Contact displacement detector and sensor

• US 20030006761A1
• Filed: 05/31/2002
• Published: 01/09/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 06/01/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Omron Corporation
• Original Assignee: Omron Corporation
• Inventors: Kuramoto, Satoshi, Nakamura, Kimihiko, Hiramatsu, Naruaki, Itou, Tadashi
• Granted Patent: US 6,710,592 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 324/207.16
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 5/2291 Linear or rotary variable differential transformers (LVDTs/RVDTs) having a single primary coil and two secondary coils

Abstract

A displacement detector has a contact sensor incorporating a differential transformer and a circuit for adjusting the amplitude of the driving signal for driving a differential transformer of the sensor by feeding back as a standard signal the driving signal through an amplifier and an AC-DC converter as a standard signal. The sensor has a housing containing a mobile member. The mobile member has a shaft with a hole. An outer tubular body of a linear bush and a ball guide each have a hole, and a pin is inserted through these holes movably in the direction of movement of the mobile member such that the rotation of the mobile member is prevented.

Claims

1. A circuit for a displacement detector having a sensor incorporating a differential transformer, said circuit comprising:

driver means for generating a driving signal for driving said differential transformer;

standard signal processing means for processing said driving signal and thereby outputting a standard signal;

output signal processing means for processing signals outputted from said differential transformer;

differential amplifier means for carrying out differential amplification of said standard signal and the output signal from said output signal processing means; and

amplitude adjusting means for adjusting the amplitude of said driving signal to a constant value by feeding back said standard signal to said driver means.

2. The circuit of claim 1 wherein said amplitude adjusting means is provided with a standard value corresponding to the kind of said differential transformer and said constant value is determined according too said standard value.

3. The circuit of claim 1 wherein said standard signal processing means comprises a first amplifier circuit for amplifying driving signal and a first AC-DC converter circuit for converting the amplified driving signal into a first DC signal, said output signal processing means comprises a second amplifier circuit for amplifying the output signal from said differential transformer and a second AC-DC converter circuit for converting the amplified output signal into a second DC signal, and at least one of the pairs selected from the group consisting of the pair consisting of said first amplifier and said second amplifier and the pair consisting of said first AC-DC converter circuit and said second AC-DC converter circuit is thermally coupled.

4. , The circuit of claim 1 wherein said driver means outputs said driving signal with a DC bias superimposed, said displacement detector further comprising detecting means for detecting an abnormal condition according to the level of said DC bias.

5. A circuit for a displacement detector having a sensor incorporating a differential transformer, said circuit comprising:

driver means for generating a driving signal for driving said differential transformer;

standard signal processing means for processing said driving signal and thereby outputting a standard signal;

output signal processing means for processing signals outputted from said differential transformer;

amplitude adjusting means for adjusting the amplitude of said driving signal to a constant value by feeding back said standard signal to said driver means, said amplitude adjusting means being provided with a standard value corresponding to the kind of said differential transformer; and

differential amplifier means for carrying out differential amplification of said standard signal and the output signal from said output signal processing means.

6. A contact displacement sensor comprising:

a housing defining an axial direction;

a differential transformer having a core member;

a linear bush inside said housing, said linear bush having an outer tubular body in said axial direction and a holder which is movable in said axial direction;

a mobile member having a mobile shaft supporting said core member of said differential transformer, said mobile member being movable in said axial direction, said mobile shaft having a pin-accepting hole part;

a contact member at a front end part of said mobile shaft;

a spring outwardly biasing said mobile member;

rotation-preventing means for preventing rotation of said mobile member, said rotation-preventing means including a rotation-preventing member, said outer tubular member and said holder each having a hole, said rotation-preventing member being inserted movably in said axial direction into the holes through said outer tubular member and said holder and into said pin-accepting hole part.

7. The displacement sensor of claim 6 wherein said outer tubular member and said holder each have a substantially rectangular hole elongated in said axial direction.

8. The displacement sensor of claim 7 wherein the hole in said outer tubular member is sealed with a thermocontracting tube.

9. The displacement sensor of claim 8 wherein said housing has inward protrusions each with a stopping surface perpendicular to said axial direction;

said housing includes a stopper having an outer surface with flat parts and a contact surface which is at one end of said flat parts and is perpendicular to said axial direction; and

said protrusions are positioned at said flat parts and said contact surface and said stopping surface contact each other to position said stopper and to prevent rotation of said stopper.

10. The displacement sensor of claim 9 wherein said protrusions are produced by punching said housing inward by a punch-stretch forming method, and grinding outer surface areas of said housing in a centerless grinding process to reduce the thickness of said housing while maintaining a specified distance of protrusion.

11. The displacement sensor of claim 9 wherein

said housing has a first stopping part and a second stopper part affixed thereto;

said mobile member has a first stopper part and a second stopper part;

when said spring is at a stretched limit position with the first stopper of said housing and the first stopper of said mobile member contacting each other, there is a finite interval between said rotation-preventing member and a front end part of said holes; and

when said spring is at a pushed-in position with the second stopper of said housing and the second stopper of said mobile member contacting each other, there is another finite interval between said rotation-preventing member and a back end part of said holes.

12. The displacement sensor of claim 11 wherein the first stopper part of the housing is formed on said outer tubular body, the second stopper part of the mobile member is formed on said stopper, said mobile shaft includes a core shaft;

and the first stopper part and the second stopper part of said mobile member are formed on said core shaft.

13. The displacement sensor of claim 12 wherein said spring is a conic coil spring and is supported between said housing and said core shaft, and said core shaft includes a tapered part for avoiding interference with said conic coil spring.

14. The displacement sensor of claim 6 wherein

said contact member is supported by a contact-member holder;

said mobile shaft and said contact-member holder are separate components;

said outer tubular member is provided with an end cap having a back boot holder;

said contact-member holder includes a front boot holder;

a rubber boot has a front end part engaged with said front boot holder and a back end part engaged with said back boot holder, said contact-member holder being thereby attached to said rubber boot, and said contact-member holder being connected to said rubber boot; and

said rubber boot has a back end part engaged with said back boot holder.

15. The displacement sensor of claim 14 wherein

said end cap has a groove formed thereon;

an O-ring is disposed in said groove formed on said end cap, contacting an inner surface of said housing when said linear bushing is attached to said housing.

16. The displacement sensor of claim 6 further comprising a cable cap which is integrally formed with a cable connected to said differential transformer, said cable cap engaging with said housing, said cable being pulled out of a back end part of said housing.

17. The displacement sensor or claim 16 wherein said cable cap has an adhesive-holding groove formed thereon;

a sealing protrusion being inside said adhesive-holding groove, said sealing protrusion contacting the inner surface of said housing when said cable cap is engaged to said housing so as to seal in an adhesive inside said adhesive-holding groove.