Pyrometer

• US 7,036,978 B2
• Filed: 06/13/2001
• Issued: 05/02/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 06/13/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Omron Healthcare Company Limited (Omron Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Omron Corporation
• Inventors: Tabata, Makoto, Ota, Hiroyuki, Onishi, Yoshihide, Sato, Taiga, Sato, Tatsuya, Ogura, Toshihiko
• Primary Examiner(s): Gutierrez, Diego
• Assistant Examiner(s): Jagan, Mirellys
• Application Number:
  US10/311,059
• Publication Number:
  US 20040022297A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,784 Days
• Field of Search: 374/133, 374/169, 374/121, 374/1, 374/131, 374/134, 374/120, 600/474, 702/99, 702/104, 702/131, 702/135
• US Class Current: 374/121
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/01 Measuring temperature of body parts ; Diagnostic temperature sensing, e.g. for malignant or inflamed tissue clinical contact thermometers G01K13/20
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 5/02 Constructional details
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 5/021 Probe covers for thermometers, e.g. tympanic thermometers; Containers for probe covers; Disposable probes
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 5/025 Interfacing a pyrometer to an external device or network; User interface
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 5/026 Control of working procedures of a pyrometer, other than calibration; Bandwidth calculation; Gain control
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 5/04 Casings
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 5/045 Sealings; Vacuum enclosures; Encapsulated packages; Wafer bonding structures; Getter arrangements getter arrangements per se H01L23/26 and H01L21/3221
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 5/049 Casings for tympanic thermometers
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 5/05 Means for preventing contamination of the components of the optical system; Means for preventing obstruction of the radiation path
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 5/064 Ambient temperature sensor; Housing temperature sensor; Constructional details thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 5/12 using thermoelectric elements, e.g. thermocouples
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 5/16 Arrangements with respect to the cold junction; Compensating influence of ambient temperature or other variables
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 5/53 Reference sources, e.g. standard lamps; Black bodies
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 5/70 Passive compensation of pyrometer measurements, e.g. using ambient temperature sensing or sensing of temperature within housing

Abstract

A first thermistor 8 and a second thermistor 9 are arranged forwardly and rearwardly of a thermopile sensor 5. A thermopile chip 55 is arranged and interposed between the first thermistor 8 and an integrated thermistor 57. A sensor cover is mounted in contact with front and side portions of a can portion 59 of a thermopile casing 56. A temperature or a radiant quantity of infrared rays on the front portion of the can portion is estimated from a temperature change of the integrated thermistor per second.

Claims

1. A radiation thermometer, comprising:

an infrared-ray sensor for measuring a quantity of infrared rays irradiated from an object being measured,

sensor-temperature measuring unit to measure a temperature of the infrared-ray sensor,

a probe receiving therein the infrared-ray sensor and the sensor-temperature measuring unit and said probe is inserted into an opening, and

temperature calculating unit to calculate a temperature of the object being measured, on the basis of a quantity of infrared rays irradiated from the object being measured, and a temperature of the infrared-ray sensor;

said temperature calculating unit comprising representative temperature presuming unit to presume a temperature of the infrared-ray sensor or information of a temperature representative of any one of members constituting the probe in conformity to thermal time constants peculiar to the respective members from heat conducted to the infrared-ray sensor and the members by a heat source in the vicinity of an outer wall of the probe; and

a temperature difference information presuming unit to calculate at least either of a phase lead component or a phase lag component of results of measurement of the sensor-temperature measuring unit in conformity to thermal time constants of the members present on a heat conduction path passing through the sensor-temperature measuring unit to presume a temperature difference information between the sensor-temperature measuring unit and the infrared-ray sensor and the members.

2. The radiation thermometer according to claim 1, wherein information including a difference of results of measurement of the sensor-temperature measuring unit as the phase lead component and information including a weighted mean of results of measurement of the sensor-temperature measuring unit as the phase lag component is calculated.

3. The radiation thermometer according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising infrared-ray output correcting unit to correct results of measurement by the infrared-ray sensor continuously from the time of turning on the power on the basis of temperature difference information presumed by the temperature difference information presuming unit.

4. The radiation thermometer according to claim 3, wherein the infrared-ray output correcting unit has the function of correcting results of measurement by the infrared-ray sensor on the basis of changes of that temperature difference information, which is presumed by the temperature difference information presuming unit, since the start of measurement of a radiation temperature of the object being measured.

5. The radiation thermometer according to claim 3, further comprising insertion detecting unit to detect insertion of the probe into the opening, and

wherein the infrared-ray output correcting unit has the function of correcting results of measurement by the infrared-ray sensor on the basis of changes of temperature difference information, which is presumed by the temperature difference information presuming unit, since the time of detection of insertion by the insertion detecting unit.

6. The radiation thermometer according to any one of claims 1 to 2, further comprising infrared-ray output correcting unit to correct results of measurement by the infrared-ray sensor continuously from the time of turning on the power on the basis of a temperature presumed by the representative temperature presuming unit, wherein the infrared-ray output correcting unit has the function of correcting results of measurement by the infrared-ray sensor on the basis of changes of that temperature, which is presumed by the representative temperature presuming unit, since the start of measurement of a radiation temperature of the object being measured.

7. The radiation thermometer according to any one of claims 1 to 2, further comprising infrared-ray output correcting unit to correct results of measurement by the infrared-ray sensor continuously from the time of turning on the power on the basis of a temperature presumed by the representative temperature presuming unit, further comprising insertion detecting unit to detect insertion of the probe into the opening, and

wherein the infrared-ray output correcting unit has the function of correcting results of measurement by the infrared-ray sensor on the basis of changes of that temperatures, which is presumed by the representative temperature presuming unit, since the time of detection of insertion by the insertion detecting unit.