Comb sense microphone
First Claim
1. A miniature microphone, comprising:
- a) a diaphragm comprising a thin, rigid substrate having a pair of opposing surfaces and a perimeter;
b) a resilient attachment attached to said diaphragm;
c) a plurality of fingers rigidly attached to said diaphragm and projecting outward from said perimeter;
d) a structure surrounding said diaphragm and having a plurality of fixed fingers disposed in a spaced apart, interdigitated relationship with said plurality of fingers of said diaphragm;
e) a sensor adapted to produce an output signal responsive to a relative movement of said diaphragm and said structure.
3 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
There is provided a rigid hinged substrate, which forms a diaphragm for miniature microphones. A series of fingers disposed radially around the perimeter of the diaphragm interacts with mating fingers disposed adjacent the diaphragm with a small gap in between. The fingers are interdigitated. The movement of the diaphragm fingers relative to the fixed fingers varies the capacitance, thereby allowing creation of an electrical signal responsive to varying sound pressure at the diaphragm. Because the fingers may be formed with great stiffness, the classic problem in typical capacitive microphones of attraction of the diaphragm to the back plate is effectively overcome. The multiple fingers allow the creation of a microphone having a high output voltage relative to conventional microphones. This yields a very low noise microphone. The diaphragm may be readily formed using well known silicon microfabrication techniques so as to reduce manufacturing costs.
43 Citations
18 Claims
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1. A miniature microphone, comprising:
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a) a diaphragm comprising a thin, rigid substrate having a pair of opposing surfaces and a perimeter; b) a resilient attachment attached to said diaphragm; c) a plurality of fingers rigidly attached to said diaphragm and projecting outward from said perimeter; d) a structure surrounding said diaphragm and having a plurality of fixed fingers disposed in a spaced apart, interdigitated relationship with said plurality of fingers of said diaphragm; e) a sensor adapted to produce an output signal responsive to a relative movement of said diaphragm and said structure.
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2. A diaphragm for use in a miniature microphone, comprising:
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a) a thin, rigid, substrate having a perimeter; and b) a first plurality of fingers rigidly attached to said substrate and projecting outwardly from said perimeter, said first plurality of fingers being adapted for interaction with a corresponding second plurality of fixed fingers disposed external to said substrate and proximate said first plurality of fingers. - View Dependent Claims (3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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Specification