Ngk Insulators, Inc.

Ngk Insultaors, Ltd.

Koji Ikeda

Kazuyoshi Shibata

Yukihisa Takeuchi

Fumitake Takahashi

Tsutomu Nanataki

Koji Kimura

Masahiko Namerikawa

Shinsuke Yano

Masahiro Abe

Haruhiko Itoh

Hideto Sandaiji

Yuji Onishi

Kazumasa Kitamura

Yuya Kikuta

Nobuchika Noguchi

Masashi Watanabe

Tomoki Ito

Koji Kumura

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

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 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.

A piezoelectric/electrostrictive device including a ceramic substrate having a pair of mutually opposing thin plate sections, a fixed section for supporting the thin plate sections, and movable sections disposed proximate to ends of the pair of thin plate sections. Each of the movable sections includes a projection spaced a predetermined distance away from tip surfaces of each of the thin plate sections toward the fixed section. The projection includes cermet.

A ceramic stack including a plurality of stacked ceramic plates having different lengths, the ceramic stack including an additional member having a curved surface, the additional member being disposed at a border between a first principal surface of the ceramic plate which is long and a side surface of the ceramic plate which is short. The short ceramic plate is stacked on the first principal surface, and the additional member has one or more inflection points on a surface thereof as viewed in a cross-sectional direction.

Ceramic stack and a piezoelectric/electrostrictive device including same

The present invention provides a piezo-electric/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 piezo-electric/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.

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Hisai, Japan

Koji Ikeda