US 8114697

US patent 8114697, titled "Piezoelectric microphone, speaker, microphone-speaker integrated device and manufacturing method thereof", was assigned to Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute ETRI. The patent lists Hye Jin Kim, Sung Q Lee, Sang Kyun Lee, Jae Woo Lee, Kang Ho Park, and Jong Dae Kim as inventors. The application was filed on August 20, 2008, and the patent was issued on February 14, 2012.

Abstract:
The patent describes a piezoelectric microphone, a speaker, a microphone-speaker integrated device, and a method for their manufacture. The integrated device comprises a silicon substrate, an insulating layer on the substrate, a piezoelectric plate on the insulating layer, and a mating electrode on the piezoelectric plate. A key feature is the mating electrode, which is patterned with a polarity arrayed in series.

Plain-Language Overview of Independent Claims:

• Claim 1 (Method of manufacturing a piezoelectric microphone): This claim describes a manufacturing process for a piezoelectric microphone. It involves first depositing an insulating layer onto a silicon substrate, then forming a piezoelectric plate on top of that insulating layer. Finally, a mating electrode is formed on the piezoelectric plate. The crucial aspect is that this mating electrode consists of cathode and anode patterns connected in series.

• Claim 2 (Method of manufacturing a piezoelectric speaker): This claim outlines a manufacturing process for a piezoelectric speaker. It begins by depositing an insulating layer on a silicon substrate and then forming a piezoelectric plate on the insulating layer. This piezoelectric plate has two distinct areas: a piezoelectric strain region and a vibration region. A mating electrode is formed specifically within the piezoelectric strain region. The manufacturing method ensures that the vibration region of the piezoelectric plate is made thinner than the piezoelectric strain region.

• Claim 4 (Piezoelectric microphone): This claim describes the piezoelectric microphone apparatus itself. It includes a silicon substrate, an insulating layer on the substrate, a piezoelectric plate on the insulating layer, and a mating electrode on the piezoelectric plate. Similar to the manufacturing method claim, the mating electrode is characterized by cathode and anode patterns connected in series.

• Claim 10 (Piezoelectric speaker): This claim describes the piezoelectric speaker apparatus. It comprises a silicon substrate, an insulating layer on the substrate, a piezoelectric plate on the insulating layer (which has a piezoelectric strain region and a vibration region), and a mating electrode positioned in the piezoelectric strain region. A defining feature is that the piezoelectric plate is thinner in its vibration region compared to its piezoelectric strain region.

• Claim 18 (Piezoelectric speaker-microphone integrated device): This claim covers a combined piezoelectric speaker and microphone device. It specifies that the piezoelectric microphone (as described in Claim 1, interpreted as referring to the structural features of the microphone) and the piezoelectric speaker (as described in Claim 10) are both located on the same silicon substrate. There is an ambiguity in Claim 18 as it references "the piezoelectric microphone of claim 1" (a method claim) instead of "the piezoelectric microphone of claim 4" (an apparatus claim). This phrasing might suggest that the integrated device incorporates elements manufactured according to the method of Claim 1, or it might be an error and intends to refer to the apparatus of Claim 4.

CAFC 2026 Dockets:
As of April 26, 2026, no specific dockets for US8114697 in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) for 2026 were found in the provided search results. The results primarily pointed to general CAFC information and scheduled cases for May, June, and July 2026, but did not list this specific patent. The patent document itself references litigation in district courts (California Northern District Court and Texas Eastern District Court) but not specifically CAFC.