Programmable ultrasonic transceiver
Granted: November 21, 2023
Patent Number:
11819879
An ultrasonic transceiver system includes a transmitter block, a receiver block, a state machine, and a computing unit. The transmitter block contains circuitry configured to drive an ultrasound transducer. The receiver block contains circuitry configured to receive signals from the ultrasound transducer and convert the signals into digital data. The state machine is coupled to the transmitter and receiver blocks and contains circuitry configured to act as a controller for those blocks.…
Split electrode design for a transducer
Granted: November 21, 2023
Patent Number:
11819361
An ultrasonic transducer device comprises a piezoelectric micromachined ultrasonic transducer (PMUT), a transmitter with first and second differential outputs, and a controller. The PMUT includes a membrane layer. A bottom electrode layer, comprising a first bottom electrode and a second bottom electrode, is disposed above the membrane layer. The piezoelectric layer is disposed above the bottom electrode layer. The top electrode layer is disposed above the piezoelectric layer and…
Drive and sense balanced, semi-coupled 3-axis gyroscope
Granted: November 14, 2023
Patent Number:
11815354
In a first aspect, the angular rate sensor comprises a substrate and a rotating structure anchored to the substrate. The angular rate sensor also includes a drive mass anchored to the substrate and an element coupling the drive mass and the rotating structure. The angular rate sensor further includes an actuator for driving the drive mass into oscillation along a first axis in plane to the substrate and for driving the rotating structure into rotational oscillation around a second axis…
Adaptive control of bias settings in a digital microphone
Granted: November 7, 2023
Patent Number:
11811904
Technologies are provided for adaptive control of bias settings in a digital microphone. In some embodiments, a device includes a first component that provides data indicative of a clock frequency of operation in a functional mode of a digital microphone. The clock frequency clocks one or more microphone components having switching activity. The device also can include a second component that determines, using the clock frequency, an amount of bias current to supply to at least a first…
On-chip signal path with electrical and physical connection
Granted: October 31, 2023
Patent Number:
11802041
An exemplary microelectromechanical system (MEMS) device comprises a plurality of stacked layers, including at least one layer that includes micromechanical components that respond to a force to be measured. Two of the layers may include respective first and second external electrical connection points. A plurality of conductive paths may be disposed in a continuous manner over an external surface of each of the plurality of layers between the first and second external electrical…
Reduced light reflection package
Granted: October 24, 2023
Patent Number:
11800297
A MEMS sensor includes a through hole to allow communication with an external environment, such as to send or receive acoustic signals or to be exposed to the ambient environment. In addition to the information that is being measured, light energy may also enter the environment of the sensor via the through hole, causing short-term or long-term effects on measurements or system components. A light mitigating structure is formed on or attached to a lid of the MEMS die to absorb or…
Real-time isolation of self-test and linear acceleration signals
Granted: October 17, 2023
Patent Number:
11789036
A MEMS accelerometer includes proof masses that move in-phase in response to a sensed linear acceleration. Self-test drive circuitry imparts an out-of-phase movement onto the proof masses. The motion of the proof masses in response to the linear acceleration and the self-test movement is sensed as a sense signal on common sense electrodes. Processing circuitry extracts from a linear acceleration signal corresponding to the in-phase movement due to linear acceleration and a self-test…
Estimating a location of an object in close proximity to an ultrasonic transducer
Granted: October 3, 2023
Patent Number:
11774585
A device comprises a processor coupled with an ultrasonic transducer coupled which is configured to emit an ultrasonic pulse and receive returned signals received after a ringdown period of the transducer and corresponding to the emitted ultrasonic pulse. The processor is configured to evaluate the returned signals to find a candidate echo, from an object located in a ringdown blind spot area, in a time window between one and two times the ringdown period; locate multiple echoes from the…
Liquid detection in a sensor environment and remedial action thereof
Granted: September 26, 2023
Patent Number:
11768122
A device includes a housing unit with an internal volume. The device further includes a sensor coupled to a substrate via an electrical coupling, wherein the sensor is disposed within the internal volume of the housing unit, and wherein the sensor is in communication with an external environment of the housing unit from a side other than a side associated with the substrate. The device also includes a moisture detection unit electrically coupled to the sensor, wherein the moisture…
MEMS stress reduction structure embedded into package
Granted: September 19, 2023
Patent Number:
11760627
A microelectromechanical system (MEMS) sensor package includes a laminate that provides physical support and electrical connection to a MEMS sensor. A resin layer is embedded within an opening of the laminate and a MEMS support layer is embedded within the opening by the resin layer. A MEMS structure of the MEMS sensor is located on the upper surface of the MEMS support layer.
MEMS design with shear force rejection for reduced offset
Granted: September 19, 2023
Patent Number:
11761977
A MEMS sensor includes a central anchoring region that maintains the relative position of an attached proof mass relative to sense electrodes in the presence of undesired forces and stresses. The central anchoring region includes one or more first anchors that rigidly couple to a cover substrate and a base substrate. One or more second anchors are rigidly coupled to only the cover substrate and are connected to the one or more first anchors within the MEMS layer via an isolation spring.…
Ultrasonic range sensing enables measured social contact
Granted: June 27, 2023
Patent Number:
11686804
A method, system and computer readable medium for Ultrasound contact tracing comprising receiving one or more advertise messages determining a base station from the one or more advertise messages wherein the base station generates a broadcast order from at least the one or more advertise messages. A broadcast order is determined and an ultrasound message is sent according to the broadcast order. A detection period for ultrasound messages is initiated according to the broadcast order and…
Ultrasonic fingerprint sensor with a contact layer of non-uniform thickness
Granted: June 20, 2023
Patent Number:
11682228
An ultrasonic sensor includes a two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers, wherein the two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers is substantially flat, a contact layer having a non-uniform thickness overlying the two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers, and an array controller configured to control activation of ultrasonic transducers during an imaging operation. During the imaging operation, the array controller is configured to control a transmission frequency of…
Digital demodulator and complex compensator for MEMS gyroscope
Granted: June 20, 2023
Patent Number:
11680798
A micro electro-mechanical system (MEMS) gyroscope may include a suspended spring-mass system, and processing circuitry configured to receive a drive sense signal and a proof mass sense signal generated by the spring-mass system. The processing circuitry may be configured to derive a drive velocity in-phase signal from a drive displacement in-phase signal and to derive a drive velocity quadrature signal from a drive displacement quadrature signal. A compensated in-phase signal and a…
Ultrasonic transducer operable in a surface acoustic wave (SAW) mode
Granted: June 13, 2023
Patent Number:
11673165
A Piezoelectric Micromachined Ultrasonic Transducer (PMUT) device is provided. The PMUT includes a substrate and an edge support structure connected to the substrate. A membrane is connected to the edge support structure such that a cavity is defined between the membrane and the substrate, where the membrane is configured to allow movement at ultrasonic frequencies. The membrane includes a piezoelectric layer and first and second electrodes coupled to opposing sides of the piezoelectric…
Stiction reduction system and method thereof
Granted: May 30, 2023
Patent Number:
11661332
Methods and systems for reducing stiction through roughening the surface and reducing the contact area in MEMS devices are disclosed. A method includes fabricating bumpstops on a surface of a MEMS device substrate to reduce stiction. Another method is directed to applying roughening etchant to a surface of a silicon substrate to enhance roughness after cavity etch and before removal of hardmask. Another embodiment described herein is directed to a method to reduce contact area between…
Active stiction recovery
Granted: May 23, 2023
Patent Number:
11655139
A device includes a micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) device layer comprising a proof mass. The proof mass includes a first proof mass portion and a second proof mass portion. The first proof mass portion is configured to move in response to a stimuli. The second proof mass portion has a spring attached thereto. The device further includes a substrate disposed parallel to the MEMS device layer. The substrate comprises a bumpstop configured to limit motion of the first proof mass…
Device mountable packaging of ultrasonic transducers
Granted: May 16, 2023
Patent Number:
11651611
A mobile device including a processor, a memory unit, a display device disposed on a first surface of the mobile device, and a fingerprint sensor disposed on a second surface of the mobile device, wherein the second surface is a curved surface having a curvature such that the fingerprint sensor is curved to match the curvature of the curved surface.
Demodulation phase calibration using external input
Granted: May 16, 2023
Patent Number:
11650078
A MEMS device may output a signal during operation that may include an in-phase component and a quadrature component. An external signal having a phase that corresponds to the quadrature component may be applied to the MEMS device, such that the MEMS device outputs a signal having a modified in-phase component and a modified quadrature component. A phase error for the MEMS device may be determined based on the modified in-phase component and the modified quadrature component.
Determining touch applied to an ultrasonic sensor
Granted: April 25, 2023
Patent Number:
11635840
In a method for determining touch applied to an electronic device, ultrasonic signals are emitted from an ultrasonic sensor. A plurality of reflected ultrasonic signals from a finger interacting with the ultrasonic sensor is captured. A first data based at least in part on a first reflected ultrasonic signal of the plurality of reflected ultrasonic signals is compared with a second data based at least in part on a second reflected ultrasonic signal of the plurality of reflected…
