Digital Waveform Generator for Piezoelectric Transducers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional electrical waveform generators for driving electromechanical devices like piezoelectric and magnetostrictive transducers are limited in their ability to adapt to various impedance and phase requirements across different applications, leading to costly and time-consuming redesigns for each specific use case, and often fail to maintain optimal performance under changing load conditions.
Innovation Solution
A digital signal processor-based electrical waveform generator that digitally synthesizes waveforms, adjusts voltage and current, and uses feedback loops to maintain predetermined phase and amplitude settings, allowing for broader application compatibility with minimal hardware changes and improved load adaptability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional electrical waveform generators are designed for specific impedance and phase requirements, then they can maintain stable performance for that specific application, but they require costly and time-consuming hardware redesigns for each new application
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic adjustment capabilities through digital signal processing that allows the waveform generator to adapt its output characteristics (frequency, phase, amplitude) in real-time based on feedback from the electromechanical device. This enables a single generator design to handle multiple applications with different impedance and phase requirements without hardware redesign.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes operating parameters (frequency, phase angle, voltage amplitude) based on measured impedance characteristics. By digitally adjusting these parameters according to the specific application requirements, the generator maintains optimal performance across diverse applications without requiring physical hardware modifications.
2Ease of manufacture
If the generator is designed with fixed hardware for specific applications, then development costs are controlled for that application, but the time and cost increase for each new application requiring redesign
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a universal waveform generator platform using digital signal processing architecture that can serve multiple electromechanical applications. The system incorporates adaptive algorithms that automatically adjust to different load conditions, eliminating the need for application-specific hardware designs and reducing both development costs and time for new applications.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces fixed hardware design approaches with software-based digital signal processing and control algorithms. This substitution allows the same physical hardware to be reconfigured for different applications through software parameter changes, dramatically reducing redesign time and costs while maintaining application-specific optimization.
3Power
If conventional generators use traditional PLL and AGC techniques, then they can achieve frequency and amplitude control, but they fail to maintain optimal performance under varying load conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements comprehensive feedback mechanisms that continuously monitor impedance, phase, and amplitude characteristics of the electromechanical device. This feedback information is used by digital signal processing algorithms to dynamically adjust operating parameters, ensuring optimal performance is maintained even as load conditions change, overcoming the limitations of traditional open-loop or simple feedback control.
Data Source
AI summary
An electrical waveform generator for driving an electromechanical load includes a digital signal processor connected to a waveform generator component in turn connected to an amplifier section with a filter network, the latter being connected to sensing and conditioning circuit componentry that is in turn connected to analog-to-digital converter circuitry. A digital memory stores digitized voltage and current waveform information. The processor determines a phase difference between voltage and current waveforms, compares the determined phase difference to a phase difference command and generates a phase error or correction signal. The processor also generates an amplitude error signal for inducing the amplifier section to change its output amplitude to result in a predetermined amplitude error level for a respective one of the voltage and current waveforms.