Present status in flextensional transducer technology

Abstract

The use of any of the various classes of flextensional transducer has been historically limited by an inability to accurately design them and by their apparent unsuitability to phased and/or conformal arrays. To reliably design any type required the development of a cost efficient, relatively accurate, preferably algebraic mathematical model, but most early analytical research centered around large computer models; generally these were accurate but too complex and expensive to provide important physical insight. More recent work on an equivalent circuit for the class IV transducer produced unrestrained equations of the required accuracy for peak radiated power, resonant half power bandwidth, resonant frequency and the optimum power‐bandwidth product design which represents the smallest, lightest transducer of this type for any given acoustic requirements. This paper briefly summarizes the analytical background to the model, recent experimental work, application to several sonars including both expendable and ship systems, and the ultimate capabilities of the class IV type.