JP2000317898A - Piezoelectric/electrostrictive device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a piezoelectric/electrostrictive device with its actuation characteristic enhanced, for converting electric energy into mechanical energy such as mechanical displacement, force, or vibration, and vice versa. SOLUTION: This piezoelectric/electrostrictive device 31 comprises a connecting plate 2, a vibrating plate 3 and a substrate 5 joined to one another such that the direction for joining the connecting plate 2 to the substrate 5 crosses the direction for joining the connecting plate 2 to the vibrating plate 3 and the vibrating plate 3 extends between the connecting plate 2 and the substrate 5. A piezoelectric element 4 is disposed on the surface of the vibrating plate 3 and the vibrating plate 3 is curved into a projecting shape in the direction perpendicular to the two crossing directions.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a device using a piezoelectric / electrostrictive film. The present invention relates to a structure of a piezoelectric / electrostrictive device for improving operation characteristics of an element to be performed. Specifically, transducers, various actuators, frequency domain functional components (filters), transformers, transducers and resonators for communication and power, oscillators, discriminators, ultrasonic sensors, acceleration sensors, angular velocity sensors, and shocks It is suitably used for various sensors such as sensors and mass sensors. Also, Kenji Uchino, "Piezoelectric / electrostrictive actuators"
From basics to applications ”(edited by Japan Industrial Technology Center, Morikita Publishing), applied to unimorph-type and bimorph-type elements used for servo displacement elements, etc., and preferably for various types of optical equipment, precision equipment, etc. The present invention relates to a piezoelectric / electrostrictive device suitably used for various actuators used for a mechanism for displacement, positioning adjustment, and angle adjustment of a precision component or the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, in fields such as optics, magnetic recording, and precision processing, a displacement control element that adjusts an optical path length and a position on a submicron order has been desired. In response to this, a piezoelectric / electrostrictive actuator, which is an element utilizing a displacement based on an inverse piezoelectric effect or an electrostrictive effect caused when an electric field is applied to a piezoelectric / electrostrictive material such as a ferroelectric material, etc. Is being developed.

Among them, in the field of magnetic recording represented by a hard disk, the storage capacity has been remarkably increased in recent years. This is due to not only the improvement of the recording method such as writing / reading but also the increasing number of recording tracks. Attempts have been made to use recording media more efficiently and to increase the recording density itself.

Until now, the attempt has been mainly made to improve the voice coil motor. As a new technique, for example, "1997" of "TRANSDUCER '97"
International Conference
on solid-state Sensors an
d Actuators "1081-1084
The page introduces an attempt to apply an electrostatic microactuator manufactured by a Si or Ni micromachine process to a tracking system of a magnetic head for a hard disk.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. Hei 10-136665 discloses that a fixed member 103 and a movable member are formed by providing at least one hole in a plate made of a piezoelectric / electrostrictive material as shown in FIG. A portion 104 and at least one beam portion 102 connecting them are integrally formed, and at least a portion of the at least one beam portion 102 has a fixing portion 103
An electrode layer 105 is provided to constitute a displacement generating portion so that expansion and contraction occurs in a direction connecting the movable portion 104 and the movable portion 104.
A piezoelectric actuator 101 in which the displacement of No. 4 is an arc-shaped displacement or a rotational displacement in the plane of the plate-like body is disclosed.

[0006]

However, in the conventional recording head positioning technology mainly using a voice coil motor, in order to respond to a further increase in capacity, the number of tracks is increased and the tracks are accurately traced. It is difficult to position accurately.

In the technique using the electrostatic microactuator described above, displacement is obtained by applying a voltage between a plurality of plate-like electrodes formed by micromachining. It is difficult to raise the vibration, and as a result, there is a problem that the vibration is hardly attenuated when a high-speed operation is performed. In addition, in principle, the displacement is inferior to the linearity of the voltage-displacement characteristic.
There are many solutions from the viewpoint of precise alignment.
Furthermore, the process itself called micromachining has a problem in terms of manufacturing cost.

Further, the piezoelectric actuator 101 disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H10-136665 has a monomorph structure in the piezoelectric operating portion (a portion that is displaced by the distortion of the piezoelectric film). The axis and the axis of the main displacement of the piezoelectric actuator are coaxial or parallel,
For this reason, there is a problem that the displacement generated by the piezoelectric actuating portion itself is small and the displacement of the movable portion is also small. Further, the piezoelectric actuator 101 itself is heavy, and
As described in the official gazette,
For example, it is easily affected by residual vibration and vibration noise during high-speed operation, and it is necessary to suppress harmful vibration by filling the hole with a filler. However, the use of such a filler may adversely affect the displacement of the movable part. Furthermore, since the piezoelectric actuator 101 must be made of a piezoelectric / electrostrictive material itself having poor mechanical strength, there is a problem that the shape is easily affected by the material strength, and the usage is restricted. .

[0009]

Means for Solving the Problems The present invention has been made in view of the problems of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device described above,
The objective is to achieve the high displacement efficiency, and thus the high-speed and precise operation with low power consumption.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a piezoelectric / electrostrictive device which is mainly classified. Note that the term “piezoelectric” of the piezoelectric element, the piezoelectric film, and the piezoelectric ceramic used in the present invention includes both the meaning of “piezoelectric” and “electrostriction”. According to the present invention,
As a first piezoelectric electrostrictive device, the connection plate and the vibration plate and the substrate, so that the joining direction of the connection plate and the substrate and the joining direction of the connection plate and the vibration plate cross in a cross.
The vibration plate is joined to the connection plate and the substrate so as to extend between the connection plate and the substrate, and the piezoelectric element is disposed on at least a part of at least one surface of the vibration plate, and A piezoelectric / electrostrictive device is provided, wherein the plate is curved convexly in two directions perpendicular to the cross.

In the first piezoelectric / electrostrictive device, it is preferable that a fixed plate is joined to one end of the connecting plate.
It is also preferable to fix another device or component such as a magnetic head to the tip of the connecting plate. In addition, larger displacement can be obtained by joining the connecting plate and the fixed plate alternately to form a meandering shape and straddling a diaphragm with a piezoelectric element arranged between adjacent connecting plates. Becomes

Regarding the displacement mode of the first piezoelectric / electrostrictive device, when the joining surface between the connecting plate and the substrate is a fixed surface, and the center axis of the fixing surface is perpendicular to the center, the connecting plate is Is displaced like a pendulum in the joining direction of the connecting plate and the diaphragm, or perpendicular to both the joining direction of the connecting plate and the diaphragm and the extending direction of the central axis as the distance from the central axis increases in the θ displacement mode.モ ー ド displacement mode in which displacement components in different directions are added, or 変 位 displacement mode in which the connection plate and diaphragm are uniaxially displaced in the joining direction, or 接合 displacement mode in which the connection direction between the connection plate and diaphragm is further away from the central axis And at least one of the νz displacement modes in which a displacement component in a direction perpendicular to both directions of the extension direction of the central axis is added. Note that these displacement modes mainly include components in the above-described directions, and do not mean that other displacement direction components are not included at all.

Next, according to the present invention, as a second piezoelectric / electrostrictive device, a direction in which the connecting plate sandwiches the fixed plate and a direction in which the diaphragm sandwiches the connecting plate cross each other in a cross shape. As described above, the fixed plate, the connection plate, and the vibration plate are joined to each other, the connection plate is joined to the bottom surface of the opposed recess formed in the substrate, and the vibration plate is joined to the side surface of the recess, and A piezoelectric element is disposed on at least a part of at least one surface of the vibration plates, and the vibration plate on which the piezoelectric elements are disposed is curved in a convex shape in two directions perpendicular to the two directions forming the cross. A piezoelectric / electrostrictive device is provided.

In the second piezoelectric / electrostrictive device, it is preferable that the width of the connecting plate in the direction in which the vibrating plate sandwiches the connecting plate is different from each other. You may arrange so that it may be. As the displacement mode, the fixed plate is a uniaxial displacement mode in which the fixed plate is a displacement in the surface direction of the fixed plate and the diaphragm is uniaxially displaced in a direction parallel to the direction in which the connecting plate is sandwiched, or the center of the substantially fixed portion of the fixed plate. Any of the rotational displacement modes in which the rotation is performed is preferably used.

In the first and second piezoelectric / electrostrictive devices described above, it is also preferable to provide one or more slits and / or holes in the connecting plate and / or to form a thin portion and a thick portion. In this case, it is possible to efficiently obtain a planar displacement.

Subsequently, according to the present invention, the third piezoelectric /
As an electrostrictive device, a connecting plate is laid between the bottom surfaces of opposed concave portions formed on the substrate, and in each of the concave portions,
At least one diaphragm is straddled between the connection plate and the side surface of the concave portion, and the fixed plate is connected such that a longitudinal direction of the fixed plate is parallel to a straddling direction of the diaphragm. A piezoelectric element is disposed on at least a part of at least one surface of at least two of the diaphragms, and the diaphragm is arranged in a direction in which the diaphragm is straddled and a direction in which the connecting plate is straddled. A piezoelectric / electrostrictive device characterized by being convexly curved in a direction perpendicular to both directions.

In the third device,
A connecting plate, one end of which in the longitudinal direction is sandwiched by at least two diaphragms, and the other end of which is sandwiched by at least two other diaphragms, is straddled between bottom surfaces of opposed concave portions formed in the substrate. At the same time, the diaphragm is joined to the side surface of the recess, and the fixed plate is joined to the connecting plate such that the longitudinal direction of the fixed plate is parallel to the direction in which the diaphragm sandwiches the connecting plate. A piezoelectric element is disposed on at least a part of at least one surface of at least two of the vibration plates, and the vibration plate is arranged so that the vibration plate sandwiches the connection plate and the straddling direction of the connection plate. It is also preferable to form a piezoelectric / electrostrictive device characterized in that the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device is convexly curved in the directions perpendicular to both directions.

In the third piezoelectric / electrostrictive device, it is preferable to form a notch at a joint between the fixing plate and the connecting plate. Further, the fixing plate may be joined so as to intersect with the connecting plate. Furthermore, it is also preferable that the connecting plate is divided into at least two in the longitudinal direction of the fixed plate, and that at least two divided connecting plates and the fixed plate are joined. In the case where the above-described cutout portion is provided, it is preferable to provide a tongue portion in the fixed plate from the joint between the fixed plate and the connecting plate in the longitudinal direction of the fixed plate, because the displacement can be increased, which is preferable.

In the third piezoelectric / electrostrictive device, one set of piezoelectric elements positioned diagonally opposite to each other around the joint between the fixed plate and the connecting plate is driven in phase and the other set of piezoelectric elements is driven. A method in which the elements are driven in opposite phases, or one set of piezoelectric elements and another set of piezoelectric elements are driven in phase with the same phase shifted with respect to time is suitably employed. On the other hand, with the longitudinal axis of the fixed plate as the axis of symmetry, one set of piezoelectric elements at line-symmetric positions are driven in phase and the other set of piezoelectric elements are driven in opposite phase, or one set of piezoelectric elements is driven. Other sets of piezoelectric elements may be driven in the same phase and at different times. The pair of two diaphragms sandwiching the connecting plate may be joined to the connecting plate at positions shifted in the thickness direction of the connecting plate, respectively.
A piezoelectric element is disposed on one flat surface of each of the diaphragms, with the midpoint of the joining position between the pair of two diaphragms sandwiching the coupling plate and the coupling plate being the center of point symmetry, and It is also preferable to drive in the same phase.

The displacement mode of the third piezoelectric / electrostrictive device is a uniaxial displacement mode in which the fixed plate is displaced uniaxially in the longitudinal direction of the fixed plate, or a mode centered on the vicinity of the joint between the fixed plate and the connecting plate. At least one of the in-plane rotational displacement mode and the axial rotational displacement mode with the longitudinal axis of the connecting plate as the center of rotation is preferably used. The third in-plane rotational displacement mode of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device is based on an enlargement mechanism that enlarges the displacement of the piezoelectric element in two stages.

In the above-described piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention, it is also preferable that one fixed plate has a structure in which it is joined to the connecting plates of the plurality of piezoelectric / electrostrictive devices. Further, as the convex shape of the diaphragm, when the length in the straddling direction of the diaphragm is L and the curved height in the convex direction is H, the relationship of at least 1 ≦ (H / L) × 100 ≦ 30 is satisfied. It is preferable that 1 ≦ (H / L) × 10
More preferably, the relationship of 0 ≦ 10 is satisfied. Further, it is preferable that at least the connecting plate and the diaphragm are joined to each other on their side surfaces. That is, it is preferable to displace the connecting plate in the rigid body mode. It is preferable that at least the connecting plate, the vibration plate, and the substrate are formed integrally, because the reliability of the joint can be improved. Of course, when a fixing plate is provided, it is preferable that the fixing plate is similarly joined on the side surface and is formed integrally with the connecting plate. Such an integrated structure can be easily obtained by forming at least the connecting plate, the diaphragm, and the substrate using the green sheet laminating method. In this case, it is easy to similarly form the fixing plate integrally.

One piezoelectric element may be divided into a plurality of piezoelectric elements. In this case, at least one divided piezoelectric element is used as a driving element, and another at least one piezoelectric element is used as an auxiliary element. Is preferred. Regardless of whether or not one piezoelectric element is divided, two piezoelectric elements can be used.
When more than one piezoelectric element is provided, it is also preferable to use at least one piezoelectric element as a driving element and to use at least one other piezoelectric element as an auxiliary element. Here, the auxiliary element means a failure diagnosis element, a displacement confirmation / judgment element, a driving auxiliary element, and the like.

It is preferable that the piezoelectric element and the electrode lead conducting to the electrode of the piezoelectric element be covered with an insulating layer made of resin or glass, because moisture resistance is improved. When a resin is used here, a fluorine resin or a silicone resin is preferably used. When an insulating layer is formed, it is also preferable to form a shield layer made of a conductive member on the surface.

As the material of the substrate, the fixing plate, the connecting plate, and the diaphragm, completely stabilized zirconia or partially stabilized zirconia is preferably used. On the other hand, as the piezoelectric film in the piezoelectric element, a material mainly containing a component composed of lead zirconate, lead titanate, and lead magnesium niobate is preferably used. The shape of at least one of the fixed plate, the connecting plate, and the vibration plate can be easily adjusted by trimming by laser processing or mechanical processing, and the electrodes of the piezoelectric element can be easily processed by laser processing or mechanical processing. It is also preferable to adjust the effective electrode area.

By the way, when the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention is compared with the piezoelectric actuator 101 described in JP-A-10-136665, the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention is a unimorph or bimorph type having a diaphragm. Due to the structure, the direction of the axis of the main strain of the piezoelectric film and the axis of the main displacement of the piezoelectric actuator are different, and by utilizing this feature, the strain of the piezoelectric film can be expanded to the bending mode, and therefore, large fixed It has the characteristic that a plate displacement can be obtained. Further, the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention can be differentiated in function, and a substrate or the like other than the piezoelectric film can be made of a material mainly composed of zirconia having excellent mechanical strength and toughness. In addition, there is an advantage that a small, thin, and lightweight device can be obtained. Further, there is a feature that the displacement characteristics are hardly affected by external influences, and therefore, it is not necessary to use a filler or the like.

[0025]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of a piezoelectric / electrostrictive device (hereinafter, referred to as “device”) of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments. It is not limited. FIG. 1A is a plan view showing the basic structure of the first device of the present invention. In the device 31, the connecting direction of the connecting plate 2 and the diaphragm 3 and the substrate 5 and the connecting direction of the connecting plate 2 and the substrate 5 (Y-axis direction; the same applies hereinafter) and the connecting direction of the connecting plate 2 and the diaphragm 3 ( X-axis direction.
The same applies hereinafter. ) Intersect with each other in a cross, that is, orthogonally, and the vibration plate 3 is joined to the connecting plate 2 and the substrate 5 so as to be straddled between them. , A window 15 is formed between the substrate 5 and the diaphragm 3. Therefore, in order for the diaphragm 3 to be straddled, the substrate 5 needs to have a shape having side surfaces in both the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction.

A piezoelectric element 4 is disposed on one surface of the vibration plate 3, and the vibration plate 3 is a direction perpendicular to two directions forming a cross (a direction perpendicular to the paper surface, hereinafter referred to as a “Z-axis direction”). In the following, the XYZ axes are similarly defined.). Therefore, the piezoelectric element 4 also has a curved shape. A sectional view showing this state is shown in FIG.
FIG. 1C shows a cross section of the device 31 in a plane perpendicular to the XY plane, that is, through the X-axis in the plan view of FIG. The direction of Y
It is sectional drawing seen from the axial direction. A cross-sectional view shown by such a method is hereinafter represented as “an AA diagram on the X axis”. In the piezoelectric element 4, electrode leads are provided from the electrodes forming the piezoelectric element 4 to the substrate 5, but are omitted in each drawing of FIG. 1.

The joining of the members of the connecting plate 2, the diaphragm 3, and the substrate 5 is preferably performed on a side surface of each member, and is preferably formed integrally. If a green sheet laminating method described later is used, a device 31 integrally formed can be easily obtained. The connecting plate 2 is formed thicker than the diaphragm 3, but may be formed as thin as the diaphragm 3. The connecting plate 2 in the device 31
This is equivalent to bonding a spring plate 17 having the same width as the thin plate 16 to the thin plate 16 in a device 34 described later. It is possible to increase the mechanical strength and suppress the displacement of the connecting plate 2 in the Z-axis direction described later.

Here, the connection plate refers to an element that transmits displacement or vibration of the vibration plate generated by driving the piezoelectric element and expands the displacement of the vibration plate. As shown at 34 and the like, various elements such as a fixing plate and a magnetic head can be attached. That is, the connection plate also serves to connect the fixed plate or the like to the substrate and to displace the fixed plate or the like. In the device 31, it is assumed that the connection plate 2 itself also plays the role of the fixed plate. Can be.

The vibration plate is an element that converts distortion of a piezoelectric element disposed on the surface into displacement or vibration in a bending mode and transmits the displacement or vibration to the connection plate. Note that the vibration plate also plays a role of transmitting distortion or vibration generated when the connection plate or a fixed plate joined to the connection plate is displaced or vibrated to the piezoelectric element. The substrate holds a movable portion (including a connection plate, a vibration plate, a piezoelectric element, and a fixed plate when a fixed plate or the like is provided), and various electrodes for attaching to a measurement device. An element provided with terminals and used for handling in actual use.

As described above, the vibration plate 3
Are formed, but the two side surfaces are not necessarily required to be orthogonal.
The intersection of the side surfaces may have a curvature. The two side surfaces may be the bottom surface and one side surface of the concave portion formed in the substrate 5, and the concave portion may be formed by three side surfaces out of four side surfaces when a rectangular hole is formed in the substrate. It may be. Therefore, the recess does not need to be a depression having a side surface perpendicular to the bottom surface, and does not necessarily need to be opened in one direction.

Now, in order to explain the features of this device 31, first, FIG. FIG. 2 is a sectional view corresponding to FIG.
The mechanism of displacement in the device 30 will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 2A, the tip of the connecting plate 2 is
A case where displacement or vibration is performed in the axial direction (hereinafter, such a mode is also referred to as “driving”) is considered.

When the piezoelectric element 4 uses a piezoelectric film d ₃₁ , for example, as in a piezoelectric element 88 shown in FIG. 5 described below, when a voltage is applied to the piezoelectric element 4, Electric field-induced distortion occurs in the film, and displacement of the bending mode in a direction indicated by an arrow C in a direction perpendicular to the main plane of the diaphragm 63 occurs (FIG. 2B). At this time, a force in the direction opposite to the arrow C represented by the arrow D acts on the joint B between the diaphragm 63 and the connecting plate 2. The direction of the arrow D is the Z-axis direction and is orthogonal to the direction of the arrow A, and therefore does not include a component for displacing the connecting plate in the direction of the arrow A. Does not displace in the direction of arrow A.

However, when the diaphragm 63 is bent,
Force acting on the joint portion B is not in the direction of arrow D, and a direction indicated by arrow E, so that the direction component of the arrow A (arrow E _A) occurs. We, thus the displacement component of arrow E _A, connecting plate 2 is estimated that the displacement in the direction of arrow A, where the direction of the predominantly arrow A at a lower voltage than when the vibration plate is a parallel plate Before applying a voltage to the piezoelectric element 4 in order to displace the piezoelectric element 4, the shape of the vibration plate and the piezoelectric element (hereinafter, the combination thereof is referred to as a “piezoelectric actuator”) is shown in FIG. The device 31 has reached the device 31 (FIG. 1 (b)) which has been curved in the same manner as in FIG.

In other words, by forming a curved piezoelectric actuator as in the device 31 having the cross-sectional shape of FIG. 1B, a direction indicated by an arrow A is applied to the joint B from the moment a voltage is applied to the piezoelectric element 4. Therefore, the connecting plate 2 can be displaced more efficiently at a lower voltage with respect to the driving of the piezoelectric element 4 as compared with the case where the piezoelectric operating portion has a parallel plate shape. Become.

The direction of curvature of such a piezoelectric actuator is
As shown in FIG. 1B, it is not necessary to set so as to be convex on the diaphragm 3 side. That is,
As shown in FIG. 1C, it is also possible to make the shape convex toward the piezoelectric element 4 side. The cross-sectional views shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B are explanatory views of the mechanism of displacement of the piezoelectric actuator in such a structure. D ₃₃ such as piezoelectric elements 94A and 94B shown in FIG. 6 or FIG.
When the piezoelectric element 4 is used, as shown in FIG. 3A, the voltage applied to the piezoelectric element 4 causes the piezoelectric film to expand in the direction of the electric field, that is, the main surface of the piezoelectric film. The actuating portion further causes a bending displacement in the direction of arrow C where the shape becomes convex. Thus, the direction to the force of the arrow E acts on the junction B, the arrow E _A is the X-axis component, the connecting plate 2 will be displaced in the direction of arrow A.

On the other hand, in FIG. 3B, when a piezoelectric element 4 using d ₃₁ like the piezoelectric element 88 shown in FIG. 5 described later is used, the piezoelectric film is perpendicular to the electric field. Since the piezoelectric actuator is deformed so as to expand and contract in the direction, that is, in the direction of the main surface of the piezoelectric film, the piezoelectric actuator is displaced in the direction of arrow C so that the convex shape approaches horizontal. Thus, it becomes possible to force acts in the direction of arrow E in junction B, the arrow E _A is the X-axis component, the connecting plate 2 will be displaced in the direction of arrow A. However, in this case, since the degree of bending becomes smaller in accordance with the displacement of the piezoelectric actuator, the displacement efficiency of the connecting plate 2 in the direction of the arrow A also becomes slightly smaller.

Now, regardless of whether the piezoelectric element 4 is disposed on the convex surface or the concave surface of the diaphragm 3, FIGS. 4A and 4B
As shown in (1), when the length of the diaphragm 3 in the straddling direction is L and the curved height in the convex direction is H, 1 ≦ (H / L)
It is preferable that the relationship of × 100 ≦ 30 is satisfied, and it is more preferable that the relationship of 1 ≦ (H / L) × 100 ≦ 10 is satisfied. This is because, as described later, since the device of the present invention forms the piezoelectric operating portion by the film forming method, the shape of the piezoelectric operating portion is closely related to the firing stress at the time of firing the piezoelectric film. It is preferable that the design be made in consideration of the easiness of manufacturing the device while suppressing the decrease in the piezoelectric characteristics due to the stress. Can be fully utilized. Note that these convex shapes are filled at least in the direction in which the diaphragm 3 is laid, and the direction perpendicular to the direction in which the diaphragm 3 is laid is not necessarily limited to this.

As described above, various piezoelectric elements 4 using d ₃₁ or d ₃₃ are provided in the device 31 to cause a predetermined displacement to the connecting plate 2. As shown in FIG. 5, as shown in FIG. 5, as a form of the piezoelectric element 4 using d ₃₁ , the piezoelectric film 86
Piezoelectric element 88 formed in a layered manner sandwiched between
Is typical. On the other hand, the form of the piezoelectric element 4 utilizing d _33, the piezoelectric film 9 on the diaphragm 89 as shown in FIG. 6
0, the first electrode 91 and the second electrode 9 on the piezoelectric film 90 are disposed.
2 is a piezoelectric element 94A having a comb-shaped structure in which a gap 93 having a constant width is formed. Note that the first electrode 91 and the second electrode 92 in FIG.
May be formed between the connecting surfaces. Further, as shown in FIG. 7, a piezoelectric element 94B in which a piezoelectric film 90 is embedded between a comb-shaped first electrode 91 and a second electrode 92 is also provided.
It is suitably used as a piezoelectric element utilizing d _33.

When the piezoelectric elements 94A and 94B having the comb electrodes shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 are used, the displacement can be increased by reducing the pitch W of the comb electrodes. Such piezoelectric elements shown in FIGS. 5 to 7 can be applied to all devices of the present invention described later. When a voltage is applied to the piezoelectric element 4, a distortion corresponding to the applied voltage is generated in the piezoelectric film, and the distortion is transmitted to the diaphragm 3 and then transmitted to the connecting plate 2, thereby connecting the piezoelectric film. The predetermined displacement described above occurs in the plate 2.

Next, the form of displacement of the connecting plate 2, that is, the displacement mode will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, when a joint surface between the connecting plate 2 and the substrate 5 is a fixed surface and a center axis (Y axis) vertically penetrating the center of the fixed surface is considered, the connecting plate 2 is The θ displacement mode in which the pendulum is displaced in the joining direction (X-axis direction) with the diaphragm 3, or the joining direction (X-axis direction) between the connecting plate 2 and the diaphragm 3 as the distance from the Y-axis increases in the θ displacement mode Φ that a displacement component in a direction (Z-axis direction) perpendicular to both directions of the extension direction of the central axis (Y-axis direction) is applied.
In the displacement mode, the ν displacement mode in which the connection plate 2 and the diaphragm 3 are displaced uniaxially in the joining direction (X-axis direction), or in the ν displacement mode, as the distance from the Y axis increases, the connection plate 2
At least one of the νz displacement modes in which a displacement component in a direction (Z-axis direction) perpendicular to both the joining direction (X-axis direction) of the vibration plate 3 and the extension direction of the central axis (Y-axis direction) is added. It is preferable to use

That is, the θ displacement mode is a displacement mainly including displacement components in the X axis direction and the Y axis direction, and the φ mode is X ·
Includes displacement components in the three axes of Y and Z. The ν displacement mode is a displacement mainly including a displacement component in the X-axis direction.
The displacement mode is a displacement mainly including displacement components in the X-axis direction and the Z-axis direction. It is possible to determine which displacement mode is dominant by appropriately changing the design of the form of the connecting plate and the arrangement position of the diaphragm. Note that these displacement modes mainly include components in the above-described directions, and do not mean that they do not include other displacement direction components at all.

As described above, the device according to the present invention can cause various displacements depending on the arrangement position of the piezoelectric element 4 and the driving form thereof. In the device 31, the diaphragm 3
Although the piezoelectric element 4 is provided only on one surface of the substrate, the piezoelectric element may be provided on the other surface. For example,
The concave surface of the diaphragm is disposed a piezoelectric element utilizing d _31, the convex surface can be driven by arranging the piezoelectric element utilizing d _33.

When piezoelectric elements are provided on both surfaces, one piezoelectric element can be used as a driving element of the connecting plate as described above, and the other piezoelectric element can be used as an auxiliary element. The auxiliary element here refers to a failure diagnosis element, a displacement confirmation / judgment element, a driving auxiliary element, and the like.
The use of the auxiliary element makes it possible to drive the connecting plate with high precision.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing an example of the actuator 26 using the device 31. The device 31 is firmly fixed to a member such as the slider 27 using a fixing jig 29 or the like. A magnetic head 28 is attached to the distal end of the connection plate 2 of the device 31. By driving the piezoelectric element 4, the magnetic head 28 can be moved by a predetermined displacement. The member to be fixed such as the slider 27 and the device 31 may be formed by processing a green sheet and integrating each member without using the fixing jig 29 as described later.

Next, FIG. 9 shows plan views (a) and (c) of devices 32A and 32B showing another embodiment of the present invention, and AA diagrams (b) and (d) taken along the X1 axis in the plan views. ). In the device 32A, the connecting plate 2 is formed with a thin portion 6 and a thick portion 7 with the outer peripheral portion being thicker than the central portion. In other words, this is equivalent to a device in which the thin portion 6 is formed by removing the central portion of the connecting plate 2 having a constant thickness of the device 31, and the U-shaped flat plate surface of the thin plate having the same thickness as the diaphragm 3. It can be easily obtained by bonding the spring plate 8. Since the device 32A is strong against torsion while reducing the weight of the device itself, it is possible to efficiently obtain a planar displacement, thus improving the positioning speed (improving the control of the displacement amount) and the displacement ( The accuracy of the (moving) route is improved.

The device 32 B is a device 32 B
The slits (voids) 9 are formed in the thin portion 6 of A, whereby the displacement can be increased. Although the slit 9 is a window that is long in the Y-axis direction, even if a hole (window) such as a circle is formed instead of the slit 9,
A similar effect can be obtained.

FIG. 10 is a plan view showing still another embodiment of the device of the present invention. Device 31.3 as described above
2A and 32B, the substrate 5 in the Y-axis direction
The diaphragm 3 is formed by the substrate 5 and the coupling plate 2 so that the window 15 is not formed in the device 33 so that the window 3 is not formed. Is fitted to the bottom of the recess 10 to be formed. That is, the diaphragm 3 has two sides joined to the substrate 5 and one side joined to the connecting plate 2. In the present invention, the diaphragm 3
Is arranged in such a manner that the device 31
Assume that the diaphragm 3 is one of the arrangements in which the diaphragm 3 is “straddled”. With such a structure, the bending of the connecting plate 2 in the Z-axis direction can be suppressed, and the displacement in the θ displacement mode can be easily caused. Thereby, the ν displacement mode can be easily caused.

FIG. 11A is a plan view showing the device 34 in which the fixed plate 1 is joined to the tip of the connecting plate 2, FIG. It is an arrow BB view in the Y-axis, and is sectional drawing (c)-(f) which shows various different forms. Here, the fixed plate is
It has a role of facilitating attachment of another element or component that is difficult to attach directly to the connection plate.

In the connecting plate 2 of the device 34, the mechanical strength is improved by a structure in which the center portion is thicker, contrary to the device 32 A, but the major feature of the device 34 is that the connecting plate 2 itself is not used. Instead, it is in the structure of the joint between the substrate 5 and the connecting plate 2. That is, assuming that the connecting plate 2 of the device 31 described above is composed of the thin plate 16 and the spring plate 17 as shown in FIG. 11F, the diaphragm 3 has a structure joined to the thin plate 16. Therefore, the connection plate 2 is likely to be twisted about the Y axis as a rotation axis by the action of the force from the vibration plate 3.

On the other hand, FIG.
As shown in (e), the connecting plate 2 of the device 34 is
When the diaphragm 3 is formed of the thin plate 16 and the spring plate 17 bonded to both surfaces thereof, the diaphragm 3 is joined to the thin plate 16 so that the force from the diaphragm 3 is reduced by the Z-axis of the connecting plate 2. Act on the center in the direction. In this way, the rotational displacement around the Y axis is suppressed, so that the displacement in the X axis direction can be dominant, and the fixed plate 1 is easily displaced in the θ mode, which is preferable for applications such as a magnetic head. It will be. In addition, there is an effect that the rigidity of the device is increased and the high-speed response is improved.

In order to effectively cause the displacement of the connecting plate 2, it is preferable that the entire connecting plate 2 is joined to the substrate 5. That is, as shown in FIGS. 11C and 11D, it is preferable that the entire connecting plate 2 is joined to the substrate 5 irrespective of the position in the Z-axis direction. On the other hand, as shown in FIG.
When the substrate 7 is not directly joined to the substrate 5, it is preferable to form a spring plate reinforcing plate 18 so that the spring plate 17 is joined to the substrate 5.

The spring plate 17 is preferably configured to be symmetrical with respect to the thin plate 16.
When the material is different on each surface of the thin plate 16, the spring plate 17 does not need to have the same shape, and may be appropriately set in consideration of the Young's modulus of the spring plate 17 and the like.

Now, in the device 34, the piezoelectric element 4 is divided in the Y-axis direction and formed as piezoelectric elements 4A and 4B. In this case, the piezoelectric element 4A on the fixed plate 1 side
Can be used as a drive element, and the piezoelectric element 4B on the joint side between the connecting plate 2 and the substrate 5 can be used as an auxiliary element. Needless to say, such a method of forming and using a piezoelectric element separately can be applied to all devices of the present invention, and when a plurality of piezoelectric elements are provided, an arbitrary piezoelectric element can be further divided. It is also preferable to use them.

In such a case, it is easy to arrange auxiliary elements for different uses in one device. Note that the piezoelectric element is divided by a method in which one piezoelectric element is provided and then divided by laser processing or the like as described later.
Alternatively, any of the methods of disposing the piezoelectric elements as a set of two elements from the beginning may be used.

Subsequently, in FIG. 12, the fixing plate 1 is attached to the device 33, and the connecting plates 2 and the fixing plates 1 are alternately joined to form a meandering shape, and are formed by the adjacent connecting plates 2 and the fixing plate 1. A plan view of a device 35 having a structure in which the vibration plate 3 provided with the piezoelectric element 4 is fitted in the concave portion 10 is shown.

Here, it is preferable that the fixed plate 1 is a member thicker than the diaphragm 3. With such a structure, since the rigidity of the fixed plate 1 is high, distortion generated when the piezoelectric element 4 is driven is small on the fixed plate 1 side and large on the opposite side. When the planar shape of the portion composed of the two adjacent connecting plates 2 and the fixing plate 1 joining these connecting plates 2 is likened to a V-shape, the connecting plate 2 uses the apex of the V-shape as a fixed point, and Causes a large displacement that causes the opening. Conversely, when the fixed plate 1 is thin, the fixed plate 1 is distorted, so that the connecting plate 2 is hardly displaced, and a large displacement is hardly obtained. In the device 35, such V-shaped displacements of the plurality of connecting plates 2 are combined, and a larger displacement amount can be obtained.

In the device 35, the diaphragm 3
It is also preferable to provide a window portion without joining with the fixing plate 1 and to extend between the adjacent connecting plates 2. In this case, the connecting plate 2 does not necessarily have to be formed thick.
Can be obtained as described above.

Next, FIG. 13A is a plan view showing various embodiments of the second piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to the present invention.
To (c). First, the device 36A shown in FIG. 13A will be described. In the device 36A, the direction in which the connecting plates 2A and 2B sandwich the fixed plate 1 (Y-axis direction) and the diaphragms (3A and 3C) and (3B The fixed plate 1 and the connecting plates 2A and 2B and the diaphragms 3A to 3D are joined to each other so that the direction (X-axis direction) in which the 3D) sandwiches the connecting plates 2A and 2B intersects crosswise, that is, is orthogonal. ,
Opposite concave portions 1 in which connecting plates 2A and 2B are formed in substrate 5
0A and 10B, and the diaphragms 3A-
3D has a structure joined to the side surfaces of the concave portions 10A and 10B.

In the device 36A, the diaphragms 3C and 3D
Although only the piezoelectric elements 4C and 4D are formed, the arrangement and driving form of the piezoelectric elements can be changed as in a device 36B described later. The diaphragms 3C and 3D on which the piezoelectric elements 4C and 4D are disposed are curved so as to be convex in one direction in the Z-axis direction. It does not necessarily have to be curved.

In the device 36A, the rotation of the fixed plate 1 around the Y axis is suppressed by the diaphragms 3A to 3D. Accordingly, when the piezoelectric elements 4C and 4D are driven in the same phase, the fixed plate 1
It has a feature that it is easily displaced in the X-axis direction on the Y plane. Such a displacement mode in the device 36A is referred to as a uniaxial displacement mode.

The device 36B is one in which all of the vibration plates 3A to 3D in FIG. 13A are formed in a curved shape and the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D are provided. By using these as driving elements, the amount of displacement of the fixed plate 1 in the direction of arrow K can be increased. In this case, it is preferable that the piezoelectric elements 4A and 4B are set as a set, and the piezoelectric elements 4C and 4D are set as a set and the sets are simultaneously driven in opposite phases.
Even if they are in phase with each other, the displacement in the direction of the arrow K can be obtained by applying a voltage at a different time. The piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D may be provided on both surfaces of the diaphragms 3A to 3D. For example, a piezoelectric element provided on the concave side is used as a driving element, and a piezoelectric element provided on the convex side is used as an auxiliary element. Is also preferred.

It should be noted that the in-phase /
The opposite phase is to determine the direction of the distortion of the piezoelectric element to be generated, and the same phase is to drive the piezoelectric element so that the distortion is in the same direction, and the opposite phase is the distortion in the opposite direction. Or driving one of them without applying a signal, that is, driving so as to cause distortion in the opposite direction when viewed relatively. For example, when a voltage is applied to one set of piezoelectric elements, contraction distortion or extension distortion occurs in each plane, it is called the same phase, and when one contracts and the other expands, the opposite phase occurs. That. Therefore, it is possible to form a group of piezoelectric elements by appropriately combining a device utilizing the lateral effect (d ₃₁ ) of electric field induced strain and a device utilizing the longitudinal effect (d ₃₃ ) of electric field induced strain. Further, if the piezoelectric element at the required piezoelectric material polarized operation, all it is those which use the same d ₃₃ or d _31, or reverse the signal at the time of driving the same direction as the polarity at the time of polarization , The phase can be controlled.

The device 36 C has the diaphragms 3 A to 3 D joined to the bottom side surfaces of the recesses 10 A and 10 B in the substrate 5, that is, the arrangement of the diaphragm 3 in the device 33 shown in FIG. 10 is applied. Thus, the bending and bending of the connecting plates 2A and 2B and the fixed plate 1 in the Z-axis direction can be suppressed, and a more pure displacement in the direction of the arrow K can be obtained.

FIGS. 14A to 14C show devices 36D to 36D having a structure similar to the device 36A.
It is a top view of F. In the device 36D, the diaphragms 3B and 3C at diagonal positions with respect to the center O of the fixed plate 1
Are provided with piezoelectric elements 4B and 4C. Here, when the piezoelectric elements 4B and 4C are driven in the same phase, the fixed plate 1
X-Y about the center O as shown by the arrow in the figure
A rotational displacement occurs in the plane. When the fixed plate 1 is driven in the rotational displacement mode as described above, it is not always necessary to form the vibration plates 3A and 3D. On the other hand, the piezoelectric elements 4A and 4A
D is disposed on each of the diaphragms 3A and 3D, and the piezoelectric element 4A
When the 4D is simultaneously driven so as to have the opposite phase to the piezoelectric elements 4B and 4C, it is possible to drive in the rotational displacement mode showing a larger displacement. In addition, the piezoelectric elements 4A and 4A
D, Even if the piezoelectric elements 4B and 4C are in phase, if the voltage application timing is shifted in time and driven, a double stroke can be obtained as compared with the case where only the piezoelectric elements 4B and 4C are used. That is self-evident. Needless to say, such a method of driving the piezoelectric element can be applied to all devices in which a plurality of piezoelectric elements are provided.

The device 36 E includes the diaphragm 3
This shows a form in which A to 3D are directly joined, and the arrangement of the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D is the same as that in the case of FIG. Even with such a structure, the fixed plate 1 can be efficiently displaced by the uniaxial displacement mode in the direction of the arrow K. When the arrangement of the piezoelectric element of the device 36D is applied to the device 36E, the fixed plate 1 can be driven in the rotational displacement mode.

The device 36F shows an embodiment in which one width (width in the X-axis direction) of the connection plates 2A and 2B is widened and the other width is narrowed.
Driving is facilitated by the displacement mode or the φ displacement mode. In a case where displacement is obtained by using a plurality of piezoelectric elements as in these devices 36A to 36F and devices 37 to 44 described later, a predetermined directional component is dominant, and a displacement amount is uniformly obtained. For this reason, it is preferable to reduce the variation in the shape and the degree of curvature of each piezoelectric actuator.

Next, various embodiments of the third device of the present invention will be described. FIG. 15A is a plan view of the device 37, and FIG. 15B is a plan view of X1 in FIG.
It is an arrow AA figure in an axis. In device 37,
In a state where the connecting plate 2 has one end in the longitudinal direction (Y-axis direction) sandwiched by two diaphragms 3A and 3B and the other end sandwiched by another two diaphragms 3C and 3D, Opposing recesses 10A and 1 formed in substrate 5
It is straddled between the bottom surfaces of OB. In addition, diaphragms 3A to 3A
Piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D are respectively disposed on one surface of D, and diaphragms 3A to 3D are provided with concave portions 10A and 10B.
The fixed plate 1 has a longitudinal direction of the fixed plate 1 in which the diaphragms 3A to 3D sandwich the connecting plate 2,
That is, it is joined to the connecting plate 2 in the X-axis direction. As shown in FIG. 15B, the diaphragms 3A to 3D are curved so as to be convex in one of the Z-axis directions.

Note that the concave portion refers to a portion having a bottom surface on one side and side surfaces on two sides. For example, a concave portion is formed by cutting a part of the outer periphery of the substrate into a square shape, and when a rectangular hole portion is provided inside the substrate, three out of four sides are formed.
The sides can be considered as recesses. The angle formed by the side surface and the bottom surface in the concave portion may have an inclination as long as the drive characteristics of the device according to the present invention can be obtained. The formation of such a concave portion corresponds to the devices 31 to 36F described above.
The same applies to devices described later.

One of the driving methods of the device 37 is preferably such that the diaphragms 3A to 3A, as shown in FIG.
When the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D are arranged on the curved surface in the same direction of D, the joint between the fixed plate 1 and the connecting plate 2 is centered.
That is, one set of the piezoelectric elements 4A and 4D, which are positioned diagonally opposite each other, are driven in phase around the intersection of the X axis and the Y axis, and the other set of piezoelectric elements 4B and 4C are connected to the piezoelectric elements 4A and 4C. 4D
Are simultaneously driven in opposite phases. In this case, when the piezoelectric elements 4A and 4D expand, the piezoelectric elements 4B and 4B
4C shrinks, and this state appears as a displacement of the vibration plates 3A to 3D on which the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D are disposed. Therefore, the fixed plate 1 has an X-axis as shown by an arrow K1 in FIG. Y
In-plane rotational displacement (in-plane rotational displacement mode) occurs around the intersection of the X axis and the Y axis in the plane.

On the other hand, as another driving method of the device 37, preferably, a pair of piezoelectric elements 4 A ·
4C in the same phase, and the other set of piezoelectric elements 4B
D may be simultaneously driven in opposite phases. In this case, XY as shown by an arrow K2 in FIG.
A uniaxial displacement (uniaxial displacement mode) in the X-axis direction in the plane is obtained. As described in the driving method of the device 36D, the displacement in the direction of the arrow K1 or the direction of the arrow K2 can be performed by shifting the time of the piezoelectric elements of each set in the same phase without simultaneously driving the sets of the piezoelectric elements in opposite phases. Can also be obtained by driving. However, from the viewpoint of the magnitude of the displacement, it is inferior to the case where they are simultaneously driven in opposite phases.

In this way, in the device 37, the response speed, the displacement of the tip of the fixed plate 1, and the displacement generating force are arbitrarily set by variously selecting the length of the connecting plate 2 and the length of the fixed plate 1. It becomes possible. The fixing plate 1 is preferably joined to the connecting plate 2 at the center in the longitudinal direction of the connecting plate 2. In this case, the displacement can be easily controlled, and the largest displacement magnification can be obtained. ,
preferable. There is no limitation on the shape of the fixed plate 1, and the shape of the fixed plate 1 may be set in consideration of the shape and weight of the elements and sensors attached to the tip of the fixed plate 1.

In the device 37, the diaphragm 3
A to 3D and the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D do not all need to have the same shape. For example, the lengths of the diaphragms 3A and 3C and the piezoelectric elements 4A and 4C in the X-axis direction are reduced, and
It is also possible to set the length of the 3D and the piezoelectric elements 4B and 4D in the X-axis direction to be long, and drive the fixed plate 1 in the above-described uniaxial displacement mode. Similarly, by shortening the X-axis length of the diaphragms 3A and 3D and the piezoelectric elements 4A and 4D, and increasing the X-axis length of the diaphragms 3B and 3C and the piezoelectric elements 4B and 4C. It is also possible to drive the fixed plate 1 in the in-plane rotational displacement mode.

Further, the piezoelectric elements 4 are provided on the diaphragms 3A and 3D.
A structure in which a notch parallel to the Y axis is provided without providing A · 4D, or a structure in which the diaphragms 3A / 3D are not provided,
By driving the piezoelectric elements 4B and 4C in the same phase, the fixed plate 1 can be driven in the in-plane rotational displacement mode. In addition, the vibration elements 3A and 3C have piezoelectric elements 4A and 4C, respectively.
The piezoelectric element 4B has a structure in which a notch parallel to the Y axis is provided without providing
-By driving 4D in the same phase, it is also possible to drive the fixed plate 1 in the uniaxial displacement mode. The piezoelectric elements 4 </ b> A to 4 </ b> D may be provided so as to hang on the substrate 5 if they do not hang on the connecting plate 2.

The device 38 shown in FIG. 16 has a form in which a cutout 11 is formed at the joint between the fixing plate 1 and the connecting plate 2 in the device 37. In this case, compared to the device 37, the displacement of the connecting plate 2 can be more efficiently performed.
It is possible to convert to a displacement in the in-plane rotational displacement mode of the fixed plate 1.

That is, the device 3 shown in FIG.
7, the in-plane rotational displacement mode of the fixed plate 1 is mainly generated based on the bending displacement of the connecting plate 2 in the XY plane, and therefore, the joint angle between the connecting plate 2 and the fixed plate 1 is approximately. While the displacement mode is maintained, FIG.
When the notch 11 is provided as in the device 38 shown in FIG. 7, the bending displacement of the connecting plate 2 at the joint position between the connecting plate 2 and the fixed plate 1 further increases the joint angle between the fixed plate 1 and the connecting plate 2. Can be converted to a rotational displacement that changes
As a result, the displacement of the fixed plate 1 can be made larger.

Therefore, the device 37 shown in FIG.
In the device 38, the displacement of the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D is mainly used to be expanded to the bending displacement of the connecting plate 2. The device 38 shown in FIG. The displacement is further enlarged as a rotational displacement, in other words, a structure capable of effectively expressing a two-stage enlargement mechanism. The notch 11 is preferably formed such that the distance in the width direction of the connecting plate 2, that is, the distance in the X-axis direction is long before reaching the inside of the fixed plate 1. On the other hand, the width of the notch 11, that is, the notch 11
Is preferably shorter in the Y-axis direction.

FIG. 17A is a plan view showing still another embodiment of the device of the present invention. In the device 39, the diaphragms 3 A to 3 D are formed by the concave portions 10 A and 10 B formed on the substrate 5. The connecting plate 2 is not joined to the bottom surface, but is provided so as to straddle the connecting plate 2 and the side surfaces of the concave portions 10A and 10B. It has a structure. With such a structure, both ends of the fixed plate 1 can be largely displaced, and an element or a sensor can be attached to each of both ends.

FIG. 17B is an AA view taken along the X1 axis in FIG. 17A. Here, a pair of diaphragms (diaphragms 3C and 3D) that sandwich the connecting plate 2 is , Connecting plate 2
At the positions shifted in the thickness direction (Z-axis direction). In this case, the connecting plate 2
With the center point O of the joining position between the pair of diaphragms (vibrating plates 3C and 3D) and the connecting plate 2 sandwiching the piezoelectric element 4C and the piezoelectric element 4C. If the piezoelectric elements 4C and 4D are driven in the same phase when the piezoelectric element 4D is disposed and the piezoelectric elements 4C and 4D are driven in the same phase, the arrow B on the X axis shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. B, the longitudinal axis (Y axis) of the connecting plate 2
Can be caused to generate a rotational displacement with the rotation axis as a rotation axis.

Now, the device 40 shown in FIG.
Divides the connecting plate 2 into two in the longitudinal direction (X-axis direction) of the fixed plate 1, and further divides each of the divided connecting plates 2 into connecting plates 2.
In the straddling direction (Y-axis direction). Therefore, the fixed plate 1 is joined to one surface of the connecting plate 2 so as to eventually lie on the four connecting plates 2.
Here, it goes without saying that the connecting plate 2 and the fixed plate 1 may be integrally formed, and the connecting plate 2 may be divided into three or more. The division of the connecting plate in the longitudinal direction (X-axis direction) of such a fixing plate in the present invention refers to the width of the newly formed connecting plate in the X-axis direction as a result of dividing the connecting plate and forming a gap. In addition to the case where the width of the connecting plate is reduced, a case where a plurality of the connecting plates are arranged in parallel with a gap therebetween in the X-axis direction without changing the width in the X-axis direction is included.

In the device 40, the piezoelectric element 4A
4D have a configuration in which one connecting plate 2 is driven via the corresponding vibrating plates 3A to 3D, so that the distortion of the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D acts on the fixed plate 1 ( For example, by driving the piezoelectric elements 4A and 4D in the same phase and driving the piezoelectric elements 4B and 4C in the opposite phase to the piezoelectric elements 4A and 4D, the fixed plate 1 can be efficiently mounted. It is possible to drive in the in-plane rotational displacement mode.

In addition, the piezoelectric elements 4 A and 4 C
By driving the piezoelectric elements 4B and 4D in a phase opposite to that of the piezoelectric elements 4A and 4C, the fixed plate 1 can be driven in a uniaxial displacement mode. Since the portion 12 is formed, it is possible to obtain a purer displacement as compared with the device 37 described above.

In the gap 12, a plate-like member thinner than the connecting plate 2 may be provided between the connecting plates 2 in the X-axis direction. In this case, although the relative displacement amount of the fixed plate 1 is reduced as compared with the case where the plate-shaped member is not straddled, it is possible to increase the rigidity and operate the fixed plate 1 at a faster response speed. Becomes Further, the gap portion 12 does not necessarily have to be formed over the entire length (length in the Y-axis direction) of the connecting plate 2, and the effect can be obtained even in a partial range.

In FIG. 19, the fixing plate 1 is integrally joined to two connecting plates 2 formed by being divided in the longitudinal direction of the fixing plate 1. From the joint to the fixed plate 1 in the longitudinal direction, the fixed plate 1
Is provided, and a plan view of the device 41 in which the notch 11 is formed at the joint between the fixing plate 1 and the connecting plate 2 is shown. Since the fork 13 assists the driving of the fixed plate 1 in the in-plane rotational displacement mode, by forming the notch 11 at the same time as the notch 11, a large displacement can be obtained more effectively. Needless to say, such a knee portion 13 can be formed also in the devices 37 to 40 described above.

Next, FIG. 20 shows still another embodiment of the device of the present invention. The device 42 includes, for example, two diaphragms 3A as shown in FIG.
When 3B is used, this is equivalent to the above-described device 35 in which the substrate 5 is integrated, the fixed plate 1 is protruded to only one side, and the vibration plates 3A and 3C are removed.

That is, in the device 42, the connecting plate 2 is provided between the side surfaces of the concave portion 10 formed in the substrate 5, and the two vibrating plates 3 A and 3 B provided with the piezoelectric elements 4 A and 4 B are connected to the connecting plate 2. The fixed plate 1 is connected between the base plate 2 and the bottom surface of the concave portion 10 of the substrate 5 so that the longitudinal direction of the fixed plate 1 is parallel to the extending direction (X-axis direction) of the diaphragms 3A and 3B. It has a structure joined to the plate 2. The diaphragms 3A and 3B
Are usually arranged at symmetrical positions about the longitudinal axis (X-axis) of the fixed plate 1. Further, two or more diaphragms may be provided between the connecting plate 2 and the bottom surface of the concave portion 10.

The connection plate 2 in the device 42,
The relationship between the joining positions of the vibration plates 3A and 3B and the substrate 5 is such that the connecting plate 2 is laid across the bottom surfaces of the opposing concave portions formed on the substrate 5, and each of the opposing concave portions has one sheet. It can also be expressed that the diaphragm 3A and the diaphragm 3B are provided between the connecting plate 2 and the side surface of the concave portion.

That is, the concave portion in the device of the present invention may be paraphrased depending on the viewpoint. In the device 42, 2 of the concave portion 10 shown above is used.
The side surface is considered as the bottom surface of each of the two opposing concave portions, and the bottom surface of the concave portion 10 can be regarded as a portion where one side surface of these two opposing concave portions is shared.
As described above, in some cases, the expression method of the device of the present invention can be paraphrased in various ways, even if the form is the same.

FIGS. 20 (b) to 20 (d) are AA diagrams along the X1 axis showing the configuration of the diaphragm 3 B suitably employed in the device 42. This form of the diaphragm 3B is naturally applied to the diaphragm 3A. FIG. 20B shows a configuration in which a diaphragm 3B is provided near the respective surfaces of the connection plate 2 and the substrate 5.

FIG. 20C shows a structure in which a pair of diaphragms 3 B and 3 C having one surface facing each other is provided between the connecting plate 2 and the substrate 5. I have. In this case, as for the diaphragm 3A, another one of the diaphragms 3D is provided so as to form a pair of two, and a total of four diaphragms 3A are provided.
The fixed plate 1 is driven in 3D.

In such a structure, the piezoelectric element 4B
4C is driven in phase, and the piezoelectric element 4A and the piezoelectric element 4D
(Piezoelectric element arranged on diaphragm 3D not shown)
Are driven in the opposite phase to the piezoelectric elements 4B and 4C, so that the in-plane rotational displacement can be generated in the fixed plate 1 dominantly, and all the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D are driven in the same phase. By doing so, it becomes possible to cause a uniaxial displacement to dominantly occur.

Thus, as compared with the case where two vibration plates / piezoelectric elements are used, not only the displacement of the fixed plate 1 in the Z-axis direction can be suppressed, but also the displacement amount of the fixed plate 1 can be reduced. There is an advantage that the driving force can be increased, which is preferable. In addition, as described above, in correspondence with the fact that two or more vibration plates may be provided between the connecting plate 2 and the bottom surface of the concave portion 10, the two One set of diaphragms can be provided in two or more sets.

FIG. 20D shows a configuration in which the diaphragm 3B is installed at the center of the connecting plate 2 in the thickness direction (Z-axis direction). In this case, since the point of action of the piezoelectric element 4B (vibrating plate 3B) on the connecting plate 2 can be set at the position of the center of gravity of the connecting plate 2, the displacement of the fixed plate 1 in the Z-axis direction can be reduced. preferable.

Note that the forms of the diaphragm shown in FIGS. 20C and 20D can be applied to other embodiments having a structure for holding the connecting plate. That is, when the configuration of FIG. 20C is applied, the connecting plate is sandwiched by using two sets of two diaphragms, and when the configuration of FIG. 20D is applied, The connecting plate is sandwiched between the two diaphragms at the center in the thickness direction of the connecting plate.

Subsequently, FIG. 21 is a plan view of a device 43 in which two devices 38 shown in FIG. 16 described above are connected. In the device 43, the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4A
D and the piezoelectric elements 4E to 4E
The fixed plate 1B driven by H is connected to form an integral fixed plate 1. With such a structure, there is an effect that a large generated displacement can be maintained and the driving force of the device can be further increased. Thus, for example, when fixing other elements such as various sensors and magnetic heads to the fixing plate 1, depending on the size and mass of the elements, the structure of the device 38 or the connected device 4 is determined.
It becomes easy to appropriately select whether to adopt the structure 3 or not.

Further, from the viewpoints of displacement control and vibration control, the device 43 drives one of the connected devices (for example, the fixed plate 1B side) for braking at a predetermined timing, so that the fixed device generated during high-speed operation is operated. It is characterized in that unnecessary residual vibration of the plate 1 can be reduced and high-speed positioning can be performed. The connection of such a device is performed by the device 3
However, the present invention is not limited to the case where 8 is used, and can be applied to all the devices 37 to 42 shown in FIGS.

Now, the connection of the device of the present invention described above is not limited to the connection of two devices,
It is also possible to connect two or more devices in view of the embodiment. As an example, FIG. 22 shows a plan view of a device 44 in which about four devices 38 shown in FIG. 16 are connected. In other words, the device 44 has a structure in which the two devices 43 shown in FIG. 21 are connected symmetrically with respect to the Y axis. However, by adopting such a structure, a more pure Y axis direction and X Axial direction (X1 axis, X2
(Axial direction) can be generated with a large force.

The third mode of the device of the present invention has been described above. Here, the displacement modes of the fixed plate, that is, the various displacement modes of the in-plane rotational displacement, the uniaxial displacement, and the rotational displacement, are the same as those described above. 1, similarly to the displacement mode of the second device, it is meant that the displacement direction of the fixed plate is dominant in the directions described above, and that it has other directional components completely. It is not excluded. When all devices of the present invention are applied to a magnetic head, various displacement modes that are not three-dimensionally displaced so as to keep the gap (gap) between the head and the recording medium constant. It is preferable to use

By the way, with respect to the various devices described above, the piezoelectric element has a unimorph structure, but of course, there is no problem even if the piezoelectric element has a bimorph structure. It goes without saying that the device can be arbitrarily selected without departing from the device design concept described above. Further, as described above, the device of the present invention is not limited to use as an active element such as a displacement element or a vibrator driven by a piezoelectric element, but is also used for various sensors that are passive elements such as an acceleration sensor and an impact sensor. be able to. In particular, in detecting acceleration, it is possible to easily improve the detection sensitivity by providing an inertial mass such as a weight at the tip of the fixed plate and increasing the weight of the tip.

Next, a mode of forming an electrode lead from a piezoelectric element will be described using the device 42 described above as an example. FIG. 23A shows that the piezoelectric elements 4A and 4B disposed on the device 42 are provided with electrode leads 21A to 21D, and the piezoelectric elements 4A and 4B and the electrode leads 21A to 21D are provided with an insulating layer 22. FIG. 23B is a plan view illustrating an embodiment in which a shield layer 23 is formed so as to cover the wiring 22. FIGS.
FIG. 4A is an AA view along the Y1 axis in (a), showing another embodiment.

The insulating layer 22 includes the fixing plate 1 and the piezoelectric element 4A.
And a function of effectively preventing short-circuiting of the piezoelectric elements 4A and 4B and the electrode leads 21A to 21D when the 4B is used in a liquid atmosphere or a humidified atmosphere. When the device is operated at a high frequency or high-frequency vibration is detected, the shield layer 23 blocks electromagnetic waves from the outside to ensure good displacement accuracy, and also prevents malfunction and noise contamination. Has functions.

As a mode of disposing the shield layer 23,
As shown in FIG. 23B, in addition to the form in which the substrate 5 is sandwiched therebetween, as shown in FIG.
A form surrounding only the wiring portion on the substrate 5 and a form where the wiring portion is shielded by only one upper side as shown in FIG. 23D are mentioned. Among them, FIGS. It is preferable that the entire wiring portion is shielded.
In FIG. 23A, the conduction of the shield layer 23 formed on each surface of the substrate 5 is ensured by using the through holes 24 provided in the substrate 5. Lever conduction may be achieved. The details of the materials suitably used for forming the insulating layer 22 and the shield layer 23 will be described later when the constituent materials of the device are described later.

Next, the materials used for the device of the present invention will be described. The substrate, the fixing plate, the connecting plate, and the vibration plate may be any insulator or dielectric that can be formed integrally with the piezoelectric element without using an adhesive, and a ceramic is preferably used. If so, fully stabilized zirconia, partially stabilized zirconia, alumina, magnesia and the like may be used, and if non-oxide, silicon nitride and the like may be used. Of these, fully stabilized zirconia and partially stabilized zirconia are most preferably employed because of their high mechanical strength, high toughness, and low reactivity with piezoelectric films and electrode materials even in thin plates. When completely stabilized zirconia or partially stabilized zirconia is used as a material for the substrate or the like, it is preferable that at least the diaphragm is configured to contain an additive such as alumina or titania.

When ceramics is used,
Since the device can be integrally formed by using a green sheet laminating method described later, it is preferable from the viewpoints of securing the reliability of the joint of each part and simplifying the manufacturing process.

The thickness and shape of the fixing plate in the device of the present invention are not limited, and are appropriately designed according to the intended use. It is not always necessary to have a plate shape.
On the other hand, the thickness of the diaphragm is preferably about 3 to 20 μm, and the total thickness of the diaphragm and the piezoelectric element is 15 μm.
It is preferable to set it to 60 μm. The thickness of the connecting plate is preferably 20 to 600 μm and the width is 30 to 500 μm, and the aspect ratio (width (length in the X-axis direction) / length in the thickness direction (Z-axis direction)) of the connecting plate is 0.1 μm. It is preferably in the range of 1 to 15, but particularly in the range of 0.1 to 7 in order to make the displacement in the XY plane more dominant.

As the piezoelectric film in the piezoelectric element, a piezoelectric ceramic formed in a film shape is preferably used.
Electrostrictive ceramics, ferroelectric ceramics, or antiferroelectric ceramics can also be used. Also,
It may be either a material that requires polarization treatment or a material that does not require polarization treatment. However, when used for a magnetic recording head, etc.,
Since the linearity between the amount of displacement of the fixed plate and the driving voltage or output voltage is important, it is preferable to use a material having a small strain history.
It is preferable to use a material of V / mm or less.

Specific piezoelectric ceramics include lead zirconate, lead titanate, lead magnesium niobate, lead nickel niobate, lead zinc niobate, lead manganese niobate, lead antimony stannate, lead manganese tungstate,
Ceramics containing a component such as lead cobalt niobate, lead magnesium tantalate, barium titanate, and the like, or a combination of any of these. Among them, in the present invention, a material mainly composed of components consisting of lead zirconate, lead titanate and lead magnesium niobate is preferably used, and this is because such a material has a high electromechanical coupling coefficient. Having a piezoelectric constant, low reactivity with the substrate (ceramic substrate) during sintering of the piezoelectric film,
This is because a material having a predetermined composition can be formed stably.

Further, lanthanum, calcium, strontium, molybdenum, tungsten, barium, niobium, zinc, nickel, manganese, cerium, cadmium, chromium, cobalt, antimony, iron, yttrium, tantalum, lithium, bismuth, Ceramics to which an oxide such as tin, a combination of any of these, or another compound described above is appropriately added may be used. For example, it is also preferable to use lead zirconate, lead titanate, and lead magnesium niobate as main components, containing lanthanum and strontium, and adjusting the coercive electric field and piezoelectric characteristics.

On the other hand, the electrodes of the piezoelectric element are preferably solid at room temperature and made of a metal having excellent conductivity. For example, aluminum, titanium, chromium, iron, cobalt, nickel, copper, zinc, A single metal such as niobium, molybdenum, ruthenium, palladium, rhodium, silver, tin, tantalum, tungsten, iridium, platinum, gold, lead, or an alloy combining any of these is used. A cermet material in which the same material as the plate is dispersed may be used.

The selection of the material of the electrode in the piezoelectric element is determined depending on the method of forming the piezoelectric film. For example, when a piezoelectric film is formed on the first electrode by firing after forming the first electrode on the diaphragm, the first electrode has a high melting point metal such as platinum which does not change even at the firing temperature of the piezoelectric film. However, since the second electrode formed on the piezoelectric film after the formation of the piezoelectric film can be formed at a low temperature, a low melting point metal such as aluminum can be used.

Further, the piezoelectric element can be formed by firing integrally, but in this case, both the first electrode and the second electrode must be made of a high melting point metal that can withstand the firing temperature of the piezoelectric film. On the other hand, as shown in FIG.
When the first and second electrodes 91 and 92 are formed thereon, both can be formed using the same low melting point metal. As described above, the first electrode and the second electrode may be appropriately selected depending on the forming temperature of the piezoelectric film typified by the firing temperature of the piezoelectric film and the structure of the piezoelectric element. Note that the electrode lead can be formed simultaneously with the electrode of the piezoelectric element, and the electrode lead on the diaphragm is formed at the same time as the piezoelectric element.
It may be formed using various methods such as a sputtering method and a screen printing method.

Subsequently, an insulating glass or a resin is used as a material of the piezoelectric element and the insulating layer formed on the electrode leads. In order to improve the performance of the device without disturbing the displacement, the glass is used. It is preferable to use a resin rather than a fluororesin having excellent chemical stability, for example, a tetrafluoroethylene resin-based Teflon (Teflon PTFE manufactured by DuPont),
Hexafluoropropylene copolymer resin Teflon (Teflon FEP), ethylene tetrafluoride / perfluoroalkyl vinyl ether copolymer resin Teflon (Teflon PF)
A), PTFE / PFA composite Teflon and the like are preferably used.

Further, these resins are inferior in corrosion resistance, weather resistance and the like to fluororesins, but silicone resins (among others, thermosetting silicone resins) are preferably used, and epoxy resins, acrylic resins and the like are also used according to the purpose. can do. Note that it is also preferable to form the insulating layer using different materials for the piezoelectric element and its vicinity and the electrode lead and its vicinity. Further, it is also preferable to add an inorganic or organic filler to the insulating resin to adjust the rigidity of the diaphragm or the like.

When the insulating layer is formed, various metals such as gold, silver, copper, nickel, and aluminum are suitably used as the material of the shield layer formed on the insulating layer. All the metal materials used for the electrodes and the like in the piezoelectric element described above can be used. Alternatively, a conductive paste obtained by mixing a metal powder with a resin can be used.

Subsequently, a method for manufacturing a device of the present invention will be described using the device 38 described above as an example. Since the device of the present invention is composed of a plurality of members such as a connecting plate and a fixing plate, it can be manufactured by joining components made of various materials prepared separately. However, in this case, the productivity is not high, and breakage or the like is likely to occur at the joint portion, and thus there is a problem in reliability. Therefore, in the present invention, a green sheet laminating method using ceramic powder as a raw material is suitably adopted.

In the green sheet laminating method, first, a binder, a solvent, a dispersant, and the like are added to and mixed with ceramic powder such as zirconia as a material to prepare a slurry, which is subjected to a defoaming treatment, followed by a reverse roll coater method. A green sheet or green tape having a predetermined thickness is manufactured by a method such as a doctor blade method. Next, various green sheet members (hereinafter, referred to as “sheet members”) as shown in FIG. 24 are manufactured by a method such as punching (punching) of the green sheets using a mold.

After firing, the sheet member 51 is
The connecting plate 2, the fixed plate 1, and the members serving as the diaphragms 3A to 3D are in a single-plate state in which their shapes are unclear at this time. This is because the diaphragm 3
Since A to 3D are preferably formed as thin as 3 to 20 μm, rather than forming the shape of each of these members in the state of a green sheet, after firing, by laser processing or the like,
It is preferable to cut off an unnecessary part because the shape accuracy is kept good and it is preferable.

The sheet member 52 is a member for forming the thickness of the fixed plate 1 and the connecting plate 2 thicker than the diaphragms 3A to 3D, in addition to the substrate 5, and includes a reference hole 54, a window 55,
A fixed plate 1 and a connecting plate 2 are formed. A cutout 11 can be formed at the joint between the fixed plate 1 and the connecting plate 2. The notch 11 can be processed and formed by laser processing or the like after firing. One or more sheet members 52 are stacked by a predetermined number to obtain desired thicknesses of the fixing plate 1 and the connecting plate 2. The fixing plate 1
Is formed thinner than the connecting plate 2, the sheet member 5
A sheet member in which only the portion that becomes the fixing plate 1 is removed from the sheet member 2 may be manufactured and laminated. Reference hole 54 and window 55
Is a member to be the substrate 5. A desired thickness can be obtained by laminating at least one predetermined number of sheets.

The sheet members 51 to 53 are stacked in this order while positioning using the reference holes 54, and integrated by a method such as thermocompression bonding to produce a stacked body. Then, firing is performed at a temperature of 1200 ° C. to 1600 ° C. Here, the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D are preliminarily placed at positions where the diaphragms 3A to 3D are finally formed on the sheet member 51.
It is also preferable to form D and fire it integrally with the laminate.

As a method of arranging the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D by simultaneously firing the laminate and the piezoelectric element, a piezoelectric film is formed by a press forming method using a mold or a tape forming method using a slurry raw material. Then, a method of laminating the piezoelectric film before firing on the sheet member 51 by thermocompression bonding and simultaneously sintering to form the substrate and the piezoelectric film at the same time can be cited. However,
In this case, it is necessary to form electrodes on the substrate or the piezoelectric film in advance by using a film forming method described later.

[0120] The firing temperature of the piezoelectric film is appropriately determined depending on the material constituting the piezoelectric film.
400 ° C., preferably 1000 ° C. to 1400 ° C. In this case, in order to control the composition of the piezoelectric film, it is preferable to perform sintering with adjusting the atmosphere in the presence of an evaporation source of the material of the piezoelectric film. In particular, in the case of using a fired substrate to be described later, the atmosphere adjustment for relaxing the firing stress of the piezoelectric film and extracting higher material characteristics is performed by observing the fired piezoelectric film with an electron microscope or the like, It is preferable to control by monitoring the distribution.

For example, a material containing lead zirconate, such as a material mainly containing components of lead zirconate, lead titanate, and lead magnesium niobate, which are piezoelectric ceramics preferably employed in the present invention, is used. When used, it is preferable to adjust the atmosphere so that the zirconium component segregates in the fired piezoelectric film, and then fire the piezoelectric film. More preferably, the atmosphere is such that segregation of the zirconium component is observed in the vicinity of the surface of the piezoelectric film, and the segregation is hardly observed inside the piezoelectric film. A piezoelectric film having such a component distribution has excellent vibration characteristics, that is, a large vibration amplitude, as compared with a non-segregated piezoelectric film, and the firing stress is reduced by segregation of the zirconium component. It has the characteristic that the inherent material properties are maintained without being significantly reduced.

Therefore, in the device of the present invention, it is most preferable to form a piezoelectric element so as to form such a piezoelectric film. In addition to the piezoelectric film composition, after firing the piezoelectric film, each member of the device, for example, a connection plate, a spring plate,
It is also preferable that the substrate or the like be fired in an atmosphere so as to contain the components of the piezoelectric material, in particular, in the case of a piezoelectric material containing titanium oxide, titanium oxide. When firing the piezoelectric film and firing the substrate at the same time, it is necessary to match the firing conditions of both.

Further, a thick film forming method such as a screen printing method, a dipping method, a coating method and an electrophoresis method, an ion beam method, a sputtering method, a vacuum deposition, an ion plating The piezoelectric element can be provided by various thin film forming methods such as a plating method, a chemical vapor deposition method (CVD), and plating. Among them, in the present invention, in forming the piezoelectric film, a thick film forming method such as a screen printing method, a dipping method, a coating method, and an electrophoresis method is suitably adopted. This is because these techniques have a mean particle size of 0.01 to 5 μm, preferably 0.05
Pastes or slurries, or suspensions or emulsions containing セ ラ ミ ッ ク ス 3 μm piezoelectric ceramic particles as a main component,
This is because a piezoelectric film can be formed using a sol or the like, and good piezoelectric operation characteristics can be obtained. In particular, in the electrophoresis method, the technical literature "DENKI KAGAK" describes that a film can be formed with high density and high shape accuracy.
U ", 53, No. 1 (1985) pp. 63-68, by Kazuo Anzai ". Therefore, a method may be appropriately selected and used in consideration of required accuracy, reliability, and the like.

For example, after the manufactured laminate is fired under predetermined conditions, a first electrode is printed and fired at a predetermined position on the surface of the fired sheet member 51, and then a piezoelectric film is printed and fired. The piezoelectric element can be provided by printing and firing the two electrodes. Subsequently, an electrode lead for connecting the electrode of the formed piezoelectric element to the measuring device is printed and fired. Here, for example, platinum (Pt) is used as the first electrode,
When a material such as lead (zirconate titanate) (PZT) is used for the piezoelectric film, gold (Au) is used for the second electrode, and silver (Ag) is used for the electrode lead, the firing temperature in the firing step is gradually lowered. Therefore, in a certain firing step, the material fired earlier does not re-sinter, and it is possible to avoid problems such as peeling and agglomeration of the electrode material and the like.

By selecting an appropriate material, it is also possible to sequentially print each member of the piezoelectric element and the electrode lead and sinter them all at once. Each electrode and the like can be provided. Further, each member of the piezoelectric element and the electrode lead may be formed by a thin film method such as a sputtering method or a vapor deposition method, and in this case, heat treatment is not necessarily required.

By thus forming the piezoelectric element by the film forming method, the piezoelectric element and the vibration plate can be integrally joined and arranged without using an adhesive, and reliability and reproducibility can be secured. Integration can be facilitated. Here, the piezoelectric film may be further formed in an appropriate pattern, for example, a screen printing method, a photolithography method, or a laser processing method,
Alternatively, a machining method such as slicing or ultrasonic processing can be used.

By the way, in manufacturing the device of the present invention, in the state after firing, it is necessary that a portion to be a piezoelectric operating portion has a predetermined curved shape. For this purpose, material properties of the diaphragm and piezoelectric element,
It is necessary to appropriately set the heat shrinkage behavior, design dimensions, shape, and the like to suitable conditions and combine them.

As one method of forming the diaphragm into a curved shape, a sheet member 51 forming the diaphragm, a sheet member 52 serving as a main portion of a fixed plate or a connecting plate, and a sheet member 53 serving as a main substrate are respectively provided. On the other hand, there is a method of controlling the behavior of each of the sheet members 51 to 53 at the time of firing by giving a difference between the firing shrinkage in the direction parallel to the sheet surface and the sintering speed.

In addition, in a laminate manufactured by thermocompression bonding the sheet members 51 to 53, the sheet members 51
There is a method in which the sheet member 51 is deformed in a green sheet state by providing a pressure difference between the window portion 55 side of the sheet members 52 and 53 and the opposite side. At this time,
To make the window 55 side concave, the window 55 side should be positive pressure and the opposite side should be negative pressure. When the window 55 side should be convex, the pressure state should be reversed.

Further, as a method for stably forming the curved shape, a flattening jig or a concave jig is brought into contact with the ridge portion of the curved shape and the vicinity thereof at the time of or after the formation of the curved shape of the diaphragm, and the ridge line is formed. There is also a method of forming a flat portion at or near the portion, or forming a curved portion having a predetermined radius of curvature and a convex height in a convex direction.

On the other hand, as a method of forming a piezoelectric element into a curved shape, there is a method of forming a piezoelectric element on a concave surface and / or a convex surface of a diaphragm that has been previously curved by the above-described method. Also, there is a method in which a piezoelectric element is formed on one surface of a flatly formed diaphragm and fired, and the diaphragm is bent by shrinking and firing the piezoelectric element. Regardless of whether the surface on which the piezoelectric element is formed is a concave surface or a convex surface of the diaphragm, in anticipation of the curvature of the diaphragm due to firing shrinkage of the piezoelectric element,
It is important to set the degree of curvature of the diaphragm.

In setting the curved shape of the piezoelectric actuator, the coefficient of thermal expansion of the material forming the diaphragm or the substrate is also an important setting factor. In the process of integration of the laminated body and the piezoelectric element by heat treatment, it is easy to control the curved shape of the piezoelectric operating portion, and it is possible to suppress the firing stress on the piezoelectric element (piezoelectric film) to a low level. In order to make it easy to obtain piezoelectric characteristics, the thermal expansion coefficient should be 60 × 10 ⁻⁷ / ° C.
120 × 10 ⁻⁷ / ° C., more preferably 80 × 10 ⁻⁷ /
It is preferable to use a substrate material having a temperature of from 110 ° C. to 110 × 10 ⁻⁷ / ° C.

As described above, the vibration plate, the fixed plate, the connection plate, and the notch portion as necessary are formed at predetermined positions of the fired laminate on which the piezoelectric elements and the electrode leads are formed. Here, by processing using the fourth harmonic of the YAG laser,
It is preferable to cut out unnecessary portions of the sintered sheet member 51 and remove them. Thus, a device 38 having the diaphragms 3A to 3D, the fixed plate 1, and the connecting plate 2 having the shape shown in FIG. 16 is obtained. Note that an unnecessary portion, which is a portion corresponding to the substrate 5, may be removed by the laser processing or dicing.

In addition, the shapes of the fixed plate 1 and the connecting plate 2 mainly formed by the sheet member 52 and the shapes of the diaphragms 3A to 3D formed by the sheet member 51 are adjusted during such processing. Therefore, it is preferable to reduce the variation in the shape of the piezoelectric driving unit and to adjust the displacement amount and the displacement characteristic.

Further, as shown in FIG. 25, the piezoelectric element 88 shown in FIG. 5 has a second electrode 87 as an upper electrode, a first electrode 85 as a lower electrode, and a piezoelectric film 86 formed therebetween. After disposing 88 once, the upper electrode is trimmed by YAG fourth harmonic laser, machining or the like to adjust the effective electrode area of the piezoelectric element, adjust the electrical characteristics such as the impedance of the device, and adjust the predetermined displacement. It is also preferable to obtain characteristics. When the structure of the piezoelectric element 88 is a comb-shaped structure as shown in FIG. 6 or FIG. 7, a part of one or both electrodes may be trimmed.

In such processing, the above-mentioned YA
G In addition to the processing using the fourth harmonic laser, laser processing using YAG laser and the second or third harmonic of the YAG laser, excimer laser, CO ₂ laser, etc., electron beam processing, dicing (mechanical processing) ), And various processing methods suitable for the size and shape of the device can be applied.

Note that the device of the present invention can be manufactured by a pressure molding method using a molding die, a casting method, an injection molding method, or the like, in addition to the manufacturing method using the green sheet described above. it can. Also in these cases, before and after the firing, machining is performed by cutting, grinding, laser processing, punching by punching, or mechanical processing such as ultrasonic processing to obtain a predetermined shape.

[0138] The insulating layers formed on the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D and the electrode leads in the device 38 thus manufactured can be formed by a screen printing method, a coating method, a spraying method, or the like using glass or resin. Here, when glass is used as the material, it is necessary to raise the temperature of the device itself to about the softening temperature of the glass, and since the hardness is large, there is a risk of disturbing displacement or vibration, but the resin is soft and moreover It is preferable to use a resin since only a drying process is required.

[0139] Although it has already been described that a fluororesin or a silicone resin is preferably used as the resin used as the insulating layer, when these resins are used, the purpose is to improve the adhesion to the underlying ceramic. so,
It is preferable to form a primer layer according to the type of resin and ceramic used, and to form an insulating layer thereon.

Next, the formation of the shield layer formed on the insulating layer is difficult when the insulating layer is made of a resin. In the case where a conductive paste made of a metal powder and a resin is used, a screen printing method, a coating method, or the like can be preferably used. When the insulating layer is formed of glass, the conductive paste can be screen-printed or fired at a temperature at which the glass does not flow.

[0141]

EXAMPLES Next, the present invention will be further described with reference to examples. FIG. 27 is a plan view showing a schematic structure of the manufactured device 45. The device 45 is formed by forming the opening slit 14 parallel to the Y-axis direction in the connection plate 2 of the device 38. FIG. 27 does not accurately show the dimensional relationship of each part of the device 45 actually manufactured.

The device 45 uses zirconium oxide partially stabilized with yttrium oxide as a material for the substrate 5 and the like, and uses various sheet members 51 to 51 previously shown in FIG.
53 was manufactured by a green sheet laminating method. The sheet member 51 mainly forming the diaphragms 3A to 3D has a thickness of 10 μm after firing, and the sheet member 52 mainly forming the connecting plate 2 and the like has a thickness of 10 μm after firing.
Those having a thickness of 0 μm and those having a thickness of 150 μm after firing were mainly used as the sheet members 53 which mainly serve as the substrate 5.

The sheet members 51 to 53 are punched out from a belt-like sheet by punching using a mold, and laminated.
It was thermocompressed and fired at 1450 ° C. The sheet member 5
Nos. 1 to 53 are adjusted by a combination of the firing shrinkage and the sintering rate so that the portions to become the vibrating plates 3A to 3D after firing have a flat shape.

[0144] Piezoelectric element 4A disposed on fired laminate
4D, the piezoelectric element 88 having the structure shown in FIG. 5 utilizing the transverse effect (d ₃₁ ) of piezoelectrically induced strain was used. Here, the first electrode (lower electrode) 85 is made of a material mainly containing platinum (Pt), and the piezoelectric film 86 is mainly made of a mixture of lead zirconate, lead titanate and lead magnesium niobate. As the material, as the second electrode (upper electrode) 87, a material mainly containing gold (Au) was used.

Such a piezoelectric element 88 (4A to 4D)
The first electrode 85 was printed and fired, then the piezoelectric film 86 was printed and fired, and finally the second electrode 87 was printed and fired. The thicknesses of the formed first electrode 85, piezoelectric film 86, and second electrode 87 were 5 μm, 15 μm, and 0.2 μm, respectively.
Further, by forming the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D, the diaphragm side as shown in FIG. 4A is convex and the curved height H is 10 μm.
The diaphragms 3A to 3D having the curved shapes of FIG. The width of the diaphragms 3A to 3D, that is, L in FIG.
0 μm, (H / L) × 100 is 2.9.

Subsequently, using the fourth harmonic of the YAG laser, the diaphragms 3A to 3D, the connecting plate 2, the fixed plate 1, the notch 11, and the opening slit 14 having predetermined dimensions were formed.
The length a of the connecting plate 2 is 1 mm, and the length b of the fixed plate 1 is 1.5.
mm, the notch 11 has a width of 10 μm and a length of 0.5 mm,
The opening slit 14 has a width of 10 μm and a length of 0.5 mm. The width of both the connecting plate 2 and the fixed plate 1 is 60 μm.

[0147] An electrode lead is wired to each electrode of the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D.
Polarization treatment was performed at 0V. When the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D are driven in a specific combination described later, the displacement amount (vibration amplitude amount) of the distal end portion of the fixed plate 1 is shown in FIG.
And the Z-axis direction displacement was determined by detecting a velocity signal using a laser Doppler vibrometer from the direction perpendicular to the paper surface and integrating the velocity signal.

FIG. 28 shows the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D during displacement measurement.
The application of the drive signal to 4D is performed by a set of piezoelectric elements 4A and 4D,
It is a graph which shows an example of the test result of the displacement-voltage characteristic at the time of making it the same phase in each set of the set of piezoelectric elements 4B and 4C. In FIG. 28, the amplitude on both sides indicates the total stroke amount in the Y-axis direction in FIG. 27 when voltage application to the set of piezoelectric elements 4A and 4D and the set of piezoelectric elements 4B and 4C is performed alternately. The one-sided amplitude indicates a displacement amount only from the X axis to the right side in the Y axis direction when only the piezoelectric elements 4A and 4D are driven. The device 45 according to this embodiment includes the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4A.
With respect to the applied voltage to 4D, the displacement amount changed almost linearly, and an amplitude of 2.5 μm on both sides was obtained at an applied voltage of 50 V.

Next, FIG. 29 shows a case where the piezoelectric elements 4A and 4D are set as a set, and the piezoelectric elements 4B and 4C are set as a set. And the other set is a graph showing the amount of displacement when an electric field in a direction opposite to the direction of the electric field of the polarization treatment is simultaneously applied. That is, FIG. 29 shows the piezoelectric element 4A.
It is a graph when 4D and the piezoelectric elements 4B and 4C are simultaneously driven in the mutually opposite phases. Here, the applied voltage on the horizontal axis in the graph of FIG. 29 indicates the forward direction (the same polarity as the polarization processing) applied voltage, and the reverse direction applied voltage is always −5 V (“−” indicates the polarity of the applied drive voltage). Is opposite to that at the time of polarization.). It is necessary that the reverse applied voltage is equal to or lower than the coercive electric field of the material of the piezoelectric film.

When such a voltage application is performed, the connection plate 2
When one of the piezoelectric elements 4A and 4B sandwiching the other expands, the other contracts, and one displacement is assisted by the other displacement. In this state, the piezoelectric element 4C
・ The same applies to 4D, and thus, in FIG. 29,
The displacement is enlarged as compared with FIG. 28, and it is shown that the displacement can be adjusted by the driving mode of the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D.

Next, an example of a method for displacing the fixed plate 1 dominantly in the XY plane will be described by taking the device 45 as an example. However, for the device 45 used here, a sheet member 52 having a thickness of 50 μm after firing was used as the sheet member 52 in the production thereof.
And the width of the fixed plate 1 is set to 80 μm. The displacement was measured using a laser Doppler vibrometer as in the above-described embodiment.

FIGS. 30A and 30B show the structure of the piezoelectric element 4A.
FIGS. 4A and 4B are explanatory diagrams of different forms of a voltage signal applied to 4D (hereinafter, referred to as “drive signal A” and “drive signal B”);
Table 1 shows the axial components of the displacement amount due to the drive signals A and B. As is evident from Table 1, when the drive signal B is used, for any drive voltage (V2), Y
It can be seen that the generation of the displacement component in the Z-axis direction is suppressed without reducing the displacement amount in the axial direction.

[0153]

[Table 1]

Hereinafter, the results in Table 1 will be considered. In the device 45, in order to drive the fixed plate 1 in the in-plane rotational displacement mode, the piezoelectric elements 4A and 4D are paired, the piezoelectric elements 4B and 4C are paired, and a voltage is applied to the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D. Fixing displacement of elements 4A to 4D by fixed plate 1
To the displacement of At this time, the piezoelectric elements 4A-
4D bends in the direction of pinching the connecting plate 2 (X-axis direction) and also in the longitudinal direction of the connecting plate 2 (straddling direction, that is, Y-axis direction).

Since the vibration plates 3A to 3D are joined to the connection plate 2 and the substrate 5, bending displacement of the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D in the X-axis direction is converted into displacement of the connection plate 2 in the X-axis direction. In the Y-axis direction, since one side is a free end as a beam, bending displacement in the Y-axis direction of the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D results in displacement of the connecting plate 2 in the Z-axis direction. . Therefore, in the case where the device 45 is not particularly devised in shape design or driving form of the piezoelectric element,
Not a little, the fixed plate 1 is displaced in the Z-axis direction.

Here, if the shape of the piezoelectric actuator is the same and the voltage applied to the piezoelectric element is the same, if the piezoelectric element 4A
When the 4D is driven and when the piezoelectric elements 4B and 4C are driven, the displacement amount in the Z-axis direction is the same. Therefore, when the displacement in the Z-axis direction takes the minimum value, that is, the displacement in the Z-axis direction. The case where the amount is 0 is also when the displacement of the fixed plate 1 in the Y-axis direction is 0. This state is caused when no voltage is applied to the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D or when the piezoelectric elements 4A
This is realized in at least two cases in which equal voltage is applied to the set D and the set of piezoelectric elements 4B and 4C, and the driving force of the fixed plate 1 from each set is antagonized to maintain neutrality. Can be considered.

Then, even when the amount of displacement of the fixed plate 1 in the Y-axis direction is the same 0, there is a state where the absolute positions in the Z-axis direction are different. For example, the piezoelectric elements 4A and 4
If the Z-axis direction displacement corresponding to the Z-axis direction displacement when only the set D is driven is obtained in the standby state of the Y-axis direction displacement 0 where the same voltage is applied to all of the piezoelectric elements 4A to 4D, The amount of displacement in the Z-axis direction between the two states is zero.
On the other hand, when the equal voltage is applied to all the piezoelectric elements and the displacement in the Y-axis direction is zero, the displacement amount in the Z-axis direction is large when the voltage of the equal voltage is high, and is small when the voltage of the equal voltage is low. By changing the voltage value applied to each set of piezoelectric elements, the amount of displacement in the Z-axis direction can be controlled.

Therefore, the relative displacement amount in the Z-axis direction is set to 0 between the time when the displacement amount in the Y-axis direction is the maximum and the time when the displacement amount is the minimum, that is, in the entire range in which the fixed plate 1 can be displaced. Driving can be performed. In other words, such driving is performed so that the total voltage applied to each set of piezoelectric elements is constant at the maximum driving voltage. However,
In practice, the relative displacement in the Z-axis direction may not be able to be set to 0 by always keeping the total voltage constant due to the dimensional variation of each part in the device and the characteristic variation of the piezoelectric element. Need adjustment.

As described above, the form, material, and manufacturing method of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention have been described in detail. However, it is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. It should be understood that various changes, modifications, improvements, and the like can be made based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art in addition to the above-described embodiments without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0160]

As is clear from the above description, the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention has a simple structure, can be easily reduced in size and weight, and has high power-saving and high displacement efficiency.
In addition, it has a characteristic that it is hardly affected by external harmful vibrations. In addition, high-precision control is possible not only for static displacement but also for dynamic displacement, and a large displacement can be easily obtained and used as a sensor. In this case, It has the feature that it can be made highly sensitive. Further, by using a simple manufacturing method such as a green sheet laminating method, there is an advantage that it can be manufactured at a low cost while increasing the reliability as an integrated structure. In addition, there is an advantage that the allowable range of the selection of the constituent materials is wide, and a suitable material can be used each time according to the purpose.
Therefore, when incorporated in various types of actuators and sensors, high-precision control and measurement can be performed.
It has an excellent effect of contributing to weight reduction.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view (a) and sectional views (b) and (c) showing a basic structure of a piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of a driving mode of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing another driving mode of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram relating to the definition of the shape of the diaphragm in the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing one embodiment of a piezoelectric element provided in the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the piezoelectric element provided in the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing still another embodiment of the piezoelectric element provided in the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing an example of an actuator using the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIGS. 9A and 9B are plan views (a) and (c) and cross-sectional views (b) and (d) showing another embodiment of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.
It is.

FIG. 10 is a plan view showing still another embodiment of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a plan view (a) and sectional views (b) to (f) showing still another embodiment of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a plan view showing still another embodiment of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a plan view showing still another embodiment of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a plan view showing still another embodiment of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a plan view (a) and a sectional view (b) showing still another embodiment of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a plan view showing still another embodiment of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a plan view (a) and a sectional view (b) showing another embodiment of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention, and an explanatory view (c) of a driving mode.

FIG. 18 is a plan view showing still another embodiment of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 19 is a plan view showing still another embodiment of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 20 is a plan view (a) and sectional views (b) to (d) showing still another embodiment of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 21 is a plan view showing still another embodiment of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 22 is a plan view showing still another embodiment of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 23 is a plan view (a) and cross-sectional views (b) to (d) showing a protection mode of electrodes and the like of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 24 is a plan view showing a shape example of a sheet member used for manufacturing the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 25 is an explanatory view showing one example of a method for processing a piezoelectric element in the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 26 is a perspective view showing an example of the structure of a conventional piezoelectric / electrostrictive device (piezoelectric actuator).

FIG. 27 is a plan view showing the structure of a piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 28 is a graph showing one result of driving characteristics of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 29 is a graph showing another result of the driving characteristics of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

FIG. 30 is an explanatory diagram of a drive signal of the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1.1A-1B ... fixed plate, 2.2A-2B ... connecting plate, 3
A to 3H: vibrating plate, 4A to 4H: piezoelectric element, 5: substrate,
6 ... Thin part, 7 ... Thick part, 8 ... Spring plate, 9 ... Slit,
10.10A.10B recess, 11 notch, 12 gap, 13 slit, 14 opening slit, 15 window, 16 thin plate, 17 spring plate, 18 spring plate reinforcing plate,
21A to 21D: electrode lead, 22: insulating layer, 23: shield layer, 26: actuator, 27: slider, 2
8 magnetic head, 29 fixing fixture, 30 piezoelectric / electrostrictive device, 31 to 45 piezoelectric / electrostrictive device, 51 to 53
... Sheet member, 54 ... Reference hole, 55 ... Window, 85 ... First
Electrode, 86: piezoelectric film, 87: second electrode, 88: piezoelectric element, 89: diaphragm, 90: piezoelectric film, 91: first electrode, 9
Reference numeral 2: second electrode, 93: gap, 94A / 94B: piezoelectric element, 101: piezoelectric actuator, 102: beam, 10
3: fixed part, 104: movable part, 105: electrode layer.

Claims (35)

[Claims] 1. The connecting plate, the diaphragm and the substrate are crossed so that the joining direction of the connecting plate and the substrate and the joining direction of the connecting plate and the diaphragm cross each other in a cross shape, and the diaphragm is The piezoelectric element is disposed on at least a part of at least one surface of the vibration plate, and the vibration plate forms the cross. A piezoelectric / electrostrictive device characterized by being convexly curved in directions perpendicular to two directions. 2. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to claim 1, wherein a fixed plate is joined to one end of the connecting plate. 3. The piezoelectric device according to claim 2, wherein the connecting plate and the fixed plate are alternately joined to form a meandering shape, and the diaphragm is straddled between adjacent connecting plates. / Electrostrictive device. 4. The connecting plate, wherein a joint surface between the connecting plate and the substrate is a fixed surface, and a center axis of the connecting plate perpendicularly penetrating the center of the fixed surface serves as a reference. In the θ displacement mode, which displaces like a pendulum in the joining direction, or in the θ displacement mode, a direction perpendicular to both the joining direction of the connecting plate and the diaphragm and the extending direction of the central axis as the distance from the central axis increases.変 位 displacement mode in which the displacement component is added, or に displacement mode in which the connection plate and the diaphragm are uniaxially displaced in the joining direction, or ν displacement mode, with the connection plate moving away from the central axis. 2. A displacement mode in which at least one of a νz displacement mode to which a displacement component in a direction perpendicular to both a joining direction with the diaphragm and an extension direction of the central axis is added is used. 3 piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to any one of. 5. The fixed plate, the connecting plate and the diaphragm are joined to each other so that a direction in which the connecting plate sandwiches the fixed plate and a direction in which the diaphragm sandwiches the connecting plate cross each other. The connecting plate is joined to the bottom surface of the opposing concave portion formed on the substrate, the diaphragm is joined to the side surface of the concave portion, and the piezoelectric element is provided on at least a part of at least one surface of at least one of the vibrating plates. A piezoelectric / electrostrictive device provided, wherein the diaphragm on which the piezoelectric element is provided is curved convexly in two directions perpendicular to the two directions of the cross. 6. The piezoelectric / electromechanical device according to claim 5, wherein said diaphragm is disposed so as to be joined to said fixed plate.
Electrostrictive device. 7. A uniaxial displacement mode in which the fixed plate is a displacement in the surface direction of the fixed plate, and the diaphragm is uniaxially displaced in a direction parallel to a direction in which the connecting plate is sandwiched, or 7. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to claim 5, wherein the piezoelectric / electrostrictive device is displaced in any one of a rotational displacement mode in which the plate rotates about a substantially central portion of the plate. 8. The connection plate according to claim 1, wherein one or more slits and / or holes are formed in the connection plate, and / or a thin portion and a thick portion are formed. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to claim 1. 9. A connecting plate is straddled between the bottom surfaces of opposed concave portions formed in the substrate, and at least one diaphragm is provided in each of the concave portions.
At least two fixed plates are provided between the connection plate and the side surface of the concave portion, and the fixed plate is joined to the connection plate such that a longitudinal direction of the fixed plate is parallel to a direction in which the diaphragm is provided. A piezoelectric element is disposed on at least a part of at least one surface of the vibration plate, and the vibration plate is convex in a direction perpendicular to both directions of the straddling direction of the vibration plate and the straddling direction of the connection plate. A piezoelectric / electrostrictive device characterized by being curved in a shape. 10. An end at least two in the longitudinal direction.
A connecting plate sandwiched between two diaphragms, and the other end sandwiched between at least two other diaphragms, is straddled between the bottom surfaces of opposed concave portions formed on the substrate,
The diaphragm is joined to a side surface of the concave portion, and the fixed plate is joined to the connection plate such that a longitudinal direction of the fixed plate is parallel to a direction in which the diaphragm sandwiches the connection plate. A piezoelectric element is disposed on at least a part of at least one surface of the vibration plate, and the vibration plate is perpendicular to both the direction in which the vibration plate sandwiches the connection plate and the direction in which the connection plate is laid. A piezoelectric / electrostrictive device characterized by being convexly curved in various directions. 11. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to claim 9, wherein a notch is formed at a joint between the fixing plate and the connecting plate. 12. The fixing plate according to claim 9, wherein the fixing plate is joined so as to intersect with the connecting plate.
The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to any one of the above. 13. The fixing plate according to claim 1, wherein the connecting plate is divided into at least two in the longitudinal direction of the fixing plate, and at least two connecting plates formed by division are joined to the fixing plate. Item 13. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to any one of Items 9 to 12. 14. The fixing plate according to claim 9, wherein the fixing plate has a tongue extending from a joint between the fixing plate and the connecting plate in a longitudinal direction of the fixing plate. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to claim 1. 15. A pair of piezoelectric elements positioned diagonally opposite each other are driven in phase with respect to a joint between the fixed plate and the connecting plate, and the other set of piezoelectric elements are driven in opposite phase.
The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to any one of claims 9 to 14, wherein the one set of piezoelectric elements and the other set of piezoelectric elements are driven in the same phase at different times. 16. A pair of piezoelectric elements located at line-symmetric positions with respect to the longitudinal axis of the fixed plate as a symmetric axis, and the other set of piezoelectric elements are driven with the opposite phase. 15. The set of piezoelectric elements and the other set of piezoelectric elements are driven at the same phase with a time shift.
The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to any one of the above. 17. A pair of diaphragms 2 sandwiching the connecting plate
The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to any one of claims 9 to 16, wherein the sheets are joined to the connecting plate at positions shifted in a thickness direction of the connecting plate. 18. A pair of diaphragms 2 sandwiching said connecting plate.
A piezoelectric element is disposed on one flat surface of each of the vibration plates, with a center point of a joint position between the plate and the connection plate as a point symmetric center,
18. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to claim 17, wherein the piezoelectric elements are driven in the same phase. 19. A uniaxial displacement mode in which the fixed plate is uniaxially displaced in a longitudinal direction, or an in-plane rotational displacement mode centered on a vicinity of a joint between the fixed plate and the connecting plate, or the connecting plate. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to any one of claims 9 to 18, wherein at least one displacement mode of an axial rotation displacement mode having a longitudinal axis as a rotation center is used. 20. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to claim 19, wherein the in-plane rotational displacement mode is based on an enlargement mechanism that enlarges the displacement of the piezoelectric element in two stages. 21. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to claim 1, wherein one fixed plate is joined to a connecting plate in a plurality of piezoelectric / electrostrictive devices. . 22. When the length of the diaphragm in the straddling direction is L and the curved height in the convex direction is H, a relationship of at least 1 ≦ (H / L) × 100 ≦ 30 is satisfied. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to any one of claims 1 to 21, characterized in that: 23. When the length of the diaphragm in the straddling direction is L and the curved height in the convex direction is H, at least 1 ≦ (H / L) × 100 ≦ 10 is satisfied. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to claim 22, characterized in that: 24. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to claim 1, wherein at least the connecting plate and the vibrating plate are joined on each other. 25. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to claim 1, wherein at least the connection plate, the vibration plate, and the substrate are integrally formed. 26. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to claim 1, wherein at least the connecting plate, the vibrating plate, and the substrate are manufactured by using a green sheet laminating method. 27. At least one piezoelectric element formed by dividing one piezoelectric element into a plurality is used as a driving element, and another at least one piezoelectric element is used as an auxiliary element. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to any one of claims 1 to 26. 28. The method according to claim 28, wherein two or more of the piezoelectric elements are provided, at least one of the piezoelectric elements is used as a driving element, and at least one other of the piezoelectric elements is used as an auxiliary element. 28. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to any one of 1 to 27. 29. The piezoelectric device according to claim 1, wherein the piezoelectric element and an electrode lead connected to an electrode of the piezoelectric element are covered with an insulating layer made of resin or glass.
29. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to any one of -28. 30. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to claim 29, wherein the resin is a fluororesin or a silicone resin. 31. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to claim 29, wherein a shield layer made of a conductive member is further formed on the surface of the insulating layer. 32. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to claim 1, wherein at least the substrate, the connecting plate, and the diaphragm are made of completely stabilized zirconia or partially stabilized zirconia. device. 33. The piezoelectric element according to claim 1, wherein the piezoelectric film of the piezoelectric element is made of a material mainly containing a component consisting of lead zirconate, lead titanate, and lead magnesium niobate. Item 10. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to item 8. 34. The method according to claim 1, wherein the shape of any one of the fixed plate, the connection plate, and the vibration plate is trimmed by laser processing or mechanical processing to adjust the dimensions. A piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to any one of the preceding claims. 35. The method according to claim 1, wherein an electrode of the piezoelectric element is laser-processed or machined to adjust an effective electrode area of the piezoelectric element.
35. The piezoelectric / electrostrictive device according to any one of claims 34.