| Patent application number | Description | Published |
|---|
| 20090097685 | ACTUATOR SYSTEMS FOR ORAL-BASED APPLIANCES - Actuator systems for oral-based appliances utilizing transducers which are attached, adhered, or otherwise embedded into or upon a dental or oral appliance to form a hearing aid assembly. Such oral appliances may be a custom-made device which receives incoming sounds and transmits the processed sounds via a vibrating transducer element. The transducer element may utilize electromagnetic or piezoelectric transducer mechanisms and may be positioned directly along the dentition or along an oral appliance housing in various configurations. | 04-16-2009 |
| 20100066206 | Bonding On Silicon Substrate Having A Groove - A method and apparatus for bonding on a silicon substrate are disclosed. An apparatus includes a membrane having a membrane surface, a groove in the membrane surface, a transducer having a transducer surface substantially parallel to the membrane surface, and an adhesive connecting the membrane surface to the transducer surface. The groove can be configured to permit flow of adhesive into and through the groove while minimizing voids or air gaps that could result from incomplete filling of the groove. Multiple grooves can be formed in the membrane surface and can be of uniform depth. | 03-18-2010 |
| 20100079523 | Control of Velocity Through a Nozzle - A method is described wherein one or more parameters are measured that affect the nozzle velocity at which a printing fluid is ejected from a pumping chamber through a nozzle. The printing fluid is contained in the pumping chamber actuated by deflection of a piezoelectric layer. A surface area of an electrode actuating the piezoelectric layer is reduced based at least in part on the measured one or more parameters. Reducing the surface area of the electrode reduces the actuated area of the piezoelectric layer. | 04-01-2010 |
| 20100134568 | MEMS Device with Uniform Membrane - A MEMS based device is described with recesses covered by a membrane. The membranes over the recesses are highly uniform due to being formed by a stack of layers that are epitaxial layers with high uniformity. The unnecessary layers of the stack, such as the handle layer, are removed prior to completion of the device to achieve a membrane with a desired thickness. | 06-03-2010 |
| 20100141709 | Shaping a Nozzle Outlet - A nozzle layer is described that has a semiconductor body having a first surface, a second surface opposing the first surface, and a nozzle formed through the body connecting the first and second surfaces, wherein the nozzle is configured to eject fluid through a nozzle outlet on the second surface, and the outlet having straight sides connected by curved corners. | 06-10-2010 |
| 20100189288 | ACTUATOR SYSTEMS FOR ORAL-BASED APPLIANCES - Actuator systems for oral-based appliances utilizing transducers which are attached, adhered, or otherwise embedded into or upon a dental or oral appliance to form a hearing aid assembly. Such oral appliances may be a custom-made device which receives incoming sounds and transmits the processed sounds via a vibrating transducer element. The transducer element may utilize electromagnetic or piezoelectric transducer mechanisms and may be positioned directly along the dentition or along an oral appliance housing in various configurations. | 07-29-2010 |
| 20100207974 | Mitigation of Shorted Fluid Ejector Units - A fluid ejector includes a plurality of fluid ejector units, each fluid ejector unit characterized in part by a pumping actuator that includes an electrode. Whether one or more of the plurality of fluid ejector units is a shorted fluid ejector unit is determined, and the shorted fluid ejector unit is trimmed. | 08-19-2010 |
| 20100208004 | Ring Electrode for Fluid Ejection - Methods, systems, and apparatus for drive a pumping chamber of a fluid ejection system are disclosed. In one implementation, the actuator for drive the pumping chamber includes a continuous piezoelectric layer between a pair of drive electrodes and a continuous reference electrode. The pair of drive electrodes includes an inner electrode and an outer electrode surrounding the inner electrode. The actuator is further coupled to a controller which, during a fluid ejection cycle, applies a negative voltage pulse differential to the outer electrode to expand the pumping chamber for a first time period, then applies another negative voltage pulse differential to the inner electrode during a second time period after the first time period to contract the pumping chamber to eject a fluid drop. | 08-19-2010 |
| 20100214380 | Apparatus for Reducing Crosstalk in the Supply and Return Channels During Fluid Droplet Ejecting - A fluid droplet ejection apparatus includes a substrate having a fluid inlet passage, a plurality of nozzles, and a plurality of flow paths each fluidically connecting the fluid inlet passage to an associated nozzle of the plurality of nozzles. Each flow path includes a pumping chamber connected to the associated nozzle and an ascender fluidically connected between the fluid inlet passage and the pumping chamber. The ascender is located proximate to an outside edge of the fluid inlet passage. | 08-26-2010 |
| 20100220146 | Moisture Protection of Fluid Ejector - A fluid ejection apparatus includes a substrate having a plurality of fluid passages for fluid flow and a plurality of nozzles fluidically connected to the fluid passages, a plurality of actuators positioned on top of the substrate to cause fluid in the plurality of fluid passages to be ejected from the plurality of nozzles, a protective layer formed over at least a portion of the plurality of actuators, a housing component having a chamber, the chamber adjacent to the substrate, and an absorbent layer inside the cavity. The absorbent layer is more absorptive than the protective layer. | 09-02-2010 |
| 20100220148 | Nozzle Shape For Fluid Droplet Ejection - A fluid ejection apparatus includes a substrate having a nozzle surface and a passage through the substrate for fluid flow, the passage having a nozzle that includes an opening in the nozzle surface of the substrate, and an actuator to cause fluid in the passage to be ejected from the nozzle. The nozzle includes side walls extending away from the opening, the side walls sloping outwardly as the side walls extend away. An aspect ratio of a length of the opening to a width of the opening is at least 2:1. | 09-02-2010 |
| 20100220883 | ACTUATOR SYSTEMS FOR ORAL-BASED APPLIANCES - Actuator systems for oral-based appliances utilizing transducers which are attached, adhered, or otherwise embedded into or upon a dental or oral appliance to form a hearing aid assembly. Such oral appliances may be a custom-made device which receives incoming sounds and transmits the processed sounds via a vibrating transducer element. The transducer element may utilize electromagnetic or piezoelectric transducer mechanisms and may be positioned directly along the dentition or along an oral appliance housing in various configurations. | 09-02-2010 |
| 20110139901 | Moisture Protection Of Fluid Ejector - A fluid ejection apparatus includes a substrate having a plurality of fluid passages for fluid flow and a plurality of nozzles fluidically connected to the fluid passages, a plurality of actuators positioned on top of the substrate to cause fluid in the plurality of fluid passages to be ejected from the plurality of nozzles, and a protective layer formed over at least a portion of the plurality of actuators, the protective layer having an intrinsic permeability to moisture less than 2.5×10 | 06-16-2011 |
| 20110141172 | SEPARATION OF DRIVE PULSES FOR FLUID EJECTOR - A method for causing fluid to be ejected from a fluid chamber of a jet in a printhead. An actuator is actuated with a first energy imparting pulse to push fluid away from the actuator and toward a nozzle. Following a lapse of a first interval, the actuator is actuated with second energy imparting pulse to push fluid away from the actuator and toward the nozzle. Following a lapse of a second interval as measured from the second energy imparting pulse, the actuator is actuated with a break-off pulse to cause fluid extending out of an orifice of the nozzle to break off from fluid within the nozzle, wherein the second lapse is longer than the first lapse and is an inverse of the meniscus-jet mass frequency. | 06-16-2011 |
| 20110147483 | Compartmentalization of Fluid Ejector Device - A fluid ejection apparatus includes a substrate having a plurality of fluid passages for fluid flow and a plurality of nozzles fluidically connected to the fluid passages, a plurality of actuators positioned on top of the substrate to cause fluid in the plurality of fluid passages to be ejected from the plurality of nozzles, a housing component with a descending portion that projects down to the substrate, an integrated circuit chip supported on the substrate, a potting barrier secured to the housing component and positioned between the integrated circuit chip and the actuators, and a potting material between the integrated circuit chip and the barrier. | 06-23-2011 |
