Impact-resistant acceleration sensor

• US 7,562,575 B2
• Filed: 07/06/2006
• Issued: 07/21/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/05/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hitachi Metals (Thailand) Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi Metals (Thailand) Ltd.
• Inventors: Hatano, Hiroyuki, Takada, Yoshiaki, Saitoh, Masakatsu
• Primary Examiner(s): Williams; Hezron
• Assistant Examiner(s): Shah; Samir M
• Application Number:
  US11/481,003
• Publication Number:
  US 20070028687A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,111 Days
• Field of Search: 735/140.1, 734/93, 735/140.9, 735/142.4, 735/143.8, 735/26
• US Class Current: 73/526
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 1/023 for acceleration measuring devices
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 15/123 by piezo-resistive elements, e.g. semiconductor strain gauges
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 15/18 in two or more dimensions
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 2015/0842 the mass being of clover leaf shape

Abstract

An acceleration sensor, which has realized such a high impact-resistance that a weight bottom surface of an acceleration sensor element does not directly collide with an inner bottom plate of a protection case made of ceramic, glass or silicon to avoid edges and corners of the weight bottom surface of the acceleration sensor element chipping, even when an excessive acceleration or impact is applied to the acceleration sensor. The acceleration sensor comprises the acceleration sensor element having in a center a weight that works as a pendulum when acceleration is applied, and the protection case housing the acceleration sensor element. The inner bottom plate of the protection case works as a regulation plate to prevent the weight from excessively swing downwards. An impact buffer material of a metal layer or a resin layer is provided on the weight bottom surface or the inner bottom plate of the protection case.

Claims

1. An acceleration sensor comprising:

an acceleration sensor element having

a weight located in a center of the acceleration sensor element,

a support frame surrounding the weight and being at a predetermined distance from the weight,

a plurality of elastic arms bridging an upper portion of the weight and an upper portion of the support frame and hanging the weight, and

strain gauges formed on the elastic arms;

a first regulation plate mounted on the acceleration sensor element with a first predetermined gap with a top surface of the weight; and

a protection case with an inner bottom plate fixed to a bottom surface of the support frame of the acceleration sensor element, wherein said inner bottom plate has a gap between a weight bottom surface and a part of the inner bottom plate of the protection case facing the weight bottom surface;

wherein an impact buffer material is fixed to at least one of the weight bottom surface and the part of the inner bottom plate of the protection case facing the weight bottom surface, and the other of the weight bottom surface and the part of the inner bottom plate of the protection case facing the weight bottom surface forms a second predetermined gap with the impact buffer material.

2. An acceleration sensor as set forth in claim 1, wherein the impact buffer material is fixed to only one of the weight bottom surface and the part of the inner bottom plate of the protection case facing the weight bottom surface.

3. An acceleration sensor as set forth in claim 2, wherein the impact buffer material is a metal layer of aluminum, copper, silver, gold or an alloy containing one of them as a main component, or a resin layer of fluorocarbon-series polymer, polyolefin-series resin, rubber-series material, fluoro-elastomer, fluoro-polymer or epoxy-series resin, and has a thickness of 1.0 μ

m or more.

4. An acceleration sensor as set forth in claim 3, wherein the impact buffer material is a metal layer formed by sputtering, vapor-deposition or plating, and having a thickness of 10 μ

m or less.

5. An acceleration sensor as set forth in claim 3, wherein the impact buffer material is fixed to the weight bottom surface of the acceleration sensor element so that edges of the impact buffer material are within 20 μ

m from an edge of the weight bottom surface.

6. An acceleration sensor as set forth in claim 5, wherein the impact buffer material is fixed to the weight bottom surface so that the edges of the impact buffer material are located at a distance of 1 μ

m or more and 20 μ

m or less from the edge of the weight bottom surface.

7. An acceleration sensor as set forth in claim 3, wherein the impact buffer material is fitted to a shape of the weight bottom surface and fixed to the weight bottom surface of the acceleration sensor element so that edges of the impact buffer material meet edges of the weight bottom surface.

8. An acceleration sensor as set forth in claim 3, wherein the impact buffer material is fixed to the weight bottom surface of the acceleration sensor element so that the impact buffer material covers the whole weight bottom surface and extends around edges of the weight bottom surface and to side surfaces of the weight.

9. An acceleration sensor as set forth in claim 3, wherein the impact buffer material covers the part of the inner bottom plate of the protection case facing the weight bottom surface and is fixed to the inner bottom plate of the protection case.

10. An acceleration sensor as set forth in claim 9, wherein the impact buffer material covers the part of the inner bottom plate of the protection case facing the weight bottom surface and is fixed to a region broader than the part.

11. An acceleration sensor as set forth in claim 3, wherein the impact buffer material is fixed to the inner bottom plate of the protection case so that edges of the impact buffer material is within 20 μ

m inside of edges of the part of the inner bottom plate of the protection case facing the weight bottom surface.