Galfenol low frequency slotted cylinder transducer.

The ability of Galfenol to be readily formed into various geometries can be exploited by device designers in their efforts to create innovative sources and sensors. In this research forged Galfenol alloy is utilized as the active source actuating a slotted cylinder transducer (SCT). Analytical modeling was utilized to determine the geometry necessary to achieve the notional performance specifications: 210‐dB source level, 750‐Hz resonance frequency, and 200‐Hz bandwidth. The final form factor was a Galfenol SCT with overall dimensions of 7.75‐in. diameter × 12‐in. length with a graphite composite shell material and Galfenol drivers comprising a rib‐like structure within the shell. The advantages this device has over existing SCTs are reduced cost, ease in manufacture and assembly, and improved reliability. Magnetic and mechanical models were combined in order to conduct three dimensional FEA analysis. The magnetic circuit was modeled in COMSOL MULTIPHYSICS and the acoustic model was built in ATILA. This presentation will include the predicted SCT performance based on the modeling effort as well as details on material manufacturing. Future work will include design optimization to further improve output and bandwidth.