US 7,921,645 B2Granted

Corrugated thermal actuator

AssigneeSilverbrook Research Pty Ltd

InventorKia Silverbrook

Life of this patent

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Abstract

A thermal actuator for micro mechanical or micro electro-mechanical devices comprises a supporting substrate; an actuator extension portion; an anchor block extending from the substrate; a first group of at least two elongate corrugated arms attached at a first end thereof to a heating circuit at the anchor block and at a second end to the extension portion, the first group being arranged to be conductively heated through connection to the heating circuit; and a second group of at least two elongate corrugated arms attached at a first end to the anchor block and at a second end to the extension portion, the second group not being connected to a heating circuit and being spaced apart from the first group. The first edge of the at least two elongate corrugated arms of the first group and a first edge of the at least two elongate corrugated arms of the second group are in a common plane.

Claims9

Dependent claims

A thermal actuator for micro mechanical or micro electro-mechanical devices, the actuator comprising:

a supporting substrate having an anchor block extending therefrom, the anchor block including a heating circuit;
an actuator extension portion;
a first group of at least two elongate corrugated arms attached at a first end thereof to the heating circuit and at a second end to the extension portion, the at least two elongate corrugated arms of the first group all being in a first horizontal plane, and arranged for conductive heating via the heating circuit;
and
a second group of at least two elongate corrugated arms attached at a first end to the anchor block and at a second end to the extension portion, the at least two elongate corrugated arms of the second group all being in a second horizontal plane different from the first horizontal plane, and electrically insulated from the heating circuit,
wherein a first edge of the at least two elongate corrugated arms of the first group and a first edge of the at least two elongate corrugated arms of the second group are in a common horizontal plane between the first and second horizontal planes.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 12/276,379Filed 23 Nov 2008 · continuation
Priority: 18 Apr 2005
Published: US 2009/0077962 A126 Mar 2009
Granted: 12 Apr 2011
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification2 codes

G11B 5/5526
Across disk tracks: control therefor; circuits, track configurations or relative disposition of servo-information transducers and…
G11B
Information storage based on relative movement between record carrier and transducer

Family

PCT/AU01/00501Parent of this continuation · filed 2 May 2001
Application11/107,799Parent of this continuation · filed 18 Apr 2005
US 2009/0077962 A1Pre-grant publication · published 26 Mar 2009
US 7,464,547 B2Parent of this continuation
Application10/258,518Parent of this continuation
US 6,978,613 B2Parent of this continuation
US 2003/0140627 A1Published application
US 2005/0178119 A1Published application
US 7,921,645 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.