Ultrasonic Air-Pulse Generation for Bladeless Ventilation and Ear Drying
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Solution Overview
Problem
As electronic devices become more compact, they require more computational power, leading to increased battery drain and heat management issues, while wearing headphones in moist ears can compromise their longevity and drying is necessary after water-related activities.
Innovation Solution
An air-pulse generating device that produces asymmetric air pulses at an ultrasonic pulse rate, creating a net airflow direction, which can be integrated into wearable sound devices and bladeless fans to improve user experience by enhancing ventilation and drying.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional fans are used for ventilation and drying, then airflow is generated, but blades cause turbulence and noise
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the conventional mechanical blade system with an ultrasonic vibration-based air pulse generation system. The ultrasonic transducer vibrates at high frequency to create air pulses that coalesce into unidirectional airflow, eliminating blade-induced turbulence and noise while maintaining ventilation effectiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The system employs periodic ultrasonic vibrations to generate a sequence of air pulses. These periodic vibrations create alternating compression and rarefaction zones that coalesce to form continuous unidirectional airflow, providing effective ventilation without the harmful effects of mechanical blades.
2Reliability
If ultrasonic air pulses are generated to create net airflow, then drying effect is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The ultrasonic air pulse generation system serves multiple functions: it creates unidirectional airflow for ventilation, generates drying effect by removing moisture from ear canals, and can be integrated with wearable sound devices. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate components, thereby managing device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an acoustic field as an intermediary to transfer energy and create airflow. The ultrasonic vibrations generate air pulses that coalesce into net airflow, providing an effective drying mechanism without requiring direct mechanical contact or complex structural components.
3Power
If high sound pressure levels are produced for effective drying, then drying performance improves, but distortion increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs asymmetric air pulse generation where the ultrasonic vibrations create non-symmetric compression and rarefaction cycles. This asymmetry in the air pulse timing and amplitude generates effective unidirectional airflow and high sound pressure levels for drying while managing distortion through controlled pulse characteristics.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts ultrasonic vibration parameters including frequency, amplitude, and pulse timing to optimize the balance between sound pressure level and distortion. By changing these parameters, the system achieves effective drying performance while minimizing signal distortion.
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 device effectively manages heat and dries ear canals by producing high sound pressure levels with low distortion, reducing power consumption and maintaining device longevity.
Implementation Method 1
a film structure, configured to be actuated to generate a plurality of air pulses at an ultrasonic pulse rate
Implementation Method 2
The device effectively manages heat and dries ear canals by producing high sound pressure levels with low distortion
Data Source
AI summary
An air-pulse generating device, a wearable sound device, bladeless fan, and an airflow producing method are disclosed. The air-pulse generating device includes a film structure, configured to be actuated to generate a plurality of air pulses at an ultrasonic pulse rate. The plurality of air pulses produces a net airflow toward one single direction.