Patent ID: 7791248

Claim:
An apparatus providing an electrical signal in response to an applied force, the apparatus comprising: a first substrate; a second substrate; a layer located between the first substrate and the second substrate, the layer including at least one shaped form of a first material, the applied force being applied between the first and second substrates, the shaped form being configured so that the applied force induces a region of stress gradient in the shaped form, the shaped form having a sloping side configured to be non-parallel and non-orthogonal to the applied force, the layer having a layer thickness less than 250 microns; a first electrode adjacent the sloping side so as to contact the region of stress gradient; and a second electrode, the first substrate being located between the second electrode and the layer, the first and second electrodes providing an electrical signal in response to the applied force, the electrical signal originating from a flexoelectric effect in the shaped form.