Assembly group for current measurement

• US 7,375,507 B2
• Filed: 10/03/2006
• Issued: 05/20/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/08/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Melexis Tessenderlo NV
• Original Assignee: Melexis Technologies SA
• Inventors: Huber, Samuel, Racz, Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen; Ha Tran
• Assistant Examiner(s): Benitez; Joshua
• Application Number:
  US11/542,329
• Publication Number:
  US 20070080676A1
• Time in Patent Office: 595 Days
• Field of Search: 324/117.R, 324/117.H, 324/127, 324/251, 338/32.H
• US Class Current: 324/117.00H
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 15/202 using Hall-effect devices Hall elements in arrangements for measuring electrical power G01R21/08
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 15/207 Constructional details independent of the type of device used

Abstract

An assembly group for current measurement comprises a conductor plate with three cuts and a measuring element placed on the conductor plate that has a difference sensor formed from two magnetic field sensors. By means of the three cuts a first and a second conductor section are formed in the conductor plate, wherein the current direction in the second conductor section runs opposite to the current direction in the first conductor section. The first magnetic field sensor is located above the first conductor section and the second magnetic field sensor is located above the second conductor section. The magnetic field sensors are sensitive to a magnetic field that runs parallel to the surface of the conductor plate and orthogonal to the current direction in the two conductor sections.

Claims

1. An assembly group for current measurement, consisting of:

a conductor plate and

a measuring element;

the conductor plate having a flat surface with three cuts wherein the first and third cut start from a first edge of the conductor plate and wherein the second cut starts from an opposing second edge of the conductor plate and is arranged between the first and third cut, so that a first and a second conductor section are formed in the conductor plate wherein a current direction in the second conductor section is opposite to a current direction in the first conductor section,

the measuring element having a first and a second magnetic field sensor that are sensitive to a component of the magnetic field that runs parallel to the flat surface of the conductor plate and perpendicularly to the current direction in the first conductor section, wherein the first and the second magnetic field sensor comprise magnetic field sensing elements that are formed in at least one semiconductor chip, that comprise a ferromagnetic material located on an active surface of the at least one semiconductor chip and that are encapsulated in a same housing or in separate housings, the at least one semiconductor chip comprising electronic circuitry for the operation of the magnetic field sensitive sensing elements,

wherein the measuring element is placed on the flat surface of the conductor plate in such a way that the first magnetic field sensor is located above the first conductor section and the second magnetic field sensor above the second conductor section.

2. The assembly group according to claim 1, wherein the ferromagnetic material of each magnetic field sensitive sensing element forms two magnetic field concentrators separated by a gap and wherein at least one Hall element is integrated into the active surface of the at least one semiconductor chip in the area of the gap or adjacent to the gap, the assembly group having no magnetic material in the cuts and having no magnetic material arranged on the flat surface of the conductor plate lying opposite to the flat surface of the conductor plate with the measuring element.

3. The assembly group according to claim 2, wherein the at least one semiconductor chip is a single semiconductor chip, wherein the number of the magnetic field concentrators is three, wherein the three magnetic field concentrators are arranged along a straight line and wherein the middle magnetic field concentrator is a common magnetic field concentrator for both magnetic field sensitive sensing elements.

4. The assembly group according to claim 3, wherein the current flowing through the conductor plate produces a magnetic field with which said component that runs parallel to the surface of the conductor plate and perpendicular to the current direction in the first conductor section has in the absence of the magnetic field concentrators two extrema lying in a distance B from each other, wherein a distance between the outer ends of the two magnetic field concentrators that are farthest apart from each other is about the same size or shorter than the distance B.

5. The assembly group according to claim 2, wherein the current flowing through the conductor plate produces a magnetic field with which said component that runs parallel to the surface of the conductor plate and perpendicular to the current direction in the first conductor section has in the absence of the magnetic field concentrators two extrema lying in a distance B from each other, wherein a distance between the outer ends of the two magnetic field concentrators that are farthest apart from each other is about the same size or shorter than the distance B.

6. The assembly group according to claim 1, wherein the magnetic field sensitive sensing elements are vertical Hall elements integrated in an active surface of the at least one semiconductor chip.

7. The assembly group according to claim 1 wherein the magnetic field sensitive sensing elements are either AMR or GMR or fluxgate sensors.

8. Measuring element for current measurement for the assembly group according to claim 1, the measuring element having two magnetic field sensors formed of magnetic field sensitive sensing elements that are formed in at least one semiconductor chip wherein both magnetic field sensors are sensitive to a same component of the magnetic field that runs parallel to an active surface of the at least one semiconductor chip.

9. Measuring element according to claim 8, wherein the magnetic field sensitive sensing elements comprise magnetic field concentrators placed on an active surface of the at least one semiconductor chip and Hall elements integrated into the active surface of the at least one semiconductor chip wherein the magnetic field concentrators serve for the amplification and concentration of said component of the magnetic field at the location of the Hall elements.

10. Measuring element according to claim 9, wherein the at least one semiconductor chip is a single semiconductor chip, wherein the number of the magnetic field concentrators is three, wherein the three magnetic field concentrators are arranged along a straight line and wherein the middle magnetic field concentrator is a common magnetic field concentrator for both magnetic field sensors.

11. Measuring element according to claim 10, wherein the current flowing through the conductor plate produces a magnetic field with which said component that runs parallel to the surface of the conductor plate and perpendicular to the current direction in the first conductor section has in the absence of the magnetic field concentrators two extrema lying in a distance B from each other, wherein a distance between the outer ends of the two magnetic field concentrators that are farthest apart from each other is about the same size or shorter than the distance B.

12. Measuring element according to claim 9, wherein the current flowing through the conductor plate produces a magnetic field with which said component that runs parallel to the surface of the conductor plate and perpendicular to the current direction in the first conductor section has in the absence of the magnetic field concentrators two extrema lying in a distance B from each other, wherein a distance between the outer ends of the two magnetic field concentrators that are farthest apart from each other is about the same size or shorter than the distance B.

13. Measuring element according to claim 8, wherein the magnetic field sensitive sensing elements are vertical Hall elements integrated in an active surface of the at least one semiconductor chip.

14. Measuring element according to claim 8 wherein the magnetic field sensitive sensing elements are either AMR or GMR or fluxgate sensors.