Vehicle performance analyzer
First Claim
1. A vehicle performance analyzer, comprising:
- (a) electrical transducer means for sensing acceleration and deceleration forces and producing electrical signals proportional to said forces;
(b) pulse producing means coupled to said transducer means for converting said electrical signals into a pulse whose width is proportional to said acceleration and deceleration forces;
(c) microprocessor means, including counting means, coupled in controlling relation to said pulse producing means for converting the pulse from said pulse producing means into a digital quantity;
(d) manually operable switch means coupled to said microprocessor means for entering commands into said microprocessor means for directing the nature of the computations to be performed using said digital quantity as an operand; and
(e) display means for visually indicating results of said computations.
7 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A capacitive accelerometer system for detecting changes in G-forces and for producing a digital count value proportional to such changes. An oscillator-driven capacitive transducer of a unique design produces a voltage variation whose amplitude and frequency characteristics are a function of the direction and magnitude of the applied G-forces. The transducer itself comprises a pair of spaced-apart parallel plates disposed on opposite sides of a beam-supported movable plate which responds to changes in acceleration forces. The modulated signal is then demodulated and applied by a semiconductor switch actuated by a pulse from a microprocessor to a voltage-controlled current source. The current source varies the discharge rate of a precision capacitor. When the voltage on the capacitor drops to a predetermined threshold, an interrupt signal is presented to the microprocessor which had been counting one microsecond pulses from its internal clock during the period between the actuation of the semiconductor switch and the generation of the interrupt. The count is then inversely proportional to the shift in capacitance of the transducer which, in turn, is proportional to the G-forces applied to it.
-
Citations
8 Claims
-
1. A vehicle performance analyzer, comprising:
-
(a) electrical transducer means for sensing acceleration and deceleration forces and producing electrical signals proportional to said forces; (b) pulse producing means coupled to said transducer means for converting said electrical signals into a pulse whose width is proportional to said acceleration and deceleration forces; (c) microprocessor means, including counting means, coupled in controlling relation to said pulse producing means for converting the pulse from said pulse producing means into a digital quantity; (d) manually operable switch means coupled to said microprocessor means for entering commands into said microprocessor means for directing the nature of the computations to be performed using said digital quantity as an operand; and (e) display means for visually indicating results of said computations.
-
-
2. A vehicle performance analyzer, comprising:
-
(a) an electrical transducer means including a first stationary metallic member and a second metallic plate supported in parallel, spaced relation relative to said stationary plate for movement toward and away from said stationary plate when subject to acceleration and deceleration forces having a component in a direction normal to the plane of said plate for producing electrical signals proportional to said forces; (b) pulse producing means coupled to said transducer means for converting said electrical signals into a pulse whose width is proportional to said acceleration and deceleration forces; (c) microprocessor means, including counting means, coupled in controlling relation to said pulse producing means for converting the pulse from said pulse producing means into a digital quantity; (d) manually operable switch means coupled to said microprocessor means for entering commands into said microprocessor means for directing the nature of the computations to be performed using said digital quantity as an operand; and (e) display means for visually indicating results of said computations. - View Dependent Claims (3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
-
Specification