Virtual Collaborations 2025

Unlimited Sustaining and Individual Members have access to previous recordings.

Dive into Ultrasonics Innovation!

UIA’s Two-Part Virtual Collaboration Series

Register here to view the 11 September & 9 October 2025 Virtual Collaborations

The Ultrasonic Industry Association (UIA) is proud to present our latest Virtual Collaboration Series — and this time, we’re offering a two-part experience packed with practical insights and real-world expertise.

This series features UIA members with hands-on experience in ultrasonic transducers, materials, and applications. Whether you're a seasoned engineer or just exploring the field, these webinars offer valuable knowledge and networking opportunities.

Join us for one or both sessions — each is designed to deliver a wealth of information and foster meaningful collaboration across the ultrasonics community. 

Part 1:

• Ultrasonic Transducer Materials/RoHS - CTS Denmark
• Ultrasonic Transducer Design/Construction - Jay Sheehan, Integra LifeSciences
• Ultrasonic Generator Design/Electric - Myra Flitcroft, Moog

Part 2: 

• System Modeling - Rebecca Cleary and Nico Fenu, Nami Surgical
• Applications - Kevin Hauser, St. Andrews Systems and Dan Cotter, Integra LifeSciences

Registration

Unlimited members (Sustaining and Individual) can register at no additional charge.  Sustaining members can register up to five individuals at no additional charge.  TO PARTICIPATE, please register so that you receive the zoom link.

This edition of Virtual Collaborations will be available to UIA basic members at $50 / students at $25 / nonmembers at $75. Group registration discounts ARE AVAILABLE to those companies who are basic sustaining members or non members who want to have more than one person participate.

Registration fees for BOTH parts of our 2025 Fall Collaborations is: basic members (both individual and sustaining) $90 / students $45 / nonmembers $140.

Unlimited members (Sustaining and Individual) can register at no additional charge.  Unlimited Sustaining members can register up to five individuals at no additional charge.

Register here to view the 11 September & 9 October 2025 Virtual Collaborations

5 September Virtual Collaborations:  

Intellectual property tips and tricks for moving from ideas to commercial products

Register here to view the 5 September 2024 Virtual Collaborations

Presented by Kevin Houser, Ethicon J&J

Unlock the secrets to transforming your innovative ideas into thriving commercial products at our must-attend Virtual Collaborations: "Intellectual Property Tips and Tricks for Moving from Ideas to Commercial Products."

Kevin Houser will guide you through the intricate world of intellectual property protection, arming you with the strategies and tools needed to safeguard your groundbreaking discoveries. Discover the patent process, learn proven techniques to bolster your ideas' chances of securing legal safeguards, and explore a unified pathway to commercial success. Packed with invaluable insights and real-world case studies, this event is a must for any ultrasonic innovator seeking to navigate the complexities of transforming their vision into a profitable reality.

Don't miss this opportunity to gain a competitive edge and propel your ultrasonic innovations towards commercial viability. Register now for this unmissable event!

Virtual Collaborations 2024 and before

Virtual Collaborations for 2024

This is a regular program of the UIA, providing an opportunity for those interested in ultrasonics to hear a presentation and then have a collegial discussion about the presentation.  Please save 90 minutes for this session.

Look forward to invites for four separate sessions during the course of the year, in February, June, September, and November.  We have selected this schedule so that we can bring you great content on a regular basis but not interfere with our annual conference or summer holidays!  And we will be adding a new wrinkle to these presentations, a mini-symposium!  The presentations in February, June and November will continue with our 1 hour format and a topic of discussion, but our September session will be an expanded 2 hour mini symposium with a series of presentations on a specific area of ultrasonic technology, ranging from ceramics, transducers, control systems waveguides and other technologies.  And don’t forget our main symposium in April!

We look forward to seeing you at these presentations during the course of the year!

Kevin Hauser & Margaret Lucas, 
Virtual Collaborations co-chairs

Interested in previous Virtual Collaborations presentations? Email uia@ultrasonics.org

Contrasting Ultrasonic Design Challenges in Wire Bonding and Phacoemulsification

Featuring Mark Delsman, J & J Vision

Mark Delsman is a Systems Engineer for Johnson & Johnson Surgical Vision, responsible for the ultrasonic handpieces used in cataract surgery (phacoemulsification). Mark got his start in ultrasonics at Orthodyne Electronics (and later Kulicke & Soffa), where he was an R&D Engineer and later Process Group Manager responsible for transducer design and all wedge wire bonding processes. Mark left the field of ultrasonics for a number of years, finally returning to ultrasonics at J&J. This presentation looks at a few of the surprising differences Mark has discovered in the application of ultrasonics in wire bonding and phacoemulsification.

Register here to view this session

Use of testing and finite element analysis for the design with frequency separation considerations

Featuring 

Kevin Houser, Director, IP Strategy, Engineering Fellow, Intellectual Property Center of Excellence

This edition of Virtual Collaborations will focus on the use of testing and finite element analysis for the design of waveguides and end effectors for use on power ultrasound systems.  It will include information of generalized testing of longitudinal, torsional and transverse frequencies and then using specific design changes to achieve appropriately designed frequency separations amongst all of these.

End Uses of Ultrasound

Featuring 

Dominick DeAngelis, Kulicke & Soffa 

Professor David Grewell, Chair of the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering, North Dakota State University

Kevin Houser, Director, IP Strategy, Engineering Fellow, Intellectual Property Center of Excellence

End Uses of Ultrasound

This edition of Virtual Collaborations will feature four knowledgeable ultrasonic professionals discussing uses of ultrasound which they work with regularly. 

• Dominick DeAngelis will present Semiconductor Wire Bonding
• David Grewell, State University of North Dakota, will discuss Biofuel Uses
• Plastic Welding will be presented by Leo Klinstein, Dukane Corporation
• Kevin Houser, Johnson & Johnson Medical Devices Companies, will present on Ultrasonic Surgical Instruments

Register here for September Virtual Collaborations

Leadfree Piezo Update

Rasmus Lou-Moeller

Industrial & Manufacturing Engineering, Meggit A/S

Although the EC has delayed the new regulations requiring leadfree piezo, there has been a focus on developing leadfree piezo techniques.  Rasmus Lou-Moeller, Director of Engineering and Business Development for Meggitt A/S will provide an update on leadfree piezo and how these developments can impact the future of piezo.

Want to view this critical update on the development of leadfree piezo techniques?  Register below - it will give you access to the video recording and the PowerPoint presentation.

Register to view the June Virtual Collaborations

Please email UIA if you wish to purchase any of these previous presentations:

Modeling of ultrasonic welding of plastics and 3D printing consolidation

Lokesh Karthik Narayanan, Assistant Professor

Industrial & Manufacturing Engineering, North Dakota State University

As a researcher, Dr. Narayanan’s research interests center on the development of scalable 3D biofabrication processes that enable manufacturing of engineered tissues. Through his research, he is addressing the issues that hinder the translation of processes to the industry such as scalability and quality control. His latest research investigates the use of impedance sensing to monitor the biological quality characteristics of engineered tissue. His vision is to model the process function relationships and engineer semi-autonomous cyber-physical systems for tissue and biomedical device manufacturing.

Dr. Narayanan has served as the instructor for core manufacturing and design courses at NC State and teaches CAD/CAM (IME 380) and automation (IME 482) at NDSU. He is a member of the Industrial and Systems Engineers (IISE), Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME) and is a member of student relations committee in the national chapter of SME.

• Fundamentals of Langevin Transducer Design – A Tribute to George Bromfield Featuring Tony Crandall and Jeff Vaitekunas
  Among George Bromfield’s many other accomplishments and contributions, he was a master of design of ultrasonic transducers.  This collaboration will focus on the design fundamentals of Langevin-type transducers, and the use of PiezoTran modeling software to quickly and accurately iterate to a design.  Many “tricks of the trade” that George taught will be discussed, with particular reference to the use of PiezoTran as well as more general knowledge that George has passed on to all of us to continue in his absence.
  
  

Ultrasound in Surgical Devices: Advances in Robotic Surgery & HIFU applications

Featuring Kevin Houser, PE,Director, IP Strategy, Engineering Fellow, Intellectual Property Center of Excellence, Johnson & Johnson, Ethicon Endo-Surgery

Regulatory measurement requirements for ultrasonic surgical devices: Relevance of acoustic characteristics to surgical performance

           Featuring Mark E. Schafer, PhD FASA FAIUM, Research Professor, 
           School of Biomedical  Engineering, Science and Health Systems, Drexel University 

Tools and techniques for characterizing transducers

           Featuring  Dr. Andrew Mathieson, Thales UK, and Mark Hodnett, NPL, UK

Multi-wavelength probes and blades: tuning / gain / balancing

          Presented by Jeff Vaitekunas, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Penn State Behrend.

 To view the recordings, please email uia@ultrasonics.org to register and get the link.

The first Virtual Collaboration was held on Thursday, 24 September 2020 

One of my favorite aspects of Ultrasonic Industry Association symposiums is the collaboration that occurs during breaks in the actual symposium presentations.  Ultrasonic technology is highly non-linear and often confounding, and bouncing thoughts with peers is practically impossible on a day to day basis due to the significant intellectual investment necessary to understand the issues.  With the current pandemic, it is not feasible for many to meet in person and have these collaborations.  That is why I am looking forward to the UIA’s virtual collaboration on applying pre-load to Langevin-type piezoelectric transducers.  Over the years I have experienced several instances of pre-load issues that at the time were confusing, but with hindsight are completely understandable.  These collaborative discussions provide the insight needed to overcome common issues that are otherwise difficult to comprehend.

Jeff Vaitekunas Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Penn State Behrend