A Broadband Approach for the Generation and Reception of Low-Frequency Ultrasounds In-Air for Sonar Applications

In-air ultrasonic transducers are mostly characterized by a narrow frequency band, which limits the performances of sonar systems. Broadband transducers are widely investigated, but it still represents a technological bottle neck. Recently, we proposed a biologically inspired ultrasonic transducer, with interesting characteristics in terms of bandwidth and directionality. Considering the above, standard electronics can be revisited using alternative approaches. The work presents the development a broadband system for the generation/reception of ultrasounds in-air. It is based on spiral shaped, polyvinylidene-fluoride (PVDF) broadband transducers for the generation and reception ultrasounds in air, and second-generation voltage conveyor (VCII) based electronic interfaces in transmission and reception. The latter exploits their inherent broadband characteristics and the capability of working in voltage and current mode, to operate with a bandwidth larger than 60 kHz.