18513144. APPARATUS WITH ULTRASONIC FINGERPRINT SENSOR AND ONE OR MORE RESONATORS, AND RELATED SYSTEMS AND METHODS simplified abstract (QUALCOMM Incorporated)

APPARATUS WITH ULTRASONIC FINGERPRINT SENSOR AND ONE OR MORE RESONATORS, AND RELATED SYSTEMS AND METHODS

Organization Name

QUALCOMM Incorporated

Inventor(s)

Jessica Liu Strohmann of Cupertino CA (US)

Hrishikesh Vijaykumar Panchawagh of Cupertino CA (US)

Nai-Kuei Kuo of Los Gatos CA (US)

Yipeng Lu of Moraga CA (US)

Ali Lopez of Dublin CA (US)

Kostadin Dimitrov Djordjev of Los Gatos CA (US)

APPARATUS WITH ULTRASONIC FINGERPRINT SENSOR AND ONE OR MORE RESONATORS, AND RELATED SYSTEMS AND METHODS - A simplified explanation of the abstract

This abstract first appeared for US patent application 18513144 titled 'APPARATUS WITH ULTRASONIC FINGERPRINT SENSOR AND ONE OR MORE RESONATORS, AND RELATED SYSTEMS AND METHODS

Simplified Explanation

The disclosed patent application describes an ultrasonic sensor stack with an acoustic resonator that enhances ultrasonic waves for ultrasonic fingerprint sensors.

• The acoustic resonator is designed to improve ultrasonic waves transmitted by the sensor stack in the ultrasonic frequency range suitable for fingerprint sensors.
• The acoustic resonator includes low-impedance layers between higher-impedance layers, with each low-impedance layer having a lower acoustic impedance than the higher-impedance layers.
• At least one low-impedance layer is a multiple of a half wavelength at the peak frequency of the resonator, which falls within a frequency range of 1 MHz to 20 MHz.

Potential Applications

This technology could be used in ultrasonic fingerprint sensors for smartphones, access control systems, and other biometric security applications.

Problems Solved

This innovation improves the performance and accuracy of ultrasonic fingerprint sensors by enhancing ultrasonic waves in the appropriate frequency range.

Benefits

The benefits of this technology include increased security through more reliable fingerprint recognition, improved user experience with faster and more accurate authentication, and potential cost savings for manufacturers.

Potential Commercial Applications

Commercial applications for this technology include smartphone manufacturers, security system providers, and biometric sensor companies looking to enhance their products with advanced ultrasonic technology.

Possible Prior Art

One possible prior art for this technology could be the use of acoustic resonators in ultrasonic sensors for medical imaging or industrial applications.

How does this technology compare to existing ultrasonic fingerprint sensor technologies in terms of accuracy and performance?

This article does not provide a direct comparison with existing technologies in the market.

What are the potential limitations or challenges in implementing this technology in commercial products?

The article does not address any potential challenges or limitations that may arise when implementing this technology in real-world applications.

Original Abstract Submitted

Some disclosed implementations include an ultrasonic sensor stack and an acoustic resonator. The acoustic resonator may be configured to enhance ultrasonic waves transmitted by the ultrasonic sensor stack in an ultrasonic frequency range that is suitable for ultrasonic fingerprint sensors. In some examples, the acoustic resonator may include one or more low-impedance layers residing between a first higher-impedance layer and a second higher-impedance layer. Each of the one or more low-impedance layers may have a lower acoustic impedance than an acoustic impedance of the first higher-impedance layer or an acoustic impedance of the second higher-impedance layer. At least one low-impedance layer may have a thickness corresponding to a multiple of a half wavelength at a peak frequency of the acoustic resonator. The peak frequency may be within a frequency range from 1 MHz. to 20 MHz.