Piezo-element encapsulation for nebulizer sealing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing aerosol generator systems face challenges in effectively protecting and sealing vibrating elements, such as piezo-elements, which are essential for generating aerosols in nebulizers, often requiring additional materials and primers for a watertight seal.
Innovation Solution
A three-dimensional casing structure is used to encapsulate the piezo-element, providing a watertight seal without direct contact, allowing for vibration transmission while minimizing material contact and using a flexible, thin film or metallic encapsulation that can be attached with UV-activated adhesives, and optionally incorporating a housing for enhanced sealing and protection.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If silicone overmolding is used to protect the piezo-element, then the piezo-element is protected from contact with liquid, but the sealing is insufficient and requires additional primers or additives
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a thin film encapsulation made of flexible material (such as polyimide or silicone film) to directly cover and seal the piezo-element. This thin film provides both mechanical protection and watertight sealing in a single integrated layer, eliminating the need for separate silicone overmolding and primer applications.
2Reliability
If a rigid encapsulation is used to seal the piezo-element, then watertight seal is achieved, but the vibration transmission is hindered
Solution Approach 1:
The thin film encapsulation is made of flexible material that can transmit vibrational energy effectively while maintaining watertight sealing. The flexibility of the thin film allows it to respond to the piezo-element's vibrations without damping them significantly, thus preserving power transmission efficiency while achieving reliable sealing.
Solution Approach 2:
The encapsulation uses composite material structures, such as thin film combined with selective adhesive layers or coating, to achieve both sealing and vibration transmission properties. The composite structure allows different layers to perform different functions: one layer provides sealing while another maintains mechanical coupling for vibration transfer.
3Reliability
If additional materials and primers are used to achieve watertight seal, then sealing is improved, but manufacturing complexity and material contact increase
Solution Approach 1:
The thin film encapsulation provides a complete sealing solution in a single component that can be directly applied to the piezo-element without requiring separate primer applications or additional sealing materials. This simplifies the manufacturing process by reducing the number of steps and materials needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention extracts and eliminates the unnecessary intermediate steps of applying primers and multiple sealing materials. By using a single thin film encapsulation that inherently provides both protection and sealing, the manufacturing process is streamlined and material contact is minimized.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution provides a long-lasting, watertight seal that protects the piezo-element while allowing for efficient vibration transfer, reducing material contact and improving sealing capabilities, thus enhancing the aerosol generation process in nebulizers and other applications.
Implementation Method 1
The vibrating element is a piezo-element arranged to generate an oscillating movement. The piezo-element is connected to the base structure to transfer the oscillating movement as vibrational movement to the base structure.
Data Source
Figure 1a~2
Figure 3~4
Figure 5a~5b
AI summary
The present invention relates to aerosol generation. In order to provide an improved way of protecting and sealing of a vibrating element, an aerosol generator device (10) for a nebulizer is provided. The aerosol generator device comprises a base structure (12), a mesh (14) with a plurality of apertures, and a vibrating element (16). The vibrating element is a piezo-element arranged to generate an oscillating movement. The piezo-element is connected to the base structure to transfer the oscillating movement as vibrational movement to the base structure. Further, the mesh is mounted to the base structure, and the vibrational movement is transferred to the mesh in order to generate a plurality of small droplets to form an aerosol when supplied by a fluid. An encapsulation (18) of the piezo- element is provided to provide a sealing of the piezo-element. The encapsulation is provided as a three-dimensional casing structure rigidly connected to the base structure while leaving a distance space (20) between an inner side of the casing structure and the piezo- element.