In commercial applications it is important to be able to either cancel noise, such as in the cabin of a combine, or to generate audible noise, such as in the case of an alarm. Piezoelectrics have demonstrated promise for active noise control and sound generation applications. In this investigation, the dynamic and acoustic capabilities of polymer piezoelectric semi-circular transducers were studied for such applications. The dynamic response of semi-circular piezoelectric transducers was determined numerically using the general purpose finite element code ABAQUS, then verified analytically and experimentally. The acoustic response was modeled using the commercial code COMET/Acoustics with the dynamic velocity response calculated by ABAQUS as initial boundary conditions. Experimental studies were performed on fixed-fixed polymeric piezoelectric curved transducers. The sensitivity of the sound generation capabilities of the transducer was investigated with respect to variations in radius, thickness and width parameters to demonstrate the potential of these devices for noise cancellation and audible sound applications.

Date Published: 27 July 1998
PDF: 11 pages
Proc. SPIE 3329, Smart Structures and Materials 1998: Smart Structures and Integrated Systems, (27 July 1998); doi: 10.1117/12.316889

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 3329:
Smart Structures and Materials 1998: Smart Structures and Integrated Systems
Mark E. Regelbrugge, Editor(s)