DEVICE FOR DETECTING IMPACTS OR VIBRATIONS

• US 20080072082A1
• Filed: 09/15/2007
• Published: 03/20/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/15/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Montalbano Technology SPA
• Original Assignee: Montalbano Technology SPA
• Inventors: GROSSO, Daniele, ORIANA, Giuseppe, LERTORA, Francesco
• Granted Patent: US 7,886,168 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/310
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 1/127 for acceleration values
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 15/18 in two or more dimensions

Abstract

Taught is a detection device for detecting impacts and the like, comprising an integrated microcontroller (1) which includes an RFID interface (101) and a non-volatile memory (201), the integrated microcontroller (1) being interfaced with at least one suitable sensing means (2) through a suitable digital interface (102), the integrated microcontroller (1) being provided with a power management logic (301) to manage operation modes of the detection device, power consumption of the sensing means (2) being managed by the power management logic (301).

Claims

1. A detection device for detecting impacts and the like, comprising an integrated microcontroller (1) which includes an RFID interface (101) and a non-volatile memory (201), said integrated microcontroller (1) being interfaced with at least one suitable sensing means (2) through a suitable digital interface (102), said integrated microcontroller (1) being provided with a power management logic (301) to manage operation modes of said detection device, the power consumption of said sensing means (2) being managed by said power management logic (301).

2. The detection device according to claim 1, wherein said sensing means is a three-axis accelerometer (2).

3. The detection device according to claim 2, wherein said three-axis accelerometer (2) comprises:

three sensors (212, 222, 232) connected to a controller (302) provided with a memory register (312) to store detection threshold values;

three memory registers (412, 422, 432) to store detected data; and

an I/O interface (502) to communicate with said digital interface (102) of said integrated microcontroller (1).

4. A method for detecting impacts and the like through a detection device comprising an integrated microcontroller (1) which includes an RFID interface (101) and a non-volatile memory (201), said integrated microcontroller (1) being interfaced with at least one suitable sensing means (2) through a suitable digital interface (102), said integrated microcontroller (1) being provided with a power management logic (301) to manage operation modes of said detection device, the power consumption of said sensing means (2) being managed by said power management logic (301), said method comprising the steps of:

acquiring data from said sensing means (2) over a given time frame, storing said data in said non-volatile memory (201) of said integrated microcontroller (1), and setting said integrated microcontroller (1) in a power saving mode.

5. The method according to claim 4, in which said sensing means comprise three sensors (212, 222, 232) connected to a controller (302) provided with a memory register (312) to store detection threshold values;

three memory registers (412, 422, 432) to store detected data; and

an I/O interface (502) to communicate with said digital interface (102) of said integrated microcontroller (1).

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein data detecting step comprises detecting data in time frames Δ

t which are small compared to an activation time frame of said sensing means (2), and logging said data in suitable memory registers (412, 422, 432).

7. The method according to claim 5, wherein data detecting step comprises detecting only data that exceed a threshold value stored and programmed in said memory register (312) of said controller (302), data relative to the major event detected in a given programmable time frame being logged in said memory registers (412, 422, 432).