Acceleration sensor having fault diagnosing device
First Claim
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1. An acceleration sensor comprising:
- a piezoelectric element outputting a signal corresponding to acceleration applied to the piezoelectric element;
signal processing means electrically connected to said piezoelectric element for processing the signal outputted from said piezoelectric element;
alternating current signal outputting means electrically connected to said piezoelectric element for receiving an externally input timing signal and generating an alternating current signal which is synchronized with a period of the timing signal in response to receipt of the timing signal and for applying the alternating current signal to said piezoelectric element;
a capacitor connected between said alternating current signal outputting means and said piezoelectric element; and
a fault detecting means for detecting a fault in the acceleration sensor based on a relationship between a capacitance of the capacitor and a capacitance of the piezoelectric element.
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Abstract
An acceleration sensor includes a piezoelectric element for outputting an electric signal corresponding to acceleration applied thereto, a signal processor for processing a signal outputted from the piezoelectric element, an AC signal outputting device for receiving an externally inputted signal and generating an AC signal which is synchronized with the period of the timing signal in response to receipt of the timing signal and for applying the AC signal to the piezoelectric element, and a capacitor connected between the AC signal outputting device and the piezoelectric element for detecting a fault in the acceleration sensor.
42 Citations
22 Claims
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1. An acceleration sensor comprising:
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a piezoelectric element outputting a signal corresponding to acceleration applied to the piezoelectric element; signal processing means electrically connected to said piezoelectric element for processing the signal outputted from said piezoelectric element; alternating current signal outputting means electrically connected to said piezoelectric element for receiving an externally input timing signal and generating an alternating current signal which is synchronized with a period of the timing signal in response to receipt of the timing signal and for applying the alternating current signal to said piezoelectric element; a capacitor connected between said alternating current signal outputting means and said piezoelectric element; and a fault detecting means for detecting a fault in the acceleration sensor based on a relationship between a capacitance of the capacitor and a capacitance of the piezoelectric element. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. An acceleration sensor comprising:
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a piezoelectric element outputting a signal corresponding to acceleration applied to the piezoelectric element; a signal processor electrically connected to the piezoelectric element for processing the signal outputted from the piezoelectric element; an alternating current signal generator having an input terminal for receiving an externally input timing signal, the alternating current signal generator generating an alternating current signal which is synchronized with a period of the timing signal in response to receipt of the timing signal, the alternating current signal generator being electrically connected to the piezoelectric element for transmitting the alternating current signal to the piezoelectric element; a capacitor connected between the alternating current signal generator and the piezoelectric element; and a detector for detecting a state of the acceleration sensor based on a relation between a capacitance of the capacitor and a capacitance of the piezoelectric element. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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Specification