Electrostatic position transducer

• US 3,221,256 A
• Filed: 05/15/1963
• Issued: 11/30/1965
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/1963
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Robert L. Walden
• Original Assignee: Robert L. Walden
• Inventors: Walden, Robert L.
• Application Number:
  US04/280,506
• Time in Patent Office: 930 Days
• US Class Current: 307/650
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 5/2412 by varying overlap

Claims

1. AN ELECTROSTATIC TRANSDUCER COMPRISING:

A FIXED PLANAR DIELECTRIC MEMBER;

A PAIR OF DRIVER CONDUCTOR PATTERNS LOCATED ON ONE SURFACE OF SAID DIELECTRIC MEMBER AND CYCLICALLY ARRANGED IN A SERIES OF POLE PAIRS;

A PAIR OF 180 DEGREE PHASE-DISPLACED ALTERNATING CURRENT EXCITATION VOLTAGE SOURCES HAVING A COMMON JUNCTION THEREBETWEEN;

A PAIR OF INPUT TERMINALS ONE EACH OF WHICH IS CONNECTED TO A CORRESPONDING ONE OF SAID DRIVER CONDUCTOR PATTERNS FOR RECEIVING SAID EXCITATION VOLTAGES FROM SAID SOURCES;

A RELATIVELY MOVABLE PLANAR INSULATING MEMBER PARALLEL TO AND SPACED APART FROM SAID DIELECTRIC MEMBER;

A SEGMENTED COUPLER CONDUCTOR PATTERN LOCATED ON SAID INSULATING MEMBER FACING SAID ONE SURFACE OF SAID DIELECTRIC MEMBER;

THE SEGMENTS OF SAID COUPLER CONDUCTOR PATTERN OVERLYING SUCCESSIVE POLE PAIRS OF SAID DRIVER CONDUCTOR PATTERNS AND ELECTROSTATICALLY COUPLED THERETO FOR PROVIDING A VARIABLE CAPACITIVELY COUPLED VOLTAGE HAVING AN AMPLITUDE WHICH IS PRPORTIONAL TO THE RELATIVE DISPLACEMENT BETWEEN SAID MEMBERS;

A FIRST OUTPUT TERMINNAL CONNECTED TO SAID COMMON JUNCTION;

A SECOND OUTPUT TERMINAL CONNECTED TO SAID COUPLER CONDUCTOR PATTERN;

AND CIRCUIT MEANS CONNECTED TO SAID FIRST AND SECOND OUTPUT TERMINALS FOR TRANSFORMING THE HIGH IMPEDANCE OF SAID COUPLER CONDUCTOR PATTERN TO MATCH THE LOW IMPEDANCE OF AN EXTERNAL UTILIZATION CIRCUIT.