Quote:
Originally Posted by smeggy 
I doubt that is the RP design, considering the RPs PCB extends beyond the magnet cage for all to see, it would be difficult, if not impossible, to add a flex surround in the middle of it. I'm guessing it's just what we thought it was.
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I think you're right-- I'm pretty sure it's just a regular iso type. But they could have floated a small rigid plate on what looks like a conventional diaphragm. This would be similar to my idea for the Pioneer HPM drivers.
The patent does say "speaker", though maybe there
is a microphone application. Fostex did sell a line of professional RP mics, although none I've seen disassembled show a mica plate.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ericj 
Maybe it's some other oddball idea that never went to market.
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Agreed, though patents sometimes are mined for the good ideas they contain, so a given product might embody parts of one patent and parts of another. Willi Presutti implied that the PMB diaphragm was pleated to make it move more like a piston. A very weird piston, but...
By the way, pleats don't substantially increase a diaphragm's "grip" on the air. That depends more on the diameter of the diaphragm compared to the wavelength of the sound it's producing. Surface area is increased, but it doesn't help move more air. A downside is that there's more diaphragm mass to move, and thus lower efficiency.