Capacitance acceleration sensor

• US 5,974,880 A
• Filed: 12/23/1997
• Issued: 11/02/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 06/25/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsubishi Electric Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsubishi Electric Corporation)
• Inventors: Yamaguchi, Yasuo, Otani, Hiroshi
• Primary Examiner(s): CHAPMAN JR, JOHN E
• Application Number:
  US08/997,550
• Time in Patent Office: 679 Days
• Field of Search: 73/514.32, 73/514.36, 73/514.37, 73/514.38, 73/514.18, 73/514.21, 73/514.23, 73/514.24
• US Class Current: 73/514.32
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 15/125 by capacitive pick-up
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 2015/0817 for pivoting movement of the mass, e.g. in-plane pendulum
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 2015/0828 the mass being of the paddle type being suspended at one of its longitudinal ends

Abstract

The present invention is intended to improve the output characteristics of a capacitance acceleration sensor to increase the stability on the detection accuracy by ensuring that a movable electrode can be displaced while remaining as constantly parallel with stationary electrodes as possible. The invention provides a capacitance acceleration sensor having a frame Fm which constitutes the body of the sensor, a movable electrode 13 which is disposed in the frame Fm and which is supported so as to be capable of being displaced in a specific direction in response to acceleration, and stationary electrodes 12 which are disposed so as to face the movable electrode 13 in the specific direction; and detecting the magnitude of an acceleration acting in the specific direction, on the basis of the change in an electrostatic capacitance caused by the variations in the distances between the electrodes. The capacitance acceleration sensor is characterized in that the movable electrode 13 is cantilevered by the frame Fm with a plurality of beams 14 which are provided in a plane parallel with the specific direction and which are capable of elastically flexing in the specific direction.

Claims

1. A capacitance acceleration sensor comprising:

a frame which constitutes the body of the sensor;

a movable electrode disposed in the frame and supported so as to be displaced in a specific direction in response to acceleration;

a plurality of beams provided in a plane parallel with the specific direction and cantilevering the movable electrode to said frame and elastically flexing for movement of the movable electrode in the plane parallel to the specific direction; and

stationary electrodes which are disposed so as to face the movable electrode in the specific direction;

the sensor detecting the magnitude of an acceleration of the body acting in the specific direction on the basis of a change in an electrostatic capacitance caused by variations in the distances between the electrodes;

the center of mass of the movable electrode being generally on a line linking the points at which the plurality of beams connect to the movable electrode so that rotational moments of said movable electrode at the connections thereof to the beams have a negligible effect on capacitance measurements made by the sensor.