Force Sensor
First Claim
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1. A force sensor having a compressible layer, an electrically grounded layer and an electrically active layer, wherein:
- said electrically grounded layer comprises of a flexible conductive material;
said electrically active layer comprises a transmitter electrode configured to capacitively couple to a receiver electrode; and
said compressible layer is compressible to allow said electrically grounded layer to move closer to said electrically active layer, so as to reduce the level of capacitive coupling between said receiver electrode and said transmitter electrode in dependence upon the magnitude of an applied force.
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Abstract
A force sensor having a compressible layer, an electrically grounded layer and an electrically active layer is disclosed. The electrically active layer comprises a transmitter electrode configured to capacitively couple to a receiver electrode. The compressible layer is compressible to allow the electrically grounded layer to move closer to the electrically active layer, so as to reduce the level of capacitive coupling between the receiver electrode and the transmitter electrode in dependence upon the magnitude of an applied force.
32 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A force sensor having a compressible layer, an electrically grounded layer and an electrically active layer, wherein:
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said electrically grounded layer comprises of a flexible conductive material; said electrically active layer comprises a transmitter electrode configured to capacitively couple to a receiver electrode; and said compressible layer is compressible to allow said electrically grounded layer to move closer to said electrically active layer, so as to reduce the level of capacitive coupling between said receiver electrode and said transmitter electrode in dependence upon the magnitude of an applied force. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A method of sensing a force, comprising the steps of:
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providing a force sensor having a compressible layer, an electrically grounded layer and an electrically active layer, in which said electrically grounded layer comprises of a flexible conductive material, and in which said electrically active layer comprises a receiver electrode configured to capacitively couple to a transmitter electrode; applying a force to said force sensor to compress said compressible layer, thus moving said electrically grounded layer closer to said electrically active layer; and detecting the degree to which the capacitance coupling between said transmitter electrode and said receiver electrode is reduced. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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Specification