![]() Piezoelectric actuators are usually specified in terms of their free deflection and blocked force. Resonant Frequency (Fr) = 3 X cantilever frequencyĬharacteristics: center moves up and down in a parallel plane. To convert cantilever performance to simple beam performance:įree Deflection (Xf) = 1 / 4 X cantilever motionīlocked Force (Fb) = 4 X cantilever force Resonant Frequency (Fr) = same as cantilever frequencyĬapacitance (C) = same as cantilever capacitanceĬharacteristics: end moves up and down in a parallel plane Figure 6: 2-Layer Bending Motor Mounted as a Simple Beam To convert standard cantilever performance to "S" bender performance:įree Deflection (Xf) = 1 / 2 x cantilever motionīlocked Force (Fb) = 1 / 2 x cantilever force Figure 5: 2-Layer "S" Bending Motor Mounted as a Cantilever Figure 4: 2-Layer Bending Motor Mounted as a Cantileverįor standard cantilevered benders of the same thickness:Ĭharacteristics: End takes on an angle. ![]() ![]() The variety of mounting and motion options make benders a popular choice of design engineers. Figures-4, 5 and 6 show several common bending configurations. Bender motion on the order of hundreds to thousands of microns, and bender force from tens to hundreds of grams, is typical. These transducers are often referred to as benders, bimorphs, or flexural elements. For now, digest and practice… pē-ā-zō… pē-ā-zō… pē-ā-zō.A 2-layer element produces curvature when one layer expands while the other layer contracts. I’ll get into some more detail later - properties of different types, problems, installation, etc. That’s the basics of how piezo pickups work and the important bit about how you say it. That’s nice long vowel sounds all ‘round. However, Merriam-Webster recommends the following (and most people seem to have settled there): I’ve heard (and used) a number of different pronunciations over the years. IMG The big question: How to pronounce ‘piezo’ The vibrations from the guitar top are transferred to the piezo element and turned into lovely electricity A thin piezoelectric element is glued to a thin metal (usually brass or similar) disc. The construction of these is pretty simple. Instead of getting those vibrations transferred through the saddle material, this pickup is fixed or adhered to the guitar soundboard/top. The principal is mostly the same as with other pickups - turn vibrations into electricity. We know about undersaddle transducers (pickups) so let’s take a whistle-stop tour of the other application of piezo technology that’s relevant to the musician: soundboard transducers. Which brings me to… Piezo soundboard transducers Likewise, a piezo pickup also converts vibrating string energy into electricity (the only difference is how that string energy gets transduced). So, for instance, a magnetic pickup in an electric guitar converts vibrating string energy into electricity. You might have seen undersaddle pickups called Undersaddle Transducers (abbreviated to UST).Ī transducer is any device that converts one form of energy into another. Again, more details in the future but, for now, I’ll point you at an article where I discuss one of the most important aspects - string break angle. The hugely important thing to remember about piezo undersaddle pickups is that they won’t function well without effective transfer of those string vibrations. There’s a separate piezo element for each string (although the signals from each all run ‘together’ - there’s only one signal path to the amp). The copper strip is the ‘positive’ conductor and the housing channel forms the negative conductor. Like I say, it’s pretty simplified but it does the trick.
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