TORQUE MEASUREMENT WITHIN A POWERTRAIN
First Claim
14-1. The system according to claim 14, wherein the substrate is cut Y+34°
- to reduce the sensitivity of the SAW sensor to temperature variation.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Aspects of the present invention are directed to using surface acoustic wave (SAW) sensors mounted on a disc coupling component in a powertrain to measure the torque generated by an automobile engine. The sensor may be positioned and oriented on the disc coupling component so that the phase velocities of SAWs propagating through active elements of the SAW sensors are aligned with principal strain components due to torque in the disc coupling component. The torque may be calculated by determining the difference between resonant frequencies of the active elements to suppress common-mode interference factors. In addition, SAW resonant frequencies may be communicated in a non-contacting manner by utilizing rotary and stationary couplers employing radio frequency (RF) signals. Moreover, SAW sensors may be activated and interrogated by employing targeted RF pulses having different carrier frequencies at or near respective resonant frequencies of each resonator in a SAW sensor.
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Citations
47 Claims
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14-1. The system according to claim 14, wherein the substrate is cut Y+34°
- to reduce the sensitivity of the SAW sensor to temperature variation.
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21. A system for measuring a torque generated by an engine in a powertrain of an automobile comprising:
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a crankshaft driven by the engine and configured to apply the torque to a disc coupling component; the disc coupling component configured to transmit the torque to a torque converter within said powertrain for driving the wheels of the automobile; a surface acoustic wave (SAW) sensor mounted on the disc coupling component, the SAW sensor including at least two SAW active elements through which SAWs propagate with phase delays that are indicative of the torque generated by the engine; a rotary coupler comprising a rotor coupler and a stator coupler, the rotor coupler including a rotor transmission line having an annular shape, wherein the rotor coupler is mounted on the disc coupling component and is coupled to the SAW sensor such that the rotor transmission line receives signals generated from the SAWs and converts the signals to electromagnetic waves during rotation of the disc coupling component; and the stator coupler including a stator transmission line having an annular shape and a length that is greater than the length of the rotor transmission line, the stator transmission line configured to receive the electromagnetic waves for processing and determination of the torque generated by the engine. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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31. A method for measuring a torque generated by an engine in a powertrain of an automobile:
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transmitting at least one radio frequency (RF) interrogation pulse signal from a SAW interrogation unit (SIU) though a stator coupler to a rotor coupler mounted on a disc coupling component configured to transmit torque from a crankshaft driven by the engine to a torque converter within the powertrain, the at least one RF interrogation pulse signal configured to activate and power at least one surface acoustic wave (SAW) sensor mounted on the disc coupling component, wherein the SAW sensor includes at least two SAW resonators through which SAWs propagate in response to receiving the at least one interrogation pulse signal; receiving at least one electromagnetic response signal from the rotor coupler, wherein the response signals are generated from free oscillations in the SAW resonators, transmitted to the stator coupler and correspond to resonant frequencies of the at least two SAW resonators; and transmitting the response signal from the stator coupler to the SIU; and computing the torque within the SU by analyzing a spectrum of the response signals to find said resonant frequencies and by determining the difference between said resonant frequencies. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47)
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Specification