US Patent 10125011 MEMS devices having discharge circuits

MEMS devices having discharge circuits. In some embodiments, a MEMS device can include a substrate and an electromechanical assembly implemented on the substrate. The MEMS device can further include a discharge circuit implemented relative to the electromechanical assembly. The discharge circuit can be configured to provide a preferred arcing path during a discharge condition affecting the electromechanical assembly. The MEMS device can be, for example, a switching device, a capacitance device, a gyroscope sensor device, an accelerometer device, a surface acoustic wave (SAW) device, or a bulk acoustic wave (BAW) device. The discharge circuit can include a spark gap assembly having one or more spark gap elements configured to facilitate the preferred arcing path.