Relative Pressure Sensor

• US 20160313200A1
• Filed: 11/14/2014
• Published: 10/27/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Endress+Hauser SE+Co. KG (Endress+Hauser AG)
• Original Assignee: Endress + Hauser GmbH + Company KG (Endress+Hauser AG)
• Inventors: Schonhardt, Raphael, Rupp, Armin, Hugel, Michael
• Granted Patent: US 10,048,149 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01L 19/0023 for flowthrough systems having a flexible pressure transmitting element
• CPC Class Codes: G01L 19/144 with dismountable parts, e.g. for maintenance purposes or for ensuring sterile conditions for detachable interface or adapter between the process medium and the pressure gauge G01L19/003
• CPC Class Codes: G01L 9/0075 using a ceramic diaphragm, e.g. alumina, fused quartz, glass

Abstract

A relative pressure sensor (1) comprises: a pressure measuring cell (10) having a measuring diaphragm (12), a main body (14) which is connected to said measuring diaphragm, and a measuring chamber between said measuring diaphragm and main body, a reference pressure being applied to said measuring chamber by means of a reference pressure channel (18) which runs from a rear face (16) of the main body (14) through the main body (14); a clamping ring (38); and a housing (40) which has at least one housing body (42) with a measuring cell chamber (46), wherein the pressure measuring cell (10) is clamped in the measuring cell chamber (46) by the clamping ring (38), wherein the housing has a reference air opening (48) which communicates with the reference pressure channel (18) by means of a reference air path which has a path volume which is separate from the volume of the measuring cell chamber, wherein the reference air path has a section which runs along the rear face of the main body, wherein the section is bounded by the rear face of the main body and a guide body, which guide body is clamped in against the rear face of the main body and covers an opening of the reference pressure channel (18) in the rear face of the main body.

Claims

1. Pressure measurement sensor (1), comprising:

a pressure measuring cell (10) having a measuring diaphragm (12) and a main body (14), wherein the measuring diaphragm (12) is connected to the main body in a pressure-tight manner by forming a measuring chamber between the main body (14) and the measuring diaphragm (12), wherein the measuring chamber can be exposed to a reference pressure via a reference pressure channel (18), which extends from the measuring chamber through the main body (14) to a rear face (16) of the main body, which rear face is facing away from the measuring chamber;

a clamping ring (38); and

a housing (40), having at least one housing body (42), which contains a measuring cell chamber (46) inside, wherein the pressure measuring cell (10) is arranged inside the measuring cell chamber (46) and is clamped in an axial position by the clamping ring (38), which clamping ring is in mesh with the housing body, wherein the housing has a reference air opening (48), whereby the reference pressure channel (18) communicates with the reference air opening (48) via a reference air path, which runs through the measuring cell chamber and has a path volume that is separate from the measuring cell chamber, wherein the reference air path has a section that runs along the rear side of the main body, wherein the section is bounded by a guide body and the rear face of the main body, wherein the guide body is clamped against the rear face of the main body—

in particular, by a shunt—

and covers an opening of the reference pressure channel (18) in the rear face of the main body.

2. Relative pressure sensor according to claim 1, wherein the elastic guide body features an at least partly thermoelastic material.

3. Relative pressure sensor according to claim 1, wherein the guide body is equipped with protruding sealing contours on its bottom that is facing the main body, which sealing contours abut against the rear face of the main body, wherein the sealing contours seal the reference air path section from the volume of the measuring cell chamber.

4. Relative pressure sensor according to claim 1, wherein the guide body has an opening in a first end section, which opening is connected to a reference air line, by means of which the reference air path section communicates with the reference air opening.

5. Relative pressure sensor according to claim 4, wherein the reference air line features a dimensionally stable material—

in particular, a thermoplastic, a metal, a glass, or a ceramic.

6. Relative pressure sensor according to claim 5, wherein the pressure measuring cell has a transducer for converting a pressure-dependent deformation of the measuring diaphragm into an electrical signal—

particularly, a capacitive transducer—

wherein the transducer is contacted by at least one electrical conducting path, which is prepared on the rear face of the counter body, wherein the conducting path is separated from the reference air path by the guide body.

7. Relative pressure sensor according to claim 4, wherein the reference air opening has an axial distance to the rear face of the counter body, wherein the length of the reference air line amounts to not more than 1.5 times—

particularly, not more than 1.2 times, and, especially, not more than 1.1 times—

the length of the axial distance between the reference air opening and the rear face of the counter body.

8. Relative pressure sensor according to claim 1, wherein the reference pressure channel exits the rear face of the main body at a first azimuthal position, and wherein the reference air opening of the housing has a second azimuthal position, which differs from the first azimuthal position, wherein the section of the reference air path, which extends between the guide body and the main body, runs from the first azimuthal position to at least the second azimuthal position.

9. Relative pressure sensor according to claim 1, further comprising a decoupling ring (30), wherein the decoupling ring (30) is clamped between the clamping ring (38) and the rear face (16) of the main body (14).

10. Relative pressure sensor according to claim 9, wherein the decoupling ring (30) has a shoulder that faces radially inward on its top side, which top side is facing away from the main body, with which shoulder the guide body is clamped in the shunt against the main body.

11. Relative pressure sensor according to claim 1, wherein the path volume of the reference air path amounts to no more than 2%—

preferably, no more than 0.5% and, especially, no more than 0.25%—

of the third power of one length of the reference air path between the reference air opening (48) of the housing and the opening of the reference pressure channel (18) on the rear face (16) of the main body (14).