Pressure and temperature sensor
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A sensor for simultaneously sensing temperature and pressure at a single location and in substantially non-interacting manner, comprising:
- a substrate of an insulative material, said substrate having a surface;
a resistance member fabricated upon said substrate surface, said resistance member having first and second ends between which an electrical resistance is measurable;
a single flexible conductive electrode spaced from said resistance member and said substrate surface;
an insulative support rim extending from said substrate surface to the periphery of a surface of said conductive electrode nearest to said substrate, said substrate rim joined to said substrate surface and to only the periphery of said electrode to form a pressure-tight cavity enclosing said resistance member; and
a dielectric material enclosed within said cavity and at a reference pressure;
said resistance member being formed of a resistance material responsive to changes in external temperature for continuously varying the electrical resistance between said resistance member ends;
said conductive electrode responsive to changes in external pressure for continuously varying the distributed electrical capacitance between said electrode and said resistance member.
13 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A hybrid sensor for simultaneously sensing pressure and temperature in non-interacting manner, includes an insulative substrate having a temperature-sensitive printed thick film resistor fabricated thereon. A conductive plate is insulatively spaced above the resistor and supported by a pressure-tight insulative barrier. The distributed capacitance between the plate and the resistive pattern is a function of the pressure applied to the exterior face of the plate, while the resistance of the resistive thick film is a function of temperature of the surrounding environment.
34 Citations
9 Claims
-
1. A sensor for simultaneously sensing temperature and pressure at a single location and in substantially non-interacting manner, comprising:
-
a substrate of an insulative material, said substrate having a surface; a resistance member fabricated upon said substrate surface, said resistance member having first and second ends between which an electrical resistance is measurable; a single flexible conductive electrode spaced from said resistance member and said substrate surface; an insulative support rim extending from said substrate surface to the periphery of a surface of said conductive electrode nearest to said substrate, said substrate rim joined to said substrate surface and to only the periphery of said electrode to form a pressure-tight cavity enclosing said resistance member; and a dielectric material enclosed within said cavity and at a reference pressure; said resistance member being formed of a resistance material responsive to changes in external temperature for continuously varying the electrical resistance between said resistance member ends;
said conductive electrode responsive to changes in external pressure for continuously varying the distributed electrical capacitance between said electrode and said resistance member. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
-
-
7. A sensor for simultaneously sensing temperature and pressure at a single location and in substantially non-interacting manner, comprising:
-
a substrate of an insulating material, said substrate having a surface; a resistance member fabricated of a thick-film resistance material upon said substrate surface, said resistance member having a meander-line configuration with first and second ends between which an electrical resistance is measurable;
the meander-line resistance member covering an area of length L and width W;a flexible conductive electrode spaced from said resistance member and said substrate surface;
said electrode being of substantially rectangular shape and having a length L'"'"' greater than length L and a width W'"'"' greater than width W;an insulated support rim extending from said substrate surface to the periphery of a surface of said conducting electrode nearest to said substrate, said support rim having length and width inner dimensions respectively greater than L and W and less than L'"'"' and W'"'"' and joined to said substrate surface and said electrode to form a pressure-tight cavity enclosing said resistance member; and a dielectric material enclosed within said cavity and at a reference pressure; said resistance member being formed of a resistance material responsive to changes in external temperature for varying the electrical resistance between said resistance member ends;
said conductive electrode responsive to changes in external pressure for varying the distributed electrical capacitance between said electrode and said resistance member.
-
-
8. In combination, a sensor for simultaneously sensing temperature and pressure at a single location and in substantially non-interacting manner, comprising:
-
a substrate of an insulative material, said substrate having a surface; a resistance member fabricated upon said substrate surface, said resistance member having first and second ends between which an electrical resistance is measurable; a flexible conductive electrode spaced from said resistance member and said substrate surface; an insulative support rim extending from said substrate surface to the periphery of a surface of said conductive electrode nearest to said substrate, said substrate rim joined to said substrate surface and to said electrode periphery to form a pressure-tight cavity enclosing said resistance member; and a dielectric material enclosed within said cavity and at a reference pressure; said resistance member being formed of a resistance material responsive to changes in external temperature for varying the electrical resistance between said resistance member ends;
said conductive electrode responsive to changes in external pressure for varying the distributed electrical capacitance between said electrode and said resistance member;a source of a D.C. potential, said source having a first terminal connected to one of the resistance member ends and a second terminal; a first fixed resistance connected between said D.C. source second terminal and the remaining one of said resistance member ends; a source of an A.C. potential, said source having a first terminal connected to said one of the resistance member ends and a second terminal; and a second fixed resistance connected between said A.C. source second terminal and said electrode. - View Dependent Claims (9)
-
Specification