Acoustic levitation and methods for manipulating levitated objects
AssigneeIntersonics Incorporated
InventorCharles A. Rey
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Objects are levitated in a sound system substantially free of reverberation and reflection by positioning a small reflector in the path of sound waves. Interference between the primary waves and reflected waves creates a localized zone of minimized energy closely adjacent to the reflector in which an object may be stably levitated. The energy well thus produced is not dependent upon distance from the sound source, and the levitated object may be moved in any direction by moving the reflector. A plurality of reflectors may be employed to manipulate and combine levitated materials, and improvements in the processing of levitated objects are also achieved.
Claims14
An acoustic levitation system comprising source means for producing a field of sound having a wavelength, and reflector means spaced from said source means for producing localized reflection of a portion of sound, said reflector means having an effective reflecting surface of a size less than four wavelengths of the sound such that said system is substantially free of resonance and such that a localized energy well is created adjacent said reflector means capable of levitating an object.
A method for acoustically levitating an object comprising the steps of producing a field of sound, interposing a sound reflector in said field of sound, said sound reflector being sufficiently small to substantially prevent resonance and to create a localized energy well adjacent to the sound reflector, and disposing said object in said energy well to acoustically levitate said object.
An acoustical levitation system comprising a field of sound in a fluid and a localized energy well means therein for acoustically levitating an object, said energy well means being substantially independent of resonance and frequency of said sound and temperature changes in said fluid.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.