MAGNETIC SENSOR APPARATUS AND CURRENT SENSOR APPARATUS

• US 20170184688A1
• Filed: 12/21/2016
• Published: 06/29/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/24/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Asahi Kasei Microdevices Corporation (Asahi Kasei Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Asahi Kasei Microdevices Corporation (Asahi Kasei Corporation)
• Inventors: NAKAMURA, Takenobu, AIBA, Yuusuke
• Granted Patent: US 10,436,856 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/0041 using feed-back or modulation techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/07 Hall effect devices

Abstract

A sensor apparatus adjusts output timings of a detection signal and a sensing signal for sensing an abnormality in the detection signal. Provided is a magnetic sensor apparatus comprising a magnetic sensor element, an amplifying section that amplifies and outputs an output of the magnetic sensor element, a plurality of comparing sections that compare the output of the magnetic sensor element or an output of the amplifying section to a threshold value, and a plurality of delaying sections that each delay and output a comparison result output by a corresponding comparing section among the plurality of comparing sections. Also provided is a current sensor apparatus including a current path through which a current serving as a measurement target flows and a magnetic sensor apparatus that is arranged corresponding to the current path and detects a magnetic field generated according to the current serving as the measurement target.

Claims

1. A magnetic sensor apparatus comprising:

a magnetic sensor element;

an amplifying section that amplifies and outputs an output of the magnetic sensor element;

a plurality of comparing sections that compare the output of the magnetic sensor element or an output of the amplifying section to a threshold value; and

a plurality of delaying sections that each delay and output a comparison result output by a corresponding comparing section among the plurality of comparing sections.

2. The magnetic sensor apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the plurality of delaying sections each include a variable delay circuit, and

the magnetic sensor apparatus further comprises a setting section that sets a delay amount of each of the plurality of variable delay circuits, according to instructions from outside.

3. The magnetic sensor apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the plurality of delaying sections further include a plurality of glitch filters that each remove a glitch in the comparison result output by a corresponding comparing section among the plurality of comparing sections, and

each variable delay circuit delays and outputs the comparison result that has passed through a corresponding glitch filter among the plurality of glitch filters.

4. The magnetic sensor apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the magnetic sensor element is a Hall element that has a first terminal pair and a second terminal pair, and

the amplifying section includes a switching section that switches a terminal pair causing a drive current to flow and a terminal pair that senses the output of the magnetic sensor element, between the first terminal pair and the second terminal pair of the magnetic sensor element, according to a first clock supplied from outside.

5. The magnetic sensor apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising:

a clock generating section that generates a second clock, which has a frequency that is an integer multiple of a frequency of the first clock and a predetermined phase difference relative to a timing of the first clock.

6. The magnetic sensor apparatus according to claim 5, wherein

each of the plurality of comparing sections compares the output of the magnetic sensor element or the output of the amplifying section to the threshold value, according to the second clock.

7. The magnetic sensor apparatus according to claim 5, wherein

each of the plurality of delaying sections delays the comparison result output by the corresponding comparing section, according to the second clock.

8. The magnetic sensor apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

one or more integrating sections that each integrate the comparison result output by a corresponding comparing section among the plurality of comparing sections or the delayed comparison result output by a corresponding delaying section among the plurality of delaying sections; and

one or more integration notifying sections that correspond to the one or more integrating sections and each notify to outside that an integration result of the corresponding integrating section is outside a reference range.

9. The magnetic sensor apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

one or more integral calculating sections that each calculate an integral of the amplified output of the magnetic sensor element, in response to the comparison result output by a corresponding comparing section among the plurality of comparing sections or the delayed comparison result output by a corresponding delaying section among the plurality of delaying sections being a predetermined logic value; and

one or more integral calculation notifying sections that correspond to the one or more integral calculating sections and each notify to outside that an integral calculation result of the corresponding integral calculating section is outside a reference range.

10. The magnetic sensor apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the amplifying section amplifies the output of the magnetic sensor element, converts the amplified output into a digital signal, and outputs the digital signal, and

the magnetic sensor apparatus further comprises one or more first malfunction judging sections that each determine there is a malfunction in response to the digital signal not being a value corresponding to a logical value of the comparison result output by a corresponding comparing section among the plurality of comparing sections or the delayed comparison result output by a corresponding delaying section among the plurality of delaying sections.

11. The magnetic sensor apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

among sets that each have a corresponding comparing section and delaying section in the plurality of the comparing sections and the plurality of delaying sections, the comparing section of a first set compares the output of the magnetic sensor element or the output of the amplifying section to a first threshold value, and

among sets that each have a corresponding comparing section and delaying section, the comparing section of a second set compares the output of the magnetic sensor element or the output of the amplifying section to a second threshold value that differs from the first threshold value.

12. The magnetic sensor apparatus according to claim 11, wherein

the first threshold value includes a first upper threshold value and a first lower threshold value indicating a predetermined first output range of the magnetic sensor element, and

the second threshold value includes a second upper threshold value that is smaller than the first upper threshold value and a second lower threshold value that is larger than the first lower threshold value indicating a predetermined second output range of the magnetic sensor element.

13. The magnetic sensor apparatus according to claim 11, wherein

the delaying section of the first set has a different delay amount than the delaying section of the second set.

14. The magnetic sensor apparatus according to claim 13, wherein

the delaying section of the first set has a smaller delay amount than the delaying section of the second set.

15. The magnetic sensor apparatus according to claim 11, wherein

the amplifying section further includes a delay circuit that delays the output of the magnetic sensor element, and

the comparing section of the second set compares an output of the delay circuit to the second threshold value.

16. The magnetic sensor apparatus according to claim 15, wherein

the delay circuit includes a filter that reduces noise.

17. The magnetic sensor apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising:

a second malfunction judging section that judges whether there is a malfunction according to a result obtained by comparing the comparison result output by the comparing section or the delayed comparison result output by the delaying section in the first set to the comparison result output by the comparing section or the delayed comparison result output by the delaying section in the second set.

18. The magnetic sensor apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the magnetic sensor apparatus is implemented in a package that includes a first output terminal outputting an output signal of the amplifying section and one or more second output terminals that each output an output signal of a corresponding delaying section among the plurality of delaying sections.

20. A current sensor apparatus comprising:

a current path through which a current serving as a measurement target flows; and

the magnetic sensor apparatus according to claim 1 that is arranged corresponding to the current path and detects a magnetic field generated according to the current serving as the measurement target.

19. A magnetic sensor apparatus comprising:

a magnetic sensor element;

an amplifying section that amplifies and outputs an output of the magnetic sensor element;

a plurality of comparing sections that compare the output of the magnetic sensor element or the output of the amplifying section to a threshold value;

one or more integral calculating sections that each calculate an integral of the amplified output of the magnetic sensor element, in response to the comparison result output by a corresponding comparing section among the plurality of comparing sections being a predetermined logic value; and

one or more integral calculation notifying sections that correspond to the one or more integral calculating sections and each notify to outside that an integral calculation result of the corresponding integral calculating section is outside a reference range.