US Patent:
20070103034, May 10, 2007
Inventors:
Daniel Phillips - Grass Valley CA, US
Brant Callahan - Grass Valley CA, US
Assignee:
Impulse Devices Inc. - Grass Valley CA
International Classification:
H01L 41/08
Abstract:
An acoustic driver horn that is integral to a wall of a cavitation chamber is provided. The horn design is applicable to any of a variety of cavitation chamber configurations, including spherical, cylindrical, and rectangular chambers. Although a variety of driver assemblies can be coupled to the driver horn, preferably the acoustic driver assembly includes a head mass, a tail mass, and at least one transducer, typically a piezoelectric transducer, and preferably a pair of piezoelectric transducers. A groove in the cavitation chamber wall defines the driver horn and separates it from the remaining portion of the cavitation chamber wall. Due to the thinning of the wall around the horn, the driver that is attached to the horn is able to more effectively couple its energy into the cavitation fluid within the chamber.