Transparent Piezoelectric Film Speakers for Active Noise Mitigation

Noise pollution has a significant negative effect on psychological health and quality of life, and causes reduction in working and learning efficiency and even hearing loss under intensive and prolonged exposure condition. Passive noise mitigation using sound absorbing materials, micro-perforated panels and double layered structure have been used to improve the acoustic comfort in urban life today. However these technologies are effective only at high frequencies and also cannot be applied when transparency is required in many applications cases. In contrast, active noise mitigation technology can help to effectively suppress the low frequency noise. However, bulky and non-transparent electromagnetic speakers located at single or multiple points are typically used for active noise mitigation, which often limits global noise cancellation effect over a large area and has aesthetical acceptance issue. We have designed and produced transparent film speakers aiming at active noise mitigation application using piezoelectric polymer materials. The performance properties of our obtained transparent speakers will be reported and their potentials for application in active noise mitigation systems will be analyzed and discussed.