Tokai's Active loudspeakers - video now online

ERJ staff report (DS)

Makuhari, Japan - A couple of weeks ago, we brought you news of an innovation from Tokai Rubber Industries. The company introduced a new range of “Smart Rubber” loudspeakers at a consumer electronics exhibition in Japan. The CEATEC show ran from 2 Oct - 6 Oct at the Makuhari Messe.

Now a series of gadget magazines have published images and video of the innovation. (see links below)

The technology claims to allow designers to make speakers thinner and lighter, without sacrificing sound reproduction quality or volume. Tokai suggests that the technology can be used in flat-screen devices.

It is based on a conductive rubber sheet sandwiched between two sheets of insulating rubber. Electrostatic force is generated when a voltage is applied to the film.

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from ERJ (27 September 2012)

World's First Rubber Speaker - No Bass Compromised CrazyEngineers (Japan)

Does A Speaker Made From Artificial Rubber Muscles Get Louder With Exercise? Gizmodo (Japan)

World's first all rubber speaker made from artificial muscles is thin, soft and bassy DiginfoTV (Japan)