Acoustic Transducer with spiral-shaped piezoelectric shell
AssigneeSchlumberger Technology Corporation
InventorsChung Chang, Hiroshi Hori
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An acoustic transducer includes a polarized piezoelectric shell having a spiral-shaped surface. The acoustic transducer serves as a receiver or a transmitter. In one embodiment, the acoustic transducer includes a solid spiral shell having outer and inner spiral-shaped surfaces, and the shell is polarized, wired and packaged to operate in hydrophone-mode. In another embodiment, the acoustic transducer includes a shell defining an exterior spiral-shaped surface and a spiral slot; and the slot defines a closed cavity with an interior spiral-shaped surface. In a preferred bender-type receiver embodiment, the shell is polarized, wired, and packaged to operate in bender mode for maximum sensitivity and best low-frequency performance.
Claims12
An acoustic transducer, comprising:
- a polarized piezoelectric shell having a first spiral-shaped surface and a second spiral-shaped surface;
- a first terminal electrically coupled to said first spiral-shaped surface;
- and
- a second terminal electrically coupled to said second spiral-shaped surface.
A piezoelectric shell cut from a block of piezoelectric material, the shell having a first spiral-shaped surface and a second spiral-shaped surface.
A method for making a spiral piezoelectric shell, comprising:
- forming a solid disk of piezoelectric material;
- cutting a hole through the disk;
- extending the hole through a curved, closed-loop, trajectory transverse to the hole, the trajectory defining at least one spiral-shaped portion;
- and
- separating a cut portion from the disk.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.