Electroacoustic transducer

• US 6,231,529 B1
• Filed: 06/26/1998
• Issued: 05/15/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 08/01/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Richard Wolf GmbH (Richard & Annemarie Wolf- Stiftung)
• Original Assignee: Richard Wolf GmbH (Richard & Annemarie Wolf- Stiftung)
• Inventors: Krauss, Werner, Bauer, Edgar
• Primary Examiner(s): Lateef, Marvin M.
• Assistant Examiner(s): SHAW, SHAWNA JEANNINE
• Application Number:
  US09/105,785
• Time in Patent Office: 1,054 Days
• Field of Search: 601/2-4, 600/437, 600/439, 600/459, 606/2-5, 310/369, 367/151, 367/153, 367/155, 367/157
• US Class Current: 601/4
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/22004 using mechanical vibrations, e.g. ultrasonic shock waves A61B17/225 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/22028 arrays, e.g. phased arrays
• CPC Class Codes: B06B 1/0637 Spherical array
• CPC Class Codes: B06B 2201/76 Medical, dental
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/004 Mounting transducers, e.g. provided with mechanical moving or orienting device mountings specially adapted to a particular sound-producing device, see the preceding groups G10K1/00 - G10K9/00, e.g. G10K1/26, G10K1/28, G10K9/22; arrangements of sonic watch equipment on submarines B63G8/39; buoys B63B22/00

Abstract

The electroacoustic transucer comprises a dome-shaped carrier on whose inner side are mounted piezoelctric elements and which furthermore is also provided with piezoelectric elements on its outer side. The piezoelectric elements on the inner and on the outer side are switched in separate groups and can be triggered such that the sound waves produced by them can be synchronized, by which means the power intensity in the focus can be increased.

Claims

1. An electroacoustic transducer comprising a dome-shaped carrier and a plurality of piezoelectric elements mounted on an inner side and an outer side of the carrier.

2. The electroacoustic transducer according to claim 1, wherein the carrier is comprised of a metal and the piezoelectric elements are connected to the carrier in a conducting manner.

3. The electroacoustic transducer according to claim 1, wherein the piezoelectric elements have essentially a cylindrical shape and bear with one end face on the carrier.

4. The electroacoustic transducer according to claim 1, wherein the piezoelectric elements on the inner side and the outer side of the carrier are arranged essentially randomly according to the principle of highest packing density.

5. The electroacoustic transducer according to claim 1, wherein the carrier is grounded.

6. The electroacoustic transducer according to claim 1, wherein the piezoelectric elements are arranged at a lateral distance to one another and the intermediate spaces between the piezoelectric elements are filled out with a high-voltage-stable insulating casting mass.

7. The electroacoustic transducer according to claim 1, wherein the piezoelectric elements provided on the outer side of the carrier are provided with a reflection body on the outer side of the carrier.

8. The electroacoustic transducer according to claim 7, wherein the reflection body is formed by a common metal body which by way of a casting mass is acoustically coupled to the piezoelectric elements on the outer side of the carrier.

9. The electroacoustic transducer according to claim 7, wherein the reflection body is formed by a casting mass which covers the piezoelectric elements on the outer side of the carrier.

10. The electroacoustic transducer according to claim 1, wherein the piezoelectric elements on the outer side of the carrier and the piezoelectric elements on the inner side of the carrier can be electrically triggered separately.

11. The electroacoustic transducer according to claim 1, further comprising a first generator and a second generator which may be triggered separately from one another, for producing high voltage impulses, wherein the first generator is allocated to the piezoelectric elements on the inner side of the carrier and the second generator is allocated to the piezoelectric elements on the outer side of the carrier.

12. The electroacoustic transducer according to claim 11, wherein the first and second generator can be triggered for the directed superposition of the sound waves produced by the piezoelectric elements on the outer side of the carrier and the piezoelectric elements on the inner side of the carrier.