Ngk Insulators, Inc.

Other

Ngk Insultaors, Ltd.

Kazuyoshi Shibata

Yukihisa Takeuchi

Koji Ikeda

Masahiko Namerikawa

Tsutomu Nanataki

Fumitake Takahashi

Koji Kimura

Toshikazu Hirota

Hitoshi Nishizawa

Eric J Shrader

Ronald E Pelrine

Yoshihiko Mizutani

Takao Ohnishi

Joseph S Eckerle

Yasuhito Yajima

Masaki Iwamoto

Shinsuke Yano

Masahiro Abe

Hugh F Frohbach

Haruhiko Itoh

Hiroyuki Takahashi

Shigeki Nakao

Hideki Andoh

Iwao Ohwada

Syunzo Mase

Hideki Shimizu

Kazumasa Kitamura

Tatsuro Takagaki

Takayuki Kawae

Takeshi Kaku

Nobuchika Noguchi

Yuya Kikuta

Toshihiko Suzuki

Haruhiko Ito

Masashi Watanabe

Keizo Miyata

Yasushi Watanabe

Hidemasa Okumura

Hidehiko Tanaka

Tomoki Ito

John P Marlow

Koji Kumura

A piezoelectric element is a laminated type piezoelectric element including a plurality of piezoelectric layers laminated on each other; and an internal electrode layer disposed between adjacent piezoelectric layers. In the piezoelectric element, coating layers are disposed on a side surface of the piezoelectric element so as to cover at least an effective portion of the internal electrode layer that is exposed at the side surface. The coating layers contiguously extend from the side surface of the piezoelectric element to at least one of upper and lower surfaces of the piezoelectric element. A step is formed at the at least one of upper and lower surface of the piezoelectric element by the coating layers formed at an edge region.

Piezoelectric element

A laminated body is provided that exhibits impact resistance, wear resistance and scratch resistance, and which enables a reduction in weight together with a reduction in the dielectric constant. The laminated bodyincludes a first tabular memberconfigured from a ceramic material and having a first thickness t, and a second tabular memberconfigured from a polymer material and having a second thickness t. The laminated bodywithstands a falling-ball impact breaking test from a height that is higher than that exhibited by a single layer body that is configured from the ceramic material and of a thickness tthat is the sum of the first thickness tand the second thickness t

Laminated body

A ceramic compact having a patterned conductor is obtained by coating the patterned conductor with a slurry and then by hardening the slurry. The slurry is prepared by mixing a thermosetting resin precursor, a ceramic powder, and a medium. In the ceramic compact, an isocyanate- or isothiocyanate-containing gelling agent and a hydroxyl-containing polymer are reacted and hardened to produce a thermosetting resin. The hydroxyl-containing polymer is preferably a butyral resin, an ethylcellulose-based resin, a polyethyleneglycol-based resin, or a polyether-based resin.

Method for producing a ceramic compact

A ceramic compact is provided having a patterned conductor is obtained by coating the patterned conductor with a slurry and then hardening the slurry. The slurry is prepared by mixing a thermosetting resin precursor, a ceramic powder, and a medium. In the ceramic compact, an isocyanate- or isothiocyanate-containing gelling agent and a hydroxyl-containing polymer are reacted and hardened to produce a thermosetting resin. The hydroxyl-containing polymer is preferably a butyral resin, an ethylcellulose-based resin, a polyethyleneglycol-based resin, or a polyether-based resin.

Method for producing ceramic compact and ceramic part

Ceramic compact, ceramic part, method for producing ceramic compact, and method for producing ceramic part

A piezoelectric/electrostrictive device is provided, including a rotor substantially in the form of a rectangular parallelepiped. The rotor has a pair of opposed surfaces, a first movable section fixed to a first end of one of the surfaces, a first piezoelectric/electrostrictive element for actuating the first movable section, and a second movable section fixed to a second end of the other one of the surfaces. The second end is diametrically opposed to the first end. A second piezoelectric/electrostrictive element for actuating the second movable section is also included.

Piezoelectric/electrostrictive device and method of driving piezoelectric/electrostrictive device

A piezoelectric/electrostrictive device is provided with a stationary portion, a thin-plate portion supported by the stationary portion, and piezoelectric/electrostrictive element formed by alternately laminating a plurality of electrodes and a plurality of piezoelectric/electrostrictive layers. The piezoelectric/electrostrictive device is produced by cutting a thin-plate body that composes the thin-plate portion afterward and a laminated body comprising the piezoelectric/electrostrictive layers and thereafter applying prescribed specific processing (for example, heat treatment) to the cut plane (the lateral end surfaces). By so doing, the ratio of the actual surface area of the lateral end surface of the piezoelectric/electrostrictive element to the area of the lateral end surface of the piezoelectric/electrostrictive element in the orthographic projection is four or less, and the deposition of moisture on the lateral end surfaces is suppressed to the extent of not substantially generating electric leakage or ion migration. As a result, a highly durable piezoelectric/electrostrictive device can be provided.

Piezoelectric/electrostrictive device

A piezoelectric/electrostrictive device includes a basehaving a pair of movable partsopposing each other and a connecting partthat connects movable partswith each other at one end thereof as well as piezoelectric/electrostrictive elementsdisposed on the side surfaces of movable partsof base. The piezoelectric/electrostrictive device is constructed in a simple structure with fewer components. Baseis integrally formed in an open-box shape or in a horseshoe shape by bending one sheet of band-shaped flat plate. Movable partsextend for a predetermined length from respective ends of connecting partto the other ends. The other ends of movable partsconstitute a mounting site for mounting a component to be controlled or a component to be tested.

Piezoelectric/electrostrictive device and method of producing the same

A piezoelectric/electrostrictive including a pair of mutually opposing vibration plates, each having a first portion and a second portion, a fixation section joined to the first portion of each of the vibration plates, and at least one piezoelectric/electrostrictive element arranged on at least one of the vibration plates. A surface of the device between the fixation section and the second portion of at least one of the vibration plates is curved.

In piezoelectric/electrostrictive elements, electrode layers have respective ends projecting outwardly from an end face of a piezoelectric/electrostrictive layer on a side surface where the laminated state of the piezoelectric/electrostrictive layer and the electrode layers is exposed. The distance by which the ends project outwardly from the end face is equal to or smaller than one half of the thickness of the piezoelectric/electrostrictive layer between the electrode layers. The distance is preferably in a range from 0.5 &#x3bc;m to 2 &#x3bc;m.

Piezoelectric/electrostrictive element, method of manufacturing piezoelectric/electrostrictive element, piezoelectric/electrostrictive device, and method of manufacturing piezoelectric/electrostrictive device

A piezoelectric/electrostrictive device that includes a basehaving a pair of right and left movable partsand a fixing partdisposed at one end thereof as well as piezoelectric/electrostrictive elementsdisposed on the sides of the movable partsof the baseis fabricated to have a construction with fewer components. The piezoelectric/electrostrictive device having a construction with fewer components is provided by adopting a basehaving an integral structure formed by bending an original plate stamped into a shape that delineates a plane development of the base, as the base of the piezoelectric/electrostrictive device. In addition, in this piezoelectric/electrostrictive device, piezoelectric/electrostrictive elements are arranged on inner sides of a pair of left and right movable parts. Accordingly, destruction of the piezoelectric/electrostrictive element can hardly occur and high reliability of the piezoelectric/electrostrictive device is achieved.

The present invention provides a piezoelectric/electrostrictive device including a pair of thin plate sections in an opposed relation to each other, a fixing section for supporting the thin plate sections, and at least one pair of piezoelectric/electrostrictive elements are provided to the pair of thin plate sections. The thin plate sections include movable sections having end surfaces in an opposed relation. Recesses are formed between the thin plate sections and the fixing section and/or the movable sections.

Piezoelectric/electrostrictive device and method of manufacturing same

A pair of opposing thin plate sections, movable sections, and fixed sections for supporting the thin plate sections and the movable sections are provided on a ceramic substrate. After a wiring pattern and a gap or an insulating layer of cermet layer for filling the gap are formed on a ceramic substrate, these are sintered. After that, piezoelectric/electrostrictive layers and cermet electrode layers including a piezoelectric/electrostrictive material and a conductive material are alternately stacked in a comb like structure on the ceramic substrate. Accordingly, a piezoelectric/electrostrictive device having the piezoelectric/electrostrictive element in multilayer structure is obtained.

A piezoelectric/electrostrictive (P/E) device includes at least one actuator section secured to thin plate sections with an adhesive. The actuator section includes a multilayered member including at least three actuator films, each of which include a P/E layer and electrode films. One or more holes or recesses are formed in portions of the thin plate sections on which the P/E elements are formed. The electrode films contact upper and lower surfaces of respective P/E layers and alternately extend to opposite surfaces thereof. End surface electrodes electrically connect an electrode film that contacts one of the P/E layers and an electrode film that contacts another one of the P/E layers. The end surface electrodes are electrically connected to terminals which are provided on a surface of an outermost layer of the P/E layers, and which are separated from one another by a predetermined distance.

A piezoelectric/electrostrictive device is provided, including a pair of mutually opposing thin plate sections and a fixation section for supporting the thin plate sections. A piezoelectric/electrostrictive element is arranged on each of the thin plate sections. The piezoelectric/electrostrictive device also includes movable sections defined by at least first end portions of the thin plate sections and a material which is different from that of the thin plate section.

Growing community of inventors

Mizunami, Japan

Kazuyoshi Shibata