Modelling of Acoustic Streaming in Phased Array Transducer

Airborne ultrasound phased arrays are increasingly used for mid-air haptics, acoustic levitation, and emerging “odor/volatile steering” concepts. A common, often under-quantified companion to these applications is mid-air acoustic streaming—steady air motion driven by ultrasound. Streaming can alter perceived haptic cues, destabilize levitated objects, and transport aerosols or vapors, so understanding it is a prerequisite for reliable, scalable systems.

This work—in collaboration with Dr. Chris Stone and Prof. Bruce W. Drinkwater (University of Bristol)—combines particle image velocimetry (PIV) and numerical modeling to map how streaming forms in single-focus and multi-focus fields generated by airborne phased-array transducers, and to clarify where common simulation approaches succeed (and fail).

Stone, C., Koroyasu, Y., Ochiai, Y., Kaneko, A., Drinkwater, B. W., & Fushimi, T. (2026). Experimental and numerical study of acoustic streaming in mid-air phased arrays. npj Acoustics, 2(1), 4.

Media Coverage:

TechXplore: Midair haptics and levitation may get steadier with predictable ultrasonic airflow