Transparent speaker for displays, windows, and lenses

Abstract

A transducer is described that includes a substrate configured to be deposited on a solid object, and a transparent medium coupled to the substrate and configured to oscillate at a pre-selected frequency upon receipt of an electrical excitation or a mechanical excitation and to provide a first acoustic wave. The transducer also includes an actuator configured to receive an electrical power, and to provide the electrical excitation or the mechanical excitation to the transparent medium, wherein at least a portion of the solid object is viewable through the transparent medium, and the first acoustic wave is at least partially transmitted through an interface of the transparent medium. A system and a non-transitory, computer-readable medium storing instructions to cause the system to perform a method to use the transducer for generating acoustic waves in a transparent medium are also disclosed.

1 . A non-transitory, computer-readable medium storing instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause a computer to perform a method, the method comprising:
 filtering an electrical power to an electrode coupled to a transparent medium in a transducer to select a pre-determined frequency for an electrical excitation or a mechanical excitation of the transparent medium;   providing the electrical excitation or the mechanical excitation to generate a first propagating acoustic wave from an interface in the transparent medium at the pre-determined frequency;   directing the first propagating acoustic wave in a pre-selected direction; and   receiving an incoming propagating acoustic wave from the pre-selected direction in the interface of the transparent medium.   
     
     
         2 . The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of  claim 1 , further comprising combining the first propagating acoustic wave with a second propagating acoustic wave from the transparent medium, the second propagating acoustic wave having the pre-determined frequency and separated by a phase selected based on a source point of the first propagating acoustic wave, a source point of the second propagating acoustic wave, and the pre-selected direction. 
     
     
         3 . The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of  claim 1 , wherein directing the first propagating acoustic wave comprises scanning a surface of a nearby object to identify a distance, a shape, or a consistency of the nearby object. 
     
     
         4 . The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of  claim 1 , wherein receiving the incoming propagating acoustic wave comprises generating a warning when the incoming propagating acoustic wave is indicative of a nearby object that has moved into an unsafe position. 
     
     
         5 . The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of  claim 1 , wherein providing the electrical excitation comprises selecting a phase for the electrical excitation. 
     
     
         6 . The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of  claim 1 , wherein the transparent medium is part of an eyepiece mounted on a user face, and further comprising scanning a physical feature of the user face with the first propagating acoustic wave. 
     
     
         7 . The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of  claim 1 , wherein the transparent medium is part of an eyepiece mounted on a frame for a glass that fits into a physical feature of a user of the glass, and further comprising determining a position of the frame relative to the physical feature of the user with the first propagating acoustic wave. 
     
     
         8 . The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of  claim 1 , wherein the transparent medium comprises a display configured to provide an image to an audience, and directing the first propagating acoustic wave in a pre-selected direction comprises providing an audio signal to the audience. 
     
     
         9 . The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of  claim 1 , wherein directing the first propagating acoustic wave in a pre-selected direction forming an acoustic beam in the pre-selected direction. 
     
     
         10 . The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of  claim 1 , wherein the transparent medium comprises a display configured to provide an image to an audience, further comprising generating a second propagating acoustic wave and forming a stereophonic sound for the audience that is complementary to the image with the first propagating acoustic wave and the second propagating acoustic wave. 
     
     
         11 . A system, comprising:
 a memory circuit storing multiple instructions; and   one or more processors configured to execute the instructions and cause the system to:
 filter an electrical power to an electrode coupled to a transparent medium in a transducer to select a pre-determined frequency for an electrical excitation or a mechanical excitation of the transparent medium; 
 provide the electrical excitation or the mechanical excitation to generate a first propagating acoustic wave from an interface in the transparent medium at the pre-determined frequency; 
 direct the first propagating acoustic wave in a pre-selected direction; and 
 receive an incoming propagating acoustic wave from the pre-selected direction in the interface of the transparent medium. 
   
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the transparent medium is part of an eyepiece mounted on a user face, and the one or more processors further execute instructions to scan a physical feature of the user face with the first propagating acoustic wave. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the transparent medium is part of an eyepiece mounted on a glass frame that fits into a physical feature of a user of a frame of a glass, and the one or more processors further execute instructions to determine a position of the glass frame relative to the physical feature of the user with the first propagating acoustic wave. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the transparent medium comprises a display configured to provide an image to an audience, and the one or more processors further execute instructions to direct the first propagating acoustic wave in a pre-selected direction comprises providing an audio signal to the audience. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the transparent medium is part of a window in an automobile, further directing the first propagating acoustic wave towards a driver of the automobile. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the transparent medium is part of a window in an automobile, further wherein the one or more processors execute instructions to generate a second propagating acoustic wave and to direct the first propagating acoustic wave and the second propagating acoustic wave in a pre-selected direction the one or more processors execute instructions to generate a stereo-sound for a driver of the automobile. 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the transparent medium is part of a window in a first automobile, and to direct the first propagating acoustic wave in a pre-selected direction the one or more processors execute instructions to direct the first propagating acoustic wave towards a second automobile next to the first automobile, and to receive an incoming propagating acoustic wave from the pre-selected direction the one or more processors execute instructions to receive a reflection of the first propagating acoustic wave from the second automobile. 
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the transparent medium is part of a window in a first automobile, and to direct the first propagating acoustic wave in a pre-selected direction the one or more processors execute instructions to scan a second automobile next to the first automobile, and to determine a size and shape of the second automobile. 
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the transparent medium is part of a window in a first automobile, and to receive an incoming propagating acoustic wave from the pre-selected direction comprises determining a speed of the first automobile relative to a second automobile. 
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the transparent medium is part of a window in a store, and the one or more processors further execute instructions to generate a second propagating wave and to direct the first propagating acoustic wave in a pre-selected direction the one or more processors execute instructions to beam the first propagating acoustic wave, using the second propagating wave, in a direction of a potential customer.