Elliptec Resonant Actuator Ag

Other

Siemens Technology-to-business Center, LLC

Steven Michael Schofield

Peter Christian Varadi

Bjoern B Magnussen

Benjamin Hagemann

Erick Mathew Davidson

Richard Gary McDaniel

Daniel Conrad Benson

Frank Dittrich Schiller

A system for programming automation by demonstration where a control program may be created or modified through the process of demonstrating desired behavior using graphical representations (or widgets) of physical, programming, and user interface elements. Widgets have state, or properties, and may also have inherent events associated with them or indirect events that are generated through the demonstration process. The general process of demonstration consists of providing several individual example behaviors. Complete behavior, and thus the resultant code, is generated through inferencing from a number of individual example behaviors. The process of programming automation by demonstration reduces the complexity of the programming task and thereby greatly simplifies the workload of the control programmer, allowing the programmer to concentrate more on the specific automation application at hand rather than on the particulars of the programming language or tools. The invention may be applied to a wide range of automation applications, from home and building automation to industrial automation, and may be practiced by novice and expert-level users.

Programming automation by demonstration

A single piezoelectric is excited at a first frequency to cause two vibration modes in a resonator producing a first elliptical motion in a first direction at a selected contacting portion of the resonator that is placed in frictional engagement with a driven element to move the driven element in a first direction. A second frequency excites the same piezoelectric to cause two vibration modes of the resonator producing a second elliptical motion in a second direction at the selected contacting portion to move the driven element in a second direction. The piezoelectric is preloaded in compression by the resonator. Walls of the resonator are stressed past their yield point to maintain the preload. Specially shaped ends on the piezoelectric help preloading. The piezoelectric can send or receive vibratory signals through the driven element to or from sensors to determine the position of the driven element relative to the piezoelectric element or resonator. Conversely, the piezoelectric element can receive vibration or electrical signals passed through the driven element to determine the position of the driven element. The resonator is resiliently urged against the driven element, or vice versa. Plural resonators can drive common driven elements.

Vibratory motors and methods of making and using same

Growing community of inventors

Berkeley, CA, United States of America

Steven Michael Schofield