How does Edge Motion™ technology work?

Our patented Edge Motion™ audio speaker technology uses a completely new mechanism to create sound waves. By pushing along the side of a thin membrane material in the direction of the plane, the membrane flexes and creates sound waves. This “pistonic” motion produces natural and coherent sound waves that move perpendicular to the plane of the membrane.

To see an animated demonstration of how Edge Motion™ speaker systems compare to traditional speakers, click here.

Are flat panel speakers better?

Historically some of the best performing, very expensive audiophile speakers have been flat panels. Unfortunately, these high performance speakers are usually very large, difficult to drive, and very inefficient.  However, many audiophiles have put up with these drawbacks in return for great sound quality.  Although typical “point source” speakers (using cone drivers) and these expensive flat panel speakers may measure essentially the same, there is a very noticeable difference in the sound quality; this is primarily due to the shape of the wavefronts they create.

In visual terms, the point source speaker is like a bright uncovered lightbulb, glaring at you from a distinct point in the room.  In contrast, the large radiating area of a flat panel speaker acts somewhat more like diffused lighting that comes from an area of the room rather than a specific point; this light is easier on the eyes, does not draw attention to itself, and generally feels more “natural”, pleasant and comfortable.  In sonic terms, flat panels typically create a more natural and pleasant soundstage that helps make the physical speakers less apparent.  Even though the soundwave characteristics of the two systems are vastly different in 3-dimensional space, these differences are difficult to capture and quantify with traditional speaker measurement techniques.  However, the qualitative differences in the listening experience are unmistakable to even the most casual listener. 

How is Edge Motion™ technology different from other less expensive “flat panel” speaker technologies?

Although a variety of different so-called “flat panel” speaker technologies have been developed, the more affordable ones suffer from one or more serious practical limitations, including lower sound quality and the inability to propagate natural coherent sound waves across a wide frequency range.  We believe that speaker systems based on our Edge Motion™ technology are the first and only ones that can satisfy all of the key requirements needed to make a successful and widely-deployed speaker solution for display-based consumer electronics:

• True “zero footprint” form factor
• Natural, full-range, high-fidelity sound and imaging
• Cost-effective in mass-produced consumer electronics product

How can Edge Motion™ speaker systems be "invisible" when traditional cone or dome speakers cannot?

Traditional dynamic loudspeakers use a magnetic motor to “push” a cone or dome from behind. This design makes it impossible to produce an invisible speaker that can generate sound from the same place as the images that appear on a display panel. By “micro-flexing” a thin transparent membrane using miniature motors that push along the side, Edge Motion™ speaker systems can be built around a display panel so that audio and video content are “unified” and come from the same place.

Edge Motion™ speaker systems also differ from most traditional loudspeaker designs in their ability to produce a full range of musical frequencies using a single radiating surface (the membrane). In most true high-fidelity speaker systems that use traditional components, multiple drivers (tweeters, midrange speakers and/or woofers) are used to get the desired level of sound quality and performance. The larger, heavier drivers typically excel in their ability to move more air at lower frequencies while much smaller and lighter drivers are used to provide more faithful and sonically pleasing reproduction of high frequencies. The unique design of our Edge Motion™ speaker systems works extremely well across a much wider range of frequencies by taking advantage of its ability to use a highly-controlled lightweight radiating surface to move air efficiently and handle complex musical passages with ease.

To see how Edge Motion™ speaker systems literally "disappear" into display-based consumer electronics, click here.

How can a single Edge Motion™ speaker system actually be two speakers?

Edge Motion™ speaker systems have the unique ability to integrate separate Left and Right stereo audio speakers into a single transducer assembly that shares a single radiating surface.  Although they are not visible, there are two separate motor assemblies driving different segments of the membrane while other areas are stabilized in order to isolate the two independent speakers.

What kind of material is used for the membrane?

We can use a variety of different optically transparent materials. They can also be coated to provide the most appropriate optical properties for a given application.

Do speaker systems using Edge Motion™ audio technology require a special amplifier?

For most applications, the highest performance can be achieved by designing a fully integrated system where the characteristics of the amplifier are perfectly matched to the characteristics of the speakers and the desired usage.

Do products that have an embedded Edge Motion™ audio need a separate woofer or subwoofer?

Depending on the application, the size of the display, and the specific performance requirements, a complete Edge Motion™ speaker system may be implemented as a standalone full-range 2.0 system, or it may be supplemented by a small built-in woofer in a 2.1 system.  Of course, like most speaker systems, a user can decide whether or not they want to use a separate subwoofer to augment reproduction of the lowest bass frequencies, as long as a suitable audio out jack is available.

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