ULTRASONIC FLOW METER

• US 20140305215A1
• Filed: 04/10/2013
• Published: 10/16/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/12/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Texas Instruments, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Texas Instruments, Inc.
• Inventors: Dabak, Anand, Bittlestone, Clive
• Granted Patent: US 10,508,937 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 73/592
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 1/66 by measuring frequency, phase shift or propagation time of electromagnetic or other waves, e.g. using ultrasonic flowmeters
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 1/667 Arrangements of transducers for ultrasonic flowmeters; Circuits for operating ultrasonic flowmeters
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 15/061 for remote indication
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/60 for transmitting utility meters data, i.e. transmission of data from the reader of the utility meter
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 9/00 Arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station, in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom

Abstract

A flow meter ultrasonically measures fluid velocity in a pipe and ultrasonically transmits fluid flow data along the pipe. An ultrasonic transducer used for fluid velocity measurement may optionally also be used for communication of flow data, and optionally, the ultrasonic frequency for fluid velocity measurement may be the same as the ultrasonic frequency for communication of flow data.

Claims

1. A flow meter comprising:

a first ultrasonic transducer configured for ultrasonically measuring the velocity of

a fluid in a pipe; and

a second ultrasonic transducer configured for ultrasonically transmitting data via the pipe.

2. The flow meter of claim 1, where the second transducer is configured for ultrasonically measuring the velocity of the fluid and for ultrasonically transmitting data via the pipe.

3. The flow meter of claim 1, where the second transducer is operated at the same frequency for fluid velocity measurement and for data transmission.

4. The flow meter of claim 1, where the second transducer is configured for generating ultrasonic guided waves in the pipe for corrosion and crack detection and to ultrasonically transmit data via the pipe.

5. The flow meter of claim 1, further comprising:

a battery powered controller coupled to the first and second ultrasonic transducers.

6. The flow meter of claim 1, where the first ultrasonic transducer is mounted on the interior of a pipe junction.

7. A network of flow meters, comprising:

a plurality of flow meters, each flow meter configured to ultrasonically measure fluid flow in a pipe;

each flow meter connected to at least one other flow meter via a connecting pipe; and

each flow meter configured to communicate with at least one other flow meter via ultrasound via the connecting pipe.

8. The network of flow meters of claim 7, where the network is configured as a mesh network.

9. The network of flow meters of claim 7, where at least one flow meter communicates with at least one other flow meter in a time multiplexed manner.

10. The network of flow meters of claim 7, further comprising:

a communications system, configured to receive data ultrasonically from at least one of the plurality of flow meters, the communications system configured to send data from the network of flow meters.

11. The network of flow meters of claim 10, where the communications system receives aggregate data from all of the plurality of flow meters.

12. The network of flow meters of claim 10, where the communications system sends time synchronization data to at least one flow meter.

13. The network of flow meters of claim 12, where the time synchronization data is encoded in a radio frequency signal transmitted wirelessly by the communications system.

14. A method, comprising:

measuring, by an ultrasonic flow meter, fluid flow in a pipe;

communicating, by the ultrasonic flow meter, flow data with at least one other flow meter.

15. The method of claim 14, the step of communicating further comprising:

communicating flow data using an ultrasonic transducer that is also used for fluid flow measurement.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

measuring, by the ultrasonic flow meter, corrosion and cracks in the pipe.

17. The method of claim 16, the step of communicating further comprising:

communicating flow data using an ultrasonic transducer that is also used for measuring corrosion and cracks in the pipe.

18. The method of claim 14, the step of communicating further comprising:

communicating flow data in a time multiplexed manner.

19. The method of claim 14, the step of communicating further comprising:

communicating time synchronization data with at least one other flow meter.

20. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

receiving time synchronization data from a communications system.