Integrated Hybrid Current Sensor

• US 20090001964A1
• Filed: 06/29/2007
• Published: 01/01/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/29/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Infineon Technologies Austria Ag (Infineon Technologies AG)
• Original Assignee: Infineon Technologies Austria Ag (Infineon Technologies AG)
• Inventors: Strzalkowski, Bernhard
• Granted Patent: US 7,605,580 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 324/202
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 15/181 using coils without a magnetic core, e.g. Rogowski coils
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 15/202 using Hall-effect devices Hall elements in arrangements for measuring electrical power G01R21/08
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 15/207 Constructional details independent of the type of device used

Abstract

A sensor arrangement for measuring current is disclosed. The sensor arrangement includes a substrate, at least one Hall element integrated in or arranged on the substrate, a first coil that is spaced apart from a surface of the substrate in a vertical direction, a second coil that is spaced apart in a vertical direction from the first coil, and an isolation layer that is arranged between the first coil and the second coil.

Claims

1. A sensor arrangement comprising:

a substrate;

at least one Hall element integrated in or arranged on the substrate;

a first coil spaced apart from a surface of the substrate in a vertical direction;

a second coil spaced apart in the vertical direction from the first coil; and

an isolation layer arranged between the first coil and the second coil.

2. The sensor arrangement of claim 1, wherein the first and the second coils comprise planar coils.

3. The sensor arrangement of claim 2, further comprising a further coil that is also arranged on the substrate and spaced apart in the vertical direction from the first coil.

4. The sensor arrangement of claim 1, further comprising a control circuit integrated in the substrate.

5. The sensor arrangement of claim 1, further comprising a digital processor for digital signal processing, the digital processor being integrated in the substrate.

6. The sensor arrangement of claim 1, wherein the substrate comprises a silicon semiconductor body.

7. The sensor arrangement of claim 1, wherein the at least one Hall element comprises only one Hall element.

8. The sensor arrangement of claim 1, wherein the first coil overlies the at least one Hall element.

9. The sensor arrangement of claim 1, wherein the first coil has twice as many windings as the second coil.

19. The sensor arrangement of claim 1, wherein:

the first coil comprises a primary winding for carrying a primary current generating a magnetic field;

the second coil comprises a secondary winding magnetically coupled with the primary winding and providing a first signal dependent on the primary current; and

the Hall element is arranged such that it is pervaded by the magnetic field of the primary current for providing a second signal depending on the primary current.

20. The sensor arrangement of claim 19, further comprising an evaluation circuit for determining a measurement signal representing the primary current from a first signal and a second signal.

21. The sensor arrangement of claim 20, wherein the evaluation circuit comprises:

a low-pass receiving the first signal and providing a third signal that is a low-pass-filtered version of the first signal; and

an adder for a weighted addition of the second signal and the third signal for providing a measurement signal that is dependent on the weighted addition.

22. The sensor arrangement of claim 20, wherein the Hall element can be calibrated in terms of offset and/or gain.

23. The sensor arrangement of claim 22, further comprising:

a further winding generating a magnetic field and arranged such that the magnetic field of the further winding pervades the Hall element; and

a control circuit receiving an output signal of the Hall element.

24. The sensor arrangement of claim 23, wherein the control circuit is adapted to inject a defined current signal into the further winding and to calibrate the Hall element using the current signal and the output signal of the Hall element.

25. The sensor arrangement of claim 20, wherein the Hall element comprises several single sensor elements, each single sensor element providing an output voltage.

26. The sensor arrangement of claim 25, wherein the Hall element comprises a control unit adapted for combining output voltages of the single sensor elements to one output signal of the Hall element.

27. The sensor arrangement of claim 20, wherein a low-pass and an adder are implemented digitally and the measurement signal is provided as a digital word.

28. The sensor arrangement of claim 20, wherein a control circuit receives a control signal for triggering a calibration operation or a measuring operation.

10-18. -18. (canceled)