Pressure monitoring system and inflation valve using same
First Claim
1. A pressure monitoring system comprising a first pressure chamber and a second pressure chamber separated by a diaphragm, a first surface acoustical wave (SAW) device having a first resonant frequency mounted on one side of the diaphragm and a second SAW device having a second resonant frequency mounted on the other side of the diaphragm, the first chamber being arranged to be pressurized to a predetermined pressure P1 and to remain at that pressure and the second chamber being arranged to initially be pressurized to a pressure P2 equal to pressure P1 but being subject to change over time, whereby if the pressure P2 in the second chamber falls or rises relative to the pressure P1 in the first chamber, the diaphragm will deflect so one side thereof is subject to tension and the other side thereof is subject to compression, the first and second SAW devices being arranged to sense this deflection by sensing said tension and compression and hence provide an output indicative of the change of the pressure P2 in the second chamber relative to the pressure P1 in the first chamber and wherein the system provides wireless communication between the system and a remote sensor.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A pressure monitoring system has a first chamber (11) and a second chamber (12) separated by a diaphragm. The diaphragm carries respective SAW devices on the respective sides thereof, the SAW devices having different resonant frequencies. Variations in pressure within the second chamber (12) relative to the pressure within the first chamber (11) will cause deflection of the diaphragm and the resulting changes in resonant frequency of the SAW devices can be analyzed to indicate the pressure differential between the chambers. The pressure-measuring device is incorporated within a valve assembly for a vehicle tire. When the vehicle tire is inflated, the inflation pressure is trapped within the first chamber (11) as a reference. Any subsequent loss of pressure from the second chamber (12), e.g. as a result of a puncture, will cause deflection of the diaphragm and a corresponding output from the SAW devices.
18 Citations
20 Claims
- 1. A pressure monitoring system comprising a first pressure chamber and a second pressure chamber separated by a diaphragm, a first surface acoustical wave (SAW) device having a first resonant frequency mounted on one side of the diaphragm and a second SAW device having a second resonant frequency mounted on the other side of the diaphragm, the first chamber being arranged to be pressurized to a predetermined pressure P1 and to remain at that pressure and the second chamber being arranged to initially be pressurized to a pressure P2 equal to pressure P1 but being subject to change over time, whereby if the pressure P2 in the second chamber falls or rises relative to the pressure P1 in the first chamber, the diaphragm will deflect so one side thereof is subject to tension and the other side thereof is subject to compression, the first and second SAW devices being arranged to sense this deflection by sensing said tension and compression and hence provide an output indicative of the change of the pressure P2 in the second chamber relative to the pressure P1 in the first chamber and wherein the system provides wireless communication between the system and a remote sensor.
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12. An inflation valve including a pressure monitoring system, the pressure monitoring system comprising:
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a first pressure chamber and a second pressure chamber separated by a diaphragm; and
a first surface acoustical wave (SAW) device having a first resonant frequency mounted on one side of the diaphragm and a second SAW device having a second resonant frequency mounted on the other side of the diaphragm, the first chamber being arranged to be pressurized to a predetermined pressure P1 and to remain at that pressure and the second chamber being arranged to initially be pressurized to a pressure P2 equal to pressure P1 but being subject to change over time, whereby if the pressure P2 in the second chamber falls or rises relative to the pressure P1 in the first chamber, the diaphragm will deflect so one side thereof is subject to tension and the other side thereof is subject to compression, the first and second SAW devices being arranged to sense this deflection by sensing said tension and compression and hence provide an output indicative of the change of the pressure P2 in the second chamber relative to the pressure P1 in the first chamber. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A pressure monitoring system comprising a first pressure chamber and a second pressure chamber separated by a diaphragm, a first surface acoustical wave (SAW) device having a first resonant frequency mounted on one side of the diaphragm and a second SAW device having a second resonant frequency mounted on the other side of the diaphragm, the first chamber being arranged to be pressurized to a predetermined pressure P1 and to remain at that pressure and the second chamber being arranged to initially be pressurized to a pressure P2 equal to pressure P1 but being subject to change over time, whereby if the pressure P2 in the second chamber falls or rises relative to the pressure P1 in the first chamber, the diaphragm will deflect so one side thereof is subject to tension and the other side thereof is subject to compression, the first and second SAW devices being arranged to sense this deflection by sensing said tension and compression and hence provide an output indicative of the change of the pressure P2 in the second chamber relative to the pressure P1 in the first chamber;
- and processing means arranged to sense a difference of the outputs between the output of the first SAW device and the output of the second SAW device to provide an indication of the pressure differential between the first and second chambers in which the processing means is arranged to generate a warning signal when a pressure differential greater than a given level is detected.
Specification