| Entries |
| Document | Title | Date |
|---|
| 20080284285 | VIBRATION ACTUATOR, LENS BARREL, CAMERA, MANUFACTURING METHOD FOR VIBRATION BODY AND MANUFACTURING METHOD FOR VIBRATION ACTUATOR - To provide a vibration actuator, a lens barrel, a camera, a manufacturing method for a vibration body and a manufacturing method for a vibration actuator, which have a high driving efficiency and can lead to easy manufacture. A vibration actuator of the present invention is provided with an elastic body and an electromechanical transducer element sintered onto the elastic body in the state that the element is divided into a plurality of areas by a groove-shaped border portion. | 11-20-2008 |
| 20080297002 | FRICTION DRIVE ACTUATOR AND HARD DISK DEVICE USING SUCH ACTUATOR - In a friction drive actuator | 12-04-2008 |
| 20090001852 | Piezoelectric actuator, piezoelectric actuator device, lens barrel, optical device and manufacturing method thereof - A piezoelectric actuator comprises a first piezoelectric element pre-polarized towards a first direction and displaceable towards an about orthogonal direction with respect to said first direction, a second piezoelectric element pre-polarized towards a direction about parallel to the first direction and displaceable towards a direction about parallel to said first direction, a relative moving member clamped by displacement of said first piezoelectric element and relatively moves by displacement of said second piezoelectric element. | 01-01-2009 |
| 20090009034 | Driving apparatus - To realize a driving apparatus where vibrational movement of a piezoelectric element is ensured; sufficient impact resistance is provided; and damages to the piezoelectric element is prevented, a driving apparatus of the present invention has: a flex movement member | 01-08-2009 |
| 20090021114 | Piezoelectric Element and Ultrasonic Actuator - Internal electrode layers ( | 01-22-2009 |
| 20090026884 | Utrasonic actuator - An ultrasonic actuator includes: a piezoelectric element | 01-29-2009 |
| 20090039736 | ULTRASONIC ACTUATOR AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING PIEZOELECTRIC DEFORMATION PORTION USED IN THE SAME - Provided are an ultrasonic actuator and a method for manufacturing an piezoelectric deformation portion in which wiring a drive circuit can be easily processed, and in which productivity can be increased. The ultrasonic actuator comprises: a triangular vibrating member which has a piezoelectric deformation portion which is deformed by driving signals; a moving member that is pressure-contacted to at least one of the vertices of the vibrating member and generates a movement relative to the vibrating member; and a plurality of external electrodes integrally provided on one side surface of the vibrating member; wherein the piezoelectric deformation portion is formed by alternately laminating piezoelectric layers made of piezoelectric material and internal electrode layers including internal electrodes, and the plurality of external electrodes interconnect the internal electrodes in a prescribed combination. | 02-12-2009 |
| 20090051249 | Ultrasonic Motor - Provided is an ultrasonic motor capable of realizing high torque. When two terminals are selected from a first terminal ( | 02-26-2009 |
| 20090058227 | PIEZOELECTRIC MOTOR AND CAMERA DEVICE - A piezoelectric motor includes: a base; first and second piezoelectric elements that are provided symmetrically on the base to face with each other, the first and second piezoelectric elements actuating in opposite directions; first and second displacement enlarging mechanisms that respectively enlarge actuating displacements of the first and second piezoelectric elements through first and second levers that rotate around first and second fulcrums fixed to the base; first and second leaf springs that are respectively coupled to action points of the first and second levers at one ends thereof; and an actuating portion that is coupled to the other ends of the first and second leaf springs and swings in accordance with actuation of the first and the second piezoelectric elements, the actuating portion being urged against a driven member to actuate the driven member with a frictional force. | 03-05-2009 |
| 20090072665 | ULTRASONIC ACTUATOR - An ultrasonic actuator includes: a piezoelectric element 10 for generating various kinds of vibrations having different vibration directions; a driver element provided on the piezoelectric element 10 and actuated in accordance with the vibration of the piezoelectric element 10 to output driving force toward a certain driving direction; feeding electrodes 8 provided on the piezoelectric element 10 and electrically connected to the piezoelectric element 10; and feeding-supporting parts 6A, 6B, 7A, 7B and 9A abutting the feeding electrodes to elastically support the actuator body and serving as feeding terminals for supplying a voltage to the feeding electrodes 8. | 03-19-2009 |
| 20090072666 | Ultrasonic Actuator - It is an object to provide a small ultrasonic actuator whose voltage control is easy. The ultrasonic actuator acts on a rotatable rotor to rotate the rotor, the ultrasonic actuator includes: a plate vibrator having one end which contacts the rotor, a corner portion bent at a midpoint in the vibrator, and the other end which is fixed; and a piezoelectric device which contacts a part of the vibrator between the one end and the corner portion, and transmits a vibration to the vibrator by vibrating in response to application of an alternating voltage between one of electrodes provided respectively on both surfaces or the plate vibrator serving as the one of the electrodes and the other of the electrodes. | 03-19-2009 |
| 20090091213 | ULTRASONIC ACTUATOR - An ultrasonic actuator includes: a piezoelectric element | 04-09-2009 |
| 20090134745 | Vibration Actuator, Lens Barrel, Camera System and Vibrating Element - A vibration actuator by which stable drive can be obtained, a lens barrel, a camera system and a vibrating element are provided. In first vibration mode and second vibration mode, vibrating elements of the vibration actuator can vibrate. Resonance frequency of the second vibration mode, which is different from the first vibration mode used for driving a relatively moving member, is prevented from being same as the frequency of the higher harmonic of a driving signal. | 05-28-2009 |
| 20090140608 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR - A ultrasonic motor includes a piezoelectric device, and friction contact members moves a driven body by a elliptical vibration. And the ultrasonic motor includes a holder member which is disposed corresponding to a node of a longitudinal vibration or in the vicinity thereof on the face of the piezoelectric device and a node of a flexural vibration or in the vicinity thereof, the holder member having an engagement convex portion and being provided with a pair of sliding contact projection portions, a position limiting member which has accommodation holes each constituted of a sliding contact concave portion for accommodating the sliding contact projection portion such that it makes a sliding contact therewith freely and an engagement concave portion for accommodating the engagement convex portion, and a pressure member which presses the holder member so as to bring the friction contact members into pressure contact with the driven body. | 06-04-2009 |
| 20090152988 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR - An ultrasonic motor produces elliptical vibration by inducing longitudinal vibration and flexural vibration at the same time and drives a driven body by obtaining a drive power from the elliptical vibration. The ultrasonic motor includes a piezoelectric device, friction contact members which are provided on the piezoelectric device so as to transmit the driving force to the driven body, a holding member which is provided on the piezoelectric device and to be positioned and held by a case, a pressure member which presses the holding member so as to bring the friction contact members of the piezoelectric device into a pressure contact with the driven body such that the driven body is capable of being driven by friction, and a first reinforcing member which is fixed to the outer face corresponding to nodes of the longitudinal vibration of the piezoelectric device. | 06-18-2009 |
| 20090167111 | VIBRATION-TYPE ACTUATOR - A vibration-type actuator having a vibrating body adapted to be deformed for driving and mounted with a contact member having a spring function. The contact member is comprised of a protruding portion adapted to be in contact with a driven body and fixing portions fixed to the vibrating body, and is provided with converting portion disposed between the projecting portion and the fixing portions. The converting portions each have an inclined surface obliquely extending relative to a contact surface provided in the protruding portion for contact with the driven body and extending to a side opposite from the contact surface. The converting portions convert a change in relative distance between the fixing portions caused by deformation of the vibrating body into a displacement of the contact surface. | 07-02-2009 |
| 20090167112 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR - An ultrasonic motor produces elliptical vibration by inducing longitudinal vibration and flexural vibration at the same time and drives a driven body by obtaining a drive power from the elliptical vibration. The ultrasonic motor includes a piezoelectric device, reinforcing members which are provided at the antinodes of the flexural vibration on the top side of the piezoelectric device, friction contact members which are provided at the antinodes of the flexural vibration on the bottom side of the piezoelectric device so as to transmit the driving force to the driven body, a holding member which is provided on the piezoelectric device and positioned and held by a case, and a pressure member which presses the holding member so that the friction contact members are brought into a pressure contact with the driven body such that the driven body can be driven by friction. | 07-02-2009 |
| 20090230818 | DRIVE UNIT - A drive unit ( | 09-17-2009 |
| 20090243435 | ELECTROMECHANICAL MOTOR - The invention relates to an electromechanical motor having a stator that has a drive unit and a frame component in which the drive unit is held, and a sliding element that is constructed such that, actuated by the drive unit, it performs a movement with respect to the stator in a direction of translation, wherein the drive unit has at least one electromechanical drive element that extends in the direction of translation and a power transmission element that is constructed so as to transmit a movement of the drive element to the sliding element. The sliding element has a supporting component and a drive rail, the drive rail extending in the direction of translation and interacting with the power transmission element and the drive rail being held at both its end faces in the supporting component, and between the supporting component and the frame component of the stator, there is a bearing for supporting the sliding element in the frame component. | 10-01-2009 |
| 20090251026 | Piezo Electric Linear Motor - The present invention relates to a piezoelectric linear motor that can make relatively low abrasion and accurate linear movement since stationary AC voltages are applied to two piezoelectric elements with a phase difference. The present invention provides a piezoelectric linear motor, comprising: a piezoelectric substrate having a first piezoelectric element and a second piezoelectric element, wherein AC voltages are applied to the first and second piezoelectric elements with a phase difference; a metallic elastic body having first and second elastic bodies coupled to the piezoelectric elements and a central protrusion protruded at the central portion connecting the first and second elastic bodies, wherein the central protrusion oscillates elliptically during an application of the voltage; and a mover brought into contact with the central protrusion of the metallic elastic body for a linear movement, and wherein the movement of the mover is orthogonal to the central protrusion. | 10-08-2009 |
| 20090256445 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR AND ULTRASONIC VIBRATOR - An ultrasonic motor includes a driven object, a piezoelectric element for driving the driven object, a vibration plate including a notch having an inner peripheral surface of an arc-shaped form having a central angle larger than 180 degrees and being vibrated by the piezoelectric element, and a contact portion made of a material different from that of the vibration plate, having a portion overlapping the piezoelectric element in a plan view and being smaller in thickness than the piezoelectric element, attached to the notch of the vibration plate by press fitting or forced fitting and being in contact with the driven object. Thereby, the ultrasonic motor can have a high shock resistance and a high wear resistance, and can be driven with high efficiency. | 10-15-2009 |
| 20090256446 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR - 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. | 10-15-2009 |
| 20090267455 | Vibration Actuator - Provided is a vibration actuator in which a plurality of rotors can be driven by a single vibration unit. | 10-29-2009 |
| 20090267456 | LINEAR DRIVE ULTRASONIC MOTOR - A linear drive ultrasonic motor includes at least an ultrasonic vibrator having a piezoelectric element, a driven member which is driven by a frictional force between the driven member and the ultrasonic vibrator, a pressing member which presses the ultrasonic vibrator such that a frictional force is generated between the ultrasonic vibrator and the driven member, a case member which accommodates the ultrasonic vibrator, the pressing member, and the driven member, and a coupling member which is coupled with the driven member at an interior of the case member. The case member includes an opening portion for allowing a part of the coupling member to pass through. | 10-29-2009 |
| 20100019621 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR AND ULTRASONIC MOTOR APPARATUS RETAINING THE SAME - 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. | 01-28-2010 |
| 20100033057 | ULTRASONIC LINEAR MOTOR - An ultrasonic linear motor includes a substrate; a vibrator disposed on the substrate having an oblique or curved face at two sides thereof forming concave receiving portions with the surfaces of the substrate; and a slider having clamping portions at two sides thereof for correspondingly clamping to the receiving portions, wherein the vibrator is for generating a driving force to the slider while connecting with a power supply, such that the clamping portions of the slider move within the receiving portions, thereby generating a linear translation. The present invention adopts a simple structure having few elements that enables easy manufacturing and integration with other elements, thus reducing manufacturing cost. | 02-11-2010 |
| 20100038996 | Semi-resonant driving systems and methods thereof - A driving system in accordance with embodiments of the present invention includes a structure and a vibration system. The structure has at least one point to frictional couple to and drive a movable element in one of at least two directions. The structure also has at least two bending modes which each have a different resonant frequency. The vibration system applies two or more vibration signals which are at a vibration frequency to each of the bending modes of the structure. The vibration frequency is substantially the same as one of the resonant frequencies. At the vibration frequency one of the bending modes of the structure is vibrating substantially at resonance and the other of the bending modes of the structure is vibrating at partial resonance. The vibration system adjusts a phase shift between the two or more applied vibration signals to control which one of the at least two directions the moveable element is moved. | 02-18-2010 |
| 20100060107 | VIBRATION WAVE DRIVING DEVICE - A vibration wave driving device comprises a vibrator having an electromechanical conversion device, a supporting member for supporting the vibrator, and a driven member brought into contact with a part of the vibrator driven frictionally by vibration excited in the vibrator: the supporting member comprising a vibration portion vibrating together with the vibrator, a fixation portion for fixing the supporting member, and a support portion for connecting the vibration portion with the fixation portion and supporting the vibrator; and the support portion being comprised of a laminate of sheets. | 03-11-2010 |
| 20100072858 | VIBRATOR FOR ULTRASONIC MOTOR - In the invention, each piezoelectric element for a vibrator for an ultrasonic motor has electrode regions for exciting stretching vibration and flexural vibration separately. Thus, the invention provides a vibrator for an ultrasonic motor, in which electrodes are provided for applying voltage to each of the polarized region, and further provides a stack-type piezoelectric vibrator for an ultrasonic motor, consisting of a stack of the said vibrators and having an extraction electrode pattern provided for short circuit with an external electrode. The vibrator of the invention has high controllability, especially in a fine movement region and is useful as a driving source in a positioning device, in which enhanced vibration efficiency can be obtained. | 03-25-2010 |
| 20100096948 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR - 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. | 04-22-2010 |
| 20100109477 | PRESTRESS-ADJUSTABLE PIEZOELECTRIC GRIPPING DEVICE - A prestress-adjustable piezoelectric gripping device is provided, in which a prestressing device adjusts a prestressing force applied to a piezoelectric element of a piezoelectric unit on the basis of a feedback signal from a force-sensing unit, so as to adjust the friction between the piezoelectric unit and a gripping unit. By utilizing the deformation of the piezoelectric element to drive the gripping unit many times, the gripping velocity and gripping force of the gripping unit can be controlled, and the prestress-adjustable piezoelectric gripping device of the invention can achieve a long driving displacement while maintaining high precision. | 05-06-2010 |
| 20100133956 | ULTRASONIC ACTUATOR - An ultrasonic actuator ( | 06-03-2010 |
| 20100141091 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR - An ultrasonic motor in which longitudinal vibration and flexural vibration are induced at the same time to generate elliptical vibration and driving force is obtained from the elliptical vibration to drive a driven body relatively. The ultrasonic motor includes a piezoelectric device, friction contact members which are disposed on the piezoelectric device to transmit the driving force to the driven body, a holding member which is disposed on the piezoelectric device and positioned and held within a case, a pressure member which is formed integrally with the holding member to press the friction contact members to the driven body via the piezoelectric device so that the driven body is capable of being driven under friction, and a pressure adjusting mechanism which adjusts the pressure of the pressure member to be applied to the piezoelectric device. | 06-10-2010 |
| 20100156240 | PIEZOELECTRIC MOTOR - A piezoelectric motor includes a piezoresonator body ( | 06-24-2010 |
| 20100176687 | VIBRATORY ACTUATOR AND DRIVE UNIT INCLUDING THE SAME - Damage of a piezoelectric element due to deformation of a piezoelectric element beyond an elastic limit is prevented. | 07-15-2010 |
| 20100181870 | VIBRATORY ACTUATOR AND DRIVE UNIT INCLUDING THE SAME - The drive efficiency of a vibratory actuator is improved without increasing a weight of a driver element. | 07-22-2010 |
| 20100213792 | MULTILAYERED PIEZOELECTRIC ELEMENT AND ULTRASONIC MOTOR - A multilayered piezoelectric element in which first internal electrodes include first exposed portions formed at the end portion of a first piezoelectric material. And the second internal electrodes include second exposed portions formed at the end portion of a second piezoelectric material. | 08-26-2010 |
| 20110006640 | PIEZOELECTRIC DRIVE DEVICE - The invention relates to a piezoelectric drive device for adjusting movable parts ( | 01-13-2011 |
| 20110025169 | PIEZOELECTRIC DRIVE UNIT - Disclosed are a piezoelectric drive unit ( | 02-03-2011 |
| 20110043076 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR - An ultrasonic motor includes a vibrator, a mobile unit, a holding mechanism, and a pressing mechanism. The vibrator generates elliptical vibration by degenerating different vibration modes and having a phase difference between the different vibration modes. The mobile unit is configured to be movable relative to the vibrator. The holding mechanism holds and fixes the vibrator in a direction substantially parallel to the direction of the relative movement of the mobile unit. The pressing mechanism presses the vibrator against the mobile unit. The holding mechanism includes an adjustment unit for adjusting the resonant frequencies of the different vibration modes of the vibrator to substantially match each other when the ultrasonic motor is driven. | 02-24-2011 |
| 20110057544 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR - Elliptical vibrations are generated by combining longitudinal primary resonance vibrations resulting from expansion and contraction of a vibrator in a direction of a central axis and torsional secondary resonance vibrations or torsional tertiary resonance vibrations resulting from twisting of the vibrator around the central axis. A dimension ratio of a rectangle of the vibrator is set such that a resonance frequency of the longitudinal primary resonance vibrations and a resonance frequency of the torsional secondary resonance vibrations or the torsional tertiary resonance vibrations almost match. The vibrator includes a plurality of piezoelectric sheets. The longitudinal primary resonance vibrations and the torsional secondary resonance vibrations or the torsional tertiary resonance vibrations are generated because of formation of activation regions by polarization in a thickness direction of the piezoelectric sheets. | 03-10-2011 |
| 20110062823 | VIBRATION WAVE DRIVING DEVICE - A vibration wave driving device comprises a vibrator having an electromechanical conversion device, a supporting member for supporting the vibrator, and a driven member brought into contact with a part of the vibrator driven frictionally by vibration excited in the vibrator: the supporting member comprising a vibration portion vibrating together with the vibrator, a fixation portion for fixing the supporting member, and a support portion for connecting the vibration portion with the fixation portion and supporting the vibrator; and the support portion being comprised of a laminate of sheets. | 03-17-2011 |
| 20110095650 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR - An ultrasonic motor is configured as follows. Namely, the ultrasonic motor includes a vibrator, a rotor, a press mechanism, a frame, and a regulating unit. The vibrator's section perpendicular to a central axis has a rectangular shape, in which a ratio of a short side to a long side that form the rectangular shape is set to a predetermined value. And the vibrator generates an elliptic vibration by simultaneously exciting a longitudinal vibration stretching along the central axis, and a torsional vibration. The rotor mechanism abuts against an elliptic vibration generating surface of the vibrator and is driven by the elliptic vibration to rotate using the central axis as an axis of rotation. The press mechanism presses the vibrator against the rotor mechanism. The frame supports the rotor mechanism and the vibrator. The regulating unit regulates rotation of the vibrator by clamping the vibrator together with the frame. | 04-28-2011 |
| 20110163633 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR - An ultrasonic motor for driving a driven object with a multi-degree of freedom includes a vibrator configured to simultaneously excite two vibration modes to generate an elliptic vibration on an output surface thereof, a driven object configured to be driven by the elliptic vibration generated on the output surface, and a driving element interposed between the output surface and the driven object. The driven object includes a spherical portion to be brought into contact with at least the output surface via the driving element. The elliptic vibration exhibits different vibration amplitudes at different positions on the output surface. The output surface includes a plurality of regions which exhibit greater vibration amplitudes than other regions on the output surface. The driving element includes a contact portion with at least two regions exhibiting greater vibration amplitudes than other regions of the contact portion, and is provided on the output surface. | 07-07-2011 |
| 20110175491 | PIEZOELECTRIC ACTUATOR - A piezoelectric actuator has a piezoelectric element adapted to simultaneously generate first and second vibration modes in response to a voltage applied thereto. The piezoelectric element has one outer surface including a first region and a second region projecting from the first region, while the second region comes into contact with a body to be driven, so as to cause a frictional force with the body to be driven. Without restricting the size of the piezoelectric element, the piezoelectric actuator inhibits its driving state from fluctuating. | 07-21-2011 |
| 20110187228 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR - An ultrasonic motor is configured as follows. Namely, the ultrasonic motor includes an oscillator which is configured to has a shape that conforms a resonant frequency of longitudinal oscillation exited in the oscillator to a resonant frequency of torsional oscillation, a driven body that comes into contact with an elliptic oscillation generation surface of the oscillator and is driven by the elliptic oscillation, and a pressing mechanism unit that welds the elliptic oscillation generation surface of the oscillator to the driven body by pressing, wherein the oscillator has a first polarization unit that is formed in a region associated with a node portion of the longitudinal oscillation and configured to excite the longitudinal oscillation in the oscillator, and a second polarization unit that is formed in a region associated with a ventral portion of the torsional oscillation and configured to excite the torsional oscillation in the oscillator. | 08-04-2011 |
| 20110187229 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR - An ultrasonic motor is configured as follows. Namely, the ultrasonic motor includes an oscillator whose cross section vertical to a central axis has a rectangular shape which has a predetermined length ratio of a narrow side and a wide side, wherein the oscillator comprises driving electrodes and oscillation detecting electrodes near a node portion of the longitudinal oscillation and near ventral portions of the torsional oscillation, an external electrode achieving electrical conduction with the driving electrodes and an external electrode associated with one polarity of an external electrode achieving the electrical conduction with the oscillation detecting electrodes are formed on a first surface of outer surfaces of the oscillator, and an external electrode associated with the other polarity of the external electrode achieving the electrical conduction with the oscillation detection electrodes is formed on a second surface different from the first surface of the outer surfaces of the oscillator. | 08-04-2011 |
| 20110187230 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR - 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 of a rotation 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 along a polarization direction thereof. | 08-04-2011 |
| 20110187231 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR - 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. | 08-04-2011 |
| 20110204748 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR - An elliptical vibration is generated by combining a longitudinal primary resonance vibration of the vibrator resulting from an expansion and a contraction of the vibrator in a direction of the central axis and a torsional resonance vibration resulting from twisting of the vibrator around the central axis as a torsional axis. The dimension ratio of the rectangle of the vibrator is chosen such that a resonance frequency of the longitudinal primary resonance vibration resulting from the expansion and the contraction of the vibrator in the direction of the central axis and a resonance frequency of the torsional resonance vibrations resulting from twisting of the vibrator around the central axis as the torsional axis match. The ultrasonic motor further includes a vibration detecting electrode layer. | 08-25-2011 |
| 20110227454 | VIBRATOR IN VIBRATION TYPE DRIVING APPARATUS AND MANUFACTURING METHOD THEREOF - A vibrator which constitutes a vibrating device of a vibration-type driving apparatus which comprises the vibrating device bonded to an electromechanical-energy-conversion element and comprising the vibrator having a projection portion, in which the vibrating device is constituted so that elliptic motion can arise at the projection portion by applying an alternating electric field to the electromechanical-energy-conversion element, and which moves by the elliptic motion a driven object being in contact with the projection portion in a direction intersecting with a width direction, wherein the vibrator comprises a base and the one/plural projection portions, the projection portion has at least two wall portions extending in a base out-of-plane direction and a contact portion having a contact surface with the driven object, and the contact surface connects the wall portions, and in boundary portions between the base and the wall portions, displacement directions are at a same position in a normal direction. | 09-22-2011 |
| 20110234050 | VIBRATION TYPE DRIVING APPARATUS - A vibration type driving apparatus is provided, in which a plurality of vibration members include rotation units that are formed so as to be rotatable around respective rotation axes that are parallel to respective directions of forces generated by elliptical movements; in which any vibration member that is positioned in a range where an angle between a direction of movement of a moving member and the corresponding rotation axis is greater than a predetermined angle is tilted by the rotation unit, and vibration mode for push-up moving is generated at the any vibration member; and in which the elliptical movement of any vibration member that is positioned in a range where the angle is less than the predetermined angle causes the moving member to move. | 09-29-2011 |
| 20110241488 | VIBRATION TYPE ACTUATOR, VIBRATOR, AND VIBRATOR MANUFACTURING METHOD - A vibration type actuator providing a satisfactory actuator performance even when an increase in speed is achieved and having a contact spring. The actuator includes a vibrator equipped with an electrical-mechanical energy conversion element, an elastic member to which the electrical-mechanical energy conversion element is fixed, and a protrusion provided on the elastic member. The vibrator can generate an elliptic movement in the protrusion. A driven body is configured to come into contact with the protrusion and to make a relative movement with respect to the vibrator. The protrusion includes a contact portion having a contact surface contacting the driven body, a continuous side wall portion protruding with respect to one end surface of the elastic member and forming a hollow structure, and a connection portion connecting the contact portion and the side wall portion and exhibiting flexibility in a direction normal to the contact surface. | 10-06-2011 |
| 20110278987 | VIBRATION WAVE ACTUATOR - Provided is a vibration wave actuator including: a vibrator including at least an electro-mechanical energy conversion element and an elastic body to which the electro-mechanical energy conversion element is joined, the elastic body including a contact portion formed therein, the vibrator being configured to provide elliptic motion to the contact portion; and a driven element that is in pressure contact with the contact portion of the vibrator, the driven element being moved by the elliptic motion, wherein the vibration wave actuator includes a vibrator holding portion that holds the vibrator via a first elastic member having a stiffness lower than that of the vibrator; and wherein a magnet is arranged on the vibrator holding portion, the driven element includes a magnetic substance, and the contact portion of the vibrator and the driven element are brought into pressure contact with each other by an attraction force of the magnet. | 11-17-2011 |
| 20110304242 | VIBRATION-TYPE DRIVING DEVICE - A vibration-type driving device according to the present invention includes a plurality of vibrators in which contact portions perform an elliptical motion using a combination of vibrations in different vibration modes; and a driven object having contact regions that come into contact with the contact portions and move relative to the plurality of vibrators, wherein the contact regions for the individual vibrators differ in position so as not to overlap. | 12-15-2011 |
| 20110309722 | VIBRATION-TYPE DRIVING APPARATUS - A vibration-type driving apparatus including: a vibrator holder wherein a plurality of vibrators each having at least an electro-mechanical energy conversion element and a elastic member having a contact portion formed therein are connected to a vibrator holding member, for generating an ellipsoidal movement of the contact portion, to move, relative to the vibrator, a driving member contacting the contact portion, wherein the plurality of vibrators are connected to a surface of the holding member at a side at which the contact portion contacts the driving member, and on a surface of the vibrator holding member opposite to the side at which the contact portion contacts the driving member, a pressing member is placed to set the contact portion to be pressed and contacted to the driving member. | 12-22-2011 |
| 20120019104 | TRANSDUCER AND ULTRASONIC MOTOR - According to one embodiment, a transducer includes, a first transducer member, a second transducer member, and a coupling member. The first transducer member including a piezoelectric element in which longitudinal vibration and bending vibration are excited by application of a predetermined alternating signal. The second transducer member which is placed to make a predetermined angle with the first transducer member and in which longitudinal vibration and bending vibration are excited by application of a predetermined alternating signal. The coupling member configured to hold one end of the first transducer member and one end of the second transducer member. | 01-26-2012 |
| 20120032558 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR - 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 of the vibrator about 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, resulting from the expansion and the contraction of the vibrator in the direction of the central axis, and a resonance frequency of the torsional secondary resonance vibration or the torsional tertiary resonance vibration, resulting from twisting of the vibrator about rotation axis, substantially match. The vibrator includes, stacked in a short side direction of the cross-section, at least one torsional piezoelectric body that generates the torsional secondary resonance vibration or the torsional tertiary resonance vibration, and a piezoelectric body for longitudinal vibration that generates at least the longitudinal primary resonance vibration. | 02-09-2012 |
| 20120038246 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR - An ultrasonic motor includes a transducer configured to be assembled as one unit by a piezoelectric device, a holding member, and a friction contact member, a hollow rotor configured to contact the friction contact member, the rotor rotating around a shaft in a direction perpendicular to a plane direction of a elliptical vibration generating surface when a driving force is transmitted to the rotor from the friction contact member, a driving force transmitting member configured to be adhesively fixed to the rotor and which rotates together with the rotor, a case member configured to have a positioning groove to position the transducer and configured to house the transducer, and a press member configured to press the transducer housed in the case member toward the rotor. The holding member comes into line contact or point contact with the positioning groove when the case member houses the transducer. | 02-16-2012 |
| 20120038247 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR - An ultrasonic motor includes a transducer configured to be assembled as one unit by a piezoelectric device, a holding member, and a friction contact member, a hollow rotor configured to contact the friction contact member, a first driving force transmitting member, a press member and a support mechanism. The support mechanism includes a second driving force transmitting member, a transmission shaft bearing having an inner ring in which the second driving force transmitting member is fitted, and a bearing support member configured to be disposed in the upper surface of the case member, the bearing support member supporting the transmission shaft bearing so that the second driving force transmitting member is drivable together with the first driving force transmitting member and so that the transmission shaft bearing is drivable. | 02-16-2012 |
| 20120146461 | Electromechanical Motor Especially a Piezoelectric Microstepper Motor - A microstepper motor which comprises two electromechanical drive elements, especially piezoelectric bending actuators, having effective directions that are perpendicular to each other, These actuators act upon a drive ring to thereby rotate a shaft. The actuators are non-radially hinged to the drive ring via an approximately square shear-flexible and torsion-proof frame structure, the drive ring being arranged inside said frame. The drive according to the invention is compact, the frame and the drive ring being configured as a single injection-molded drive module. | 06-14-2012 |
| 20120169181 | Piezoelectric Actuator - Disclosed herein is a piezoelectric actuator. According to the present invention, the manufacturing cost of the piezoelectric actuator can be reduced by simplifying the patterns of electrodes constituting the piezoelectric actuator, the piezoelectric actuator itself or an electronic product employing the piezoelectric actuator can be made smaller by using only planar simple translational movement of the piezoelectric actuator, and the piezoelectric actuator capable of independently performing linear translational movement in two directions on the plane can be provided. | 07-05-2012 |
| 20120212104 | VIBRATORY ACTUATOR AND DRIVE DEVICE USING THE SAME - An ultrasonic actuator ( | 08-23-2012 |
| 20120248934 | VIBRATION WAVE DRIVING APPARATUS - Provided is a vibration wave driving apparatus which can restrain increases in the number of components and in necessary space and which can maintain a stable contact state of frictional surfaces of a vibrator and a driven body. | 10-04-2012 |
| 20120274181 | VIBRATION WAVE DRIVING APPARATUS - A vibration wave driving apparatus capable of matching the vibration direction of a projecting portion of a vibrator to the displacement direction of a contacting portion of a driven body so that the projecting portion of the vibrator and the contacting portion of the driven body can be brought into contact and driven with stability is provided. | 11-01-2012 |
| 20130113339 | VIBRATION TYPE DRIVING DEVICE - A vibration type driving device includes a vibrator configured to make an elliptic motion of a contact portion by combining vibrations in different vibration modes, and a driven body configured to be rotated relative to the vibrator by the elliptic motion while being in contact with the contact portion. A contact pressure of the contact portion with the driven body is lower on a radial inner side than on a radial outer side in a radial direction of the rotation. | 05-09-2013 |
| 20130140951 | PIEZOELECTRIC MOTOR, DRIVE UNIT, ROBOT HAND, ROBOT, ELECTRONIC COMPONENT TRANSPORTING APPARATUS, ELECTRONIC COMPONENT INSPECTING APPARATUS, AND PRINTER - A piezoelectric motor includes a piezoelectric element, a first support member, a second support member, a third support member, and a fourth support member that support the piezoelectric element, a elastic portion that presses the first support member and the second support member, a case that comes in contact with the third support member and the fourth support member, and a pressing plate that presses the elastic portion. | 06-06-2013 |
| 20130162104 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR - An ultrasonic motor ( | 06-27-2013 |
| 20130193803 | ULTRASONIC MOTOR AND LENS DRIVING APPARATUS - An ultrasonic motor includes a vibrator configured to generate an elliptical vibration, a driven member configured to be driven by the vibrator, wherein the driven member is driven according to the elliptical vibration of the vibrator, a holding unit configured to hold the vibrator, and a pressure unit configured to press the vibrator against the driven member, wherein the holding unit includes a first holding member configured to hold the vibrator, and a second holding member configured to press the vibrator against the driven member, and wherein the first holding member and the second holding member are relatively movable in a direction perpendicular to a contact surface of the driven member with the vibrator. | 08-01-2013 |
| 20130278113 | OSCILLATORY WAVE MOTOR - An oscillatory wave motor includes an oscillator having an oscillation body and an electro-mechanical energy-converting element, and a flexible heat-conducting member configured to dissipate heat generated by the oscillatory wave motor. The oscillatory wave motor drives a moving body in contact with a contact portion formed in the oscillation body by an elliptical movement of the oscillator, and the heat-conducting member is provided in addition to a heat-conducting path that conducts heat generated by the oscillatory wave motor through an oscillator supporting member that supports the oscillator or a heat-conducting path that conducts heat through the moving body. | 10-24-2013 |
| 20130342076 | VIBRATORY DRIVE APPARATUS - A highly-durable vibratory drive apparatus is provided without the need for additional assembly processes. The vibratory drive apparatus includes: a vibrator including a first elastic member, a second elastic member and an electro-mechanical energy conversion element, the electro-mechanical energy conversion element being between the first elastic member and the second elastic member; a moving member configured to contact the vibrator and be moved relative to the vibrator; and a lubricant provided between the first elastic member and the electro-mechanical energy conversion element. | 12-26-2013 |
| 20140001923 | COMPOSITE POLARIZATION TYPE PIEZOELECTRIC ACTUATOR | 01-02-2014 |
| 20140125200 | VIBRATION WAVE ACTUATOR - A vibration wave actuator includes a vibrator, a driven element, and a magnet. The vibrator has at least an electro-mechanical energy conversion element and an elastic body to which the electro-mechanical energy conversion element is joined, the elastic body including a contact portion. The driven element is in pressure contact with the contact portion of the vibrator, and includes a magnetic substance. The magnet is arranged such that the vibrator is placed between the driven element and the magnet. | 05-08-2014 |
| 20140152149 | VIBRATION-TYPE DRIVING DEVICE - A vibration-type driving device according to the present invention includes a plurality of vibrators in which contact portions perform an elliptical motion using a combination of vibrations in different vibration modes; and a driven object having contact regions that come into contact with the contact portions and move relative to the plurality of vibrators, wherein the contact regions for the individual vibrators differ in position so as not to overlap. | 06-05-2014 |
| 20140152150 | PIEZOELECTRIC MOTOR, LIQUID EJECTING APPARATUS AND TIMEPIECE - A piezoelectric motor includes: a piezoelectric actuator; and a driven portion. The piezoelectric actuator includes a piezoelectric element and a vibration member. The piezoelectric element has a piezoelectric layer and a first and a second electrode provided on both surfaces of the piezoelectric layer, respectively, and the vibration member is fixed on the first electrode side of the piezoelectric element. The driven portion which is rotated by the protrusion portion of the vibration member vibrated by the piezoelectric element, while the driven portion being abutted thereon. In the piezoelectric motor, a plurality of grooves which are open at a tip end surface of the protrusion portion and penetrate in a thickness direction are provided on a plurality of points of the protrusion portion along a rotation direction of a rotation shaft of the driven portion. | 06-05-2014 |
| 20140319965 | ACTUATOR - An actuator includes the first and the second extendable driver portions. The first extendable driver portion includes an electrolyte layer laminated with electrode layers each including an electroconductive polymer and expands and contracts according to application of a voltage between the electrode layers. The second extendable driver portion includes an electrolyte layer laminated with electrode layers each including an electroconductive polymer and expands and contracts according to application of a voltage between the electrode layers. The first and the second extendable driver portions are arranged between a fixation portion and an application portion. The application portion moves as the first and the second extendable driver portions extend and contract. | 10-30-2014 |
| 20140319966 | VIBRATION-TYPE DRIVING APPARATUS - A vibration-type driving apparatus including: a vibrator holder wherein a plurality of vibrators each having at least an electro-mechanical energy conversion element and a elastic member having a contact portion formed therein are connected to a vibrator holding member, for generating an ellipsoidal movement of the contact portion, to move, relative to the vibrator, a driving member contacting the contact portion, wherein the plurality of vibrators are connected to a surface of the holding member at a side at which the contact portion contacts the driving member, and on a surface of the vibrator holding member opposite to the side at which the contact portion contacts the driving member, a pressing member is placed to set the contact portion to be pressed and contacted to the driving member. | 10-30-2014 |
| 20150028723 | PIEZOELECTRIC ACTUATOR - A piezoelectric actuator comprises a substantially rectangular parallelepiped piezoelectric element. One outer surface of the piezoelectric element includes a first region, and a second region located such as to project from the first region and to overlap a region corresponding to an active portion in the one outer surface. The second region has a flat surface configured to come into contact with a body to be driven and to generate a frictional force therewith. The flat surface is shorter in a longitudinal direction of the piezoelectric element than in a lateral direction thereof. The flat surface is longer in the longitudinal direction of the piezoelectric element at a lateral center region thereof than at a lateral end region thereof. | 01-29-2015 |
| 20150042209 | ULTRASONIC ACTUATOR - The invention relates to an ultrasonic actuator ( | 02-12-2015 |
| 20150048719 | INERTIAL DRIVE ACTUATOR - The task of the present invention is to provide an inertial drive actuator having a small-size arrangement, without using a vibration substrate. The inertial drive actuator includes a coil, a movable body which is disposed in a direction in which, a magnetic flux of the coil is generated, and which is formed of a magnetic material having a surface facing the coil, and a displacement generator (piezoelectric element) which displaces the coil in a direction different from the direction in which the magnetic flux is generated. Moreover, the movable body is displaced relatively with respect to the displacement generator (piezoelectric element), along a direction of displacement of the displacement generator (piezoelectric element). | 02-19-2015 |
| 20150054384 | ACTUATOR - The actuator includes a vibration plate including a fixing portion for fixing the vibration plate to a holding member, and a connection portion for connecting a center portion and the fixing portion, and is provided between a surface and a friction-sliding surface in a direction in which the vibration plate is pressed against the rotor by a pressurizing force produced by a pressure member. When finishing a surface on which a piezoelectric device is to be fixed to the vibration plate to a uniform surface by polishing, a decrease in the performance of the ultrasonic motor due to deformation of the vibration plate that is caused by warping of support portions that extend from both ends thereof or by burrs or the like can be prevented, and the time required to polish the vibration plate can be reduced. | 02-26-2015 |
| 20150295517 | INTEGRAL PRELOAD MECHANISM FOR PIEZOELECTRIC ACTUATOR - A piezoelectric actuator that may include a monolithic frame having an integral bias band that provides a resilient restoring force between a first contact surface and a second contact surface of the actuator that may be used to rotate an adjustment shaft. In some cases, a preload mechanism may also be included with the frame. Such piezoelectric actuators may be used for adjustable optical mounting devices such as optical mounting devices. | 10-15-2015 |
| 20150295518 | VIBRATION ACTUATOR AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS MOUNTING THE VIBRATION ACTUATOR THEREON - A vibration actuator which is stably driven and has high durability. The vibration actuator is provided with a vibrating body having an elastic body, including a ferrous metal, and an electro-mechanical energy conversion device bonded to the elastic body, and a driven member frictionally contacting to the vibrating body and moving relatively with respect to the vibrating body. The elastic body has a nitrided layer contacting to the driven member, and the elastic body is electrically grounded without through a nitrided layer. | 10-15-2015 |
| 20150303832 | VIBRATION ELEMENT, MANUFACTURING METHOD THEREOF, AND VIBRATION WAVE ACTUATOR - A vibration element includes a substrate, a piezoelectric element including a piezoelectric layer and an electrode layer, and a bonding layer provided between the piezoelectric element and the substrate and comprising ceramic containing melted glass powder, wherein the vibration element causes the substrate to vibrate by vibration energy of the piezoelectric element to output the vibration energy of the substrate, and the piezoelectric element is fixed to the substrate via the bonding layer. | 10-22-2015 |
| 20150303833 | VIBRATION TYPE DRIVING DEVICE - A vibration type driving device includes a vibrator configured to make an elliptic motion of a contact portion by combining vibrations in different vibration modes, and a driven body configured to be rotated relative to the vibrator by the elliptic motion while being in contact with the contact portion. A contact pressure of the contact portion with the driven body is lower on a radial inner side than on a radial outer side in a radial direction of the rotation. | 10-22-2015 |
| 20150349665 | PIEZOELECTRIC ACTUATOR AND ROBOT - A piezoelectric actuator according to an embodiment includes a piezoelectric element, a vibrating plate including a main body section provided with the piezoelectric element, a fixing section, and a coupling section that couples the main body section and the fixing section, and a first member to which the vibrating plate is fixed. The fixing section is fixed to the first member by sandwiching the fixing section with the first member and a second member. In the thickness direction of the vibrating plate, each of the thicknesses of the first member and the second member is larger than the thickness of the fixing section. When viewed from the thickness direction of the vibrating plate, the main body section has a pair of sides opposed to each other. The vibrating plate includes a plurality of the coupling sections on one of the pair of sides of the main body section. | 12-03-2015 |
| 20160036352 | ASSEMBLY FOR AN ULTRASONIC MOTOR - The invention relates to an assembly for an ultrasonic motor, comprising an actuator body, an actuator retainer that accommodates the actuator body, an actuator bearing, and a friction element driven by the actuator body, wherein there is planar frictional contact between the actuator body and the friction element and the assembly has an optimized tilt axis, about which the actuator retainer and/or the friction element can be pivoted and which is arranged at a distance from the center of gravity of the actuator body and is shifted in the direction of the section of the friction element touched by the actuator body. | 02-04-2016 |
| 20160126449 | VIBRATOR AND ULTRASONIC MOTOR - This invention prevents an adhesive portion between a piezoelectric element and a conducting member of a small vibrator from peeling off. In a vibrator, a conducting member includes at least one first adhesive portion adhered to an electrode, at least one second adhesive portion adhered to an elastic member, and a feed portion electrically connected to means for applying an external voltage. In the conducting member, a path length from the feed portion to the first adhesive portion is longer than a path length from the feed portion to the second adhesive portion. | 05-05-2016 |
| 20160141979 | DRIVING DEVICE - This invention prevents a load from being applied to a piezoelectric element due to a flection deformation of a flexible substrate along with a movement of a driving device and a driving efficiency from lowering. The flexible substrate of the driving device includes a first fixing portion fixed to the piezoelectric element, a second fixing portion fixed to a second holding member, and a bending portion configured to make a flection deformation along with a movement of a vibrating plate. The second fixing portion is provided between the first fixing portion and the bending portion. | 05-19-2016 |
| 20220140754 | VIBRATORY ACTUATOR AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING THE SAME - A vibratory actuator includes a vibration member, a contact member, and a pressure member. The vibration member includes an elastic member, having protrusions. The contact member is in contact with the elastic member and moves in a direction relative to the vibration member. The pressure member pressurizes the vibration member and the contact member. Each of the protrusions includes a first contact surface in contact with the contact member. The contact member has a second contact surface made of metal sintered material and in contact with the vibration member. A ratio of a maximum amount of depression on the second contact surface in the direction of pressurization by the pressure member to a width of the first contact surface in a direction perpendicular to the direction of movement of the contact member relative to the vibration member and the direction of pressurization by the pressure member is 0.05% or less. | 05-05-2022 |
