Gas/liquid ultrasonic flowmeter

• US 5,372,047 A
• Filed: 09/28/1992
• Issued: 12/13/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/1990
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: von Jena, Alexander, Russwurm, Winfried
• Primary Examiner(s): Chilcot, Jr., Richard E.
• Assistant Examiner(s): BIEGEL, RONALD L
• Application Number:
  US07/930,501
• Time in Patent Office: 806 Days
• Field of Search: 73/861.27, 73/861.28, 73/861.29
• US Class Current: 73/861.29
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 1/662 Constructional details

Abstract

Improvement to a gas/liquid ultrasonic flowmeter in which focusing profiling (501, 502, 503) is provided in the measurement tube thereof for at least one of the plurality of reflection points of the ultrasonic path (21) of the useful signal, in such a manner that the beam of this beam path (21) is concentrated onto the surface of the reception transducer (FIG. 3 ). If required, the focusing reflection is provided for the path of the ultrasonic radiation (22) of the substantial interference signal component.

Claims

1. An ultrasonic flowmeter having a measurement tube through which a fluid flows and having ultrasonic transducers operable as transmission transducers and reception transducers, comprising:

the ultrasound transducers being attached to a first sidewall of the measurement tube at a predetermined spacing from one another, and the ultrasound transducers having an associated principal ultrasound direction of transmitted ultrasound waves that defines a "W"-shaped ultrasonic path in the measurement tube;

the measurement tube having a second sidewall opposed to the first sidewall, the "W"-shaped ultrasonic path defining a plurality of reflection locations on said first and second sidewalls relative to the transmitted ultrasound waves, and the second sidewall having convex area for dispersing a part of the transmitted ultrasound waves that departs from the principal ultrasound direction; and

the measurement tube having at least one concave area in at least one of the reflection locations of the first and second sidewalls of the measurement tube for providing a focusing effect of the ultrasound waves that are transmitted along the "W"-shaped ultrasonic path.

2. The flowmeter according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of the reflection locations of the ultrasonic path of the "W"-shaped path of the useful signal radiation together effect this focusing effect between the transmission transducer and reception transducer or between both of the transmission transducers.

3. The flowmeter according to claim 1, wherein the concave area is a spherical profiling of the at least one reflection location of the first and second sidewalls.

4. The flowmeter according to claim 1, wherein the concave area is a cylindrical profiling of the at least one reflection location of the first and second sidewalls.

5. The flowmeter according to claim 1, wherein the concave area is a parabolic profiling of the at least one reflection location of the first and second sidewalls.

6. The flowmeter according to claim 1, wherein the concave area is a profiling with, related to a length and width of the tube dimensions, differing focusing curvatures of the at least one reflection location of the first and second sidewalls.

7. The flowmeter according to claim 1, wherein the measurement tube has a rectangular cross-section having a height and a width wherein a height to width ratio thereof is greater than 2.

8. The flowmeter according to claim 1, wherein, relative to the transmission transducer and reception transducer, an angle is formed, by the ultrasonic path of useful signal radiation at a surface of a respective transducer that is not equal to 90°

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