezoelectric devices are arranged in an organic material;

an electrode provided on each face of said compound piezoelectric sheet;

an acoustic impedance matching support layer, extended to cover said electrodes, for maintaining said compound piezoelectric sheet in a curved shape and for matching an acoustic impedance, wherein said acoustic impedance matching support layer is formed of a comparatively soft resin, and said organic material of said compound piezoelectric sheet is made of a comparatively hard resin; and

a support frame for supporting said compound piezoelectric sheet around a circumference thereof.

14. A piezoelectric loudspeaker comprising:

a compound piezoelectric sheet normally having a flat shape wherein multiple piezoelectric devices are arranged in an organic material, wherein a thickness of said piezoelectric devices is equal to or less than 1.0 mm;

an electrode provided on each face of said compound piezoelectric sheet;

an acoustic impedance matching support layer, extended to cover said electrodes, for maintaining said compound piezoelectric sheet in a curved shape and for matching an acoustic impedance; and

a support frame for supporting said compound piezoelectric sheet around a circumference thereof.

15. A piezoelectric loudspeaker comprising:

a compound piezoelectric sheet normally having a flat shape wherein multiple piezoelectric devices are arranged in an organic material, wherein a ratio W/t of a width W of said piezoelectric devices to a thickness t is 20 or less;

an electrode provided on each face of said compound piezoelectric sheet;

an acoustic impedance matching support layer, extended to cover said electrodes, for maintaining said compound piezoelectric sheet in a curved shape and for matching an acoustic impedance; and

a support frame for supporting said compound piezoelectric sheet around a circumference thereof.

16. A piezoelectric loudspeaker comprising:

a compound piezoelectric sheet having a flat shape wherein multiple piezoelectric devices are arranged in an organic material;

electrodes, each of which is provided on each face of said compound piezoelectric sheet;

an acoustic impedance matching support layer, extended to cover said electrodes, for maintaining said compound piezoelectric sheet in a curved shape and for matching an acoustic impedance; and

a support frame for supporting said compound piezoelectric sheet at a circumference,

wherein a curvature radius of said curved shape is equal to or less than 30 times of a string length of an opening of said compound piezoelectric sheet.

17. A piezoelectric loudspeaker according to claim 16, wherein a cross section that is taken across the center of said opening of said compound piezoelectric sheet in said curved shape is an almost arched shape.

18. A piezoelectric loudspeaker according to claim 16, wherein a cross section that is taken across the center of said opening of said compound piezoelectric sheet in said curved shape is an almost oblong shape.

19. A piezoelectric loudspeaker according to claim 16, wherein said compound piezoelectric sheet in said curved shape has a curve that constitutes a part of a cylinder with almost a circle in cross section or almost an oblong in cross section.

20. A piezoelectric loudspeaker according to claim 16, wherein a ratio R/L of a string length L of said opening and a curvature radius R of said curved shape is within a range of from 0.5 to 5.0.

21. A method, for manufacturing a piezoelectric loudspeaker, which comprises a compound piezoelectric sheet having a flat shape wherein multiple piezoelectric devices are arranged in an organic material;

electrodes, each of which is provided on each face of said compound piezoelectric sheet;

an acoustic impedance matching support layer, extended to cover said electrodes, for maintaining said compound piezoelectric sheet in a curved shape and for matching an acoustic impedance; and

a support frame for supporting said compound piezoelectric sheet at a circumference, said piezoelectric sheet being manufactured by the steps of;

forming grooves halfway in the direction of thickness in a ceramic green sheet before sintering;

sintering said ceramic green sheet to provide a sintered sheet;

forming multiple piezoelectric devices by dividing said sintered sheet along said grooves; and

filling said grooves with said organic material, while said piezoelectric devices are separated from each other, and hardening said organic material.

22. A method, for manufacturing a piezoelectric loudspeaker, according to claim 21, further comprising the step of grinding an extra portion of said organic material on the surface after said organic material is hardened.

23. A method, for manufacturing a piezoelectric loudspeaker, which comprises a compound piezoelectric sheet having a flat shape wherein multiple piezoelectric devices are arranged in an organic material;

electrodes, each of which is provided on each face of said compound piezoelectric sheet;

an acoustic impedance matching support layer, extended to cover said electrodes, for maintaining said compound piezoelectric sheet in a curved shape and for matching an acoustic impedance; and

a support frame for supporting said compound piezoelectric sheet at a circumference, said piezoelectric sheet being manufactured by the steps of;

shaping, before sintering, comparatively soft ceramic material that consists of ceramic powder and an organic binder to employ the formation of said piezoelectric devices;

forming said piezoelectric devices by annealing said ceramics materials after shaped;

arranging said piezoelectric devices in a predetermined pattern by using a piezoelectric device arrangement plate that has multiple arrangement holes;

filling gaps between said piezoelectric devices with said organic material and hardening said organic material.

24. A method, for manufacturing a piezoelectric loudspeaker, according to claim 23, further comprising a step for grinding an extra portion of said organic material on the surface after said organic material is hardened.

25. A method for manufacturing a piezoelectric loudspeaker, which comprises a compound piezoelectric sheet having a flat shape wherein multiple piezoelectric devices are arranged in an organic material;

electrodes, each of which is provided on each face of said compound piezoelectric sheet;

an acoustic impedance matching support layer, extended to cover said electrodes, for maintaining said compound piezoelectric sheet in a curved shape and for matching an acoustic impedance; and

a support frame for supporting said compound piezoelectric sheet at a circumference, said piezoelectric sheet being manufactured by the steps of;

annealing, before sintering, a comparatively soft ceramic material, having a thin sheet shape, that consists of ceramic powder and an organic binder;

dividing said ceramics material having said thin sheet shape that is annealed by a press machine, of which press faces have predetermined raised and depressed portions, and forming said multiple piezoelectric devices; and

introducing said organic material into gaps between said multiple piezoelectric devices, which are slightly separated from each other, and hardening said organic material.

26. A method, for manufacturing a piezoelectric loudspeaker, according to claim 25, further comprising the step of grinding an extra portion of said organic material on the surface after said organic material is hardened.

27. A piezoelectric loudspeaker comprising:

a compound piezoelectric sheet having a flat shape wherein multiple piezoelectric devices are arranged in an organic material, said sheet having a first face and a second face;

electrodes, each of which is provided on each face of said compound piezoelectric sheet;

an acoustic impedance matching support layer located on one of said first or second faces, extended to cover said electrodes, for maintaining said compound piezoelectric sheet in a curved shape and for matching an acoustic impedance;

a protective film for protecting one of said electrodes, said film provided on the other of said first or second faces opposite to that on which said acoustic impedance matching support layer is formed; and

a support frame for supporting said compound piezoelectric sheet around a circumference.