Directive and focused acoustic wave radiation by tessellated transducers with folded curvatures Free

Guiding radiated acoustic energy from transducer arrays to arbitrary points in space requires fine control over contributions of sound provided to the point from each transducer constituent. Recent research has revealed advantages of mechanically reconfiguring array constituents along the folding patterns of an origami-inspired tessellation, in comparison to digitally processing signals sent to each element in a fixed configuration. To date, this concept of acoustic beamfolding has exemplified that far field wave radiation may be adapted by orders of magnitude to a point according to the folding of a Miura-ori tessellated array when the array constituents are driven by the same signal. This research investigates a new level of adaptive acoustic energy delivery from foldable arrays through study of tessellated transducers that adopt folded curvatures, thus introducing opportunity for near field energy focusing alongside far field directionality. The outcomes of these computational and experimental efforts plainly reveal that foldable, tessellated transducers that curve upon folding empower straightforward means for the fine, real-time control needed to beam and focus sound to points in space. Discussions are provided on the potentials and limitations of the current tessellations considered, and means for future studies to build upon the new understanding.