Waveguide and optical motion sensor using optical power modulation
First Claim
1. An optical motion sensing device comprising:
- a sensor frame defining a cavity and an opening to said cavity;
a sensor pad disposed in the opening, the sensor pad adapted to allow for its placement against an anatomical location of a subject;
an optical sensing system adapted to detect an amount of downward displacement of the sensor pad relative to the sensor frame, the optical sensing system comprising;
(a) an optical waveguide positioned within the cavity of the sensor frame such that the downward displacement of the sensor pad relative to the sensor frame results in the flexing or compressing of the optical waveguide,(b) an optical source device to supply optical energy to a first end of the optical waveguide, and(c) an optical detector to detect an amount of optical energy exiting a second end of the optical waveguide; and
an output unit configured to receive a signal indicative of the amount of optical energy exiting the optical waveguide and to generate a measure of the amount of downward displacement of the sensor pad relative to the sensor frame from the received signal.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An optical motion sensing device included a sensor frame defining an opening, a sensor pad disposed in the opening, an optical sensing system adapted to detect an amount of movement of the sensor pad in the sensor frame, and an output unit. The optical sensing system includes an optical waveguide, an optical source device, and an optical detector. The optical waveguide is positioned within the sensor frame such that the movement of the sensor pad results in the flexing or compressing of the optical waveguide. The optical source device supplies optical energy to the optical waveguide. The optical detector detects an amount of optical energy exiting the optical waveguide. The output unit is configured to receive a signal indicative of the amount of optical energy exiting the optical waveguide and to generate a measure of the amount of movement of the sensor pad from the received signal.
-
Citations
16 Claims
-
1. An optical motion sensing device comprising:
-
a sensor frame defining a cavity and an opening to said cavity; a sensor pad disposed in the opening, the sensor pad adapted to allow for its placement against an anatomical location of a subject; an optical sensing system adapted to detect an amount of downward displacement of the sensor pad relative to the sensor frame, the optical sensing system comprising; (a) an optical waveguide positioned within the cavity of the sensor frame such that the downward displacement of the sensor pad relative to the sensor frame results in the flexing or compressing of the optical waveguide, (b) an optical source device to supply optical energy to a first end of the optical waveguide, and (c) an optical detector to detect an amount of optical energy exiting a second end of the optical waveguide; and an output unit configured to receive a signal indicative of the amount of optical energy exiting the optical waveguide and to generate a measure of the amount of downward displacement of the sensor pad relative to the sensor frame from the received signal. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 16)
-
-
7. A method of detecting an amount of localized displacement, the method comprising:
-
transmitting optical energy into a first end of an optical waveguide, the optical waveguide positioned within a sensor frame including a sensor pad such that the downward displacement of the sensor pad relative to the sensor frame results in the compression or flexing of the optical waveguide, wherein the sensor pad is placed against an anatomical location of a subject; detecting, using an optical detector held by the sensor frame, an amount of optical energy exiting a second end of the optical waveguide and generating therefrom a signal indicative of optical energy received, the amount of optical energy exiting the second end of the optical waveguide being reduced in response to the downward displacement of the sensor pad relative to the sensor frame; and generating a measure of an amount of downward displacement of the sensor pad relative to the sensor frame using the generated signal indicative of the optical energy exiting the second end of the optical waveguide. - View Dependent Claims (8, 10, 13, 14, 15)
-
-
9. A method of detecting an amount of localized displacement, the method comprising:
-
transmitting optical energy into a first end of an optical waveguide, the optical waveguide positioned within a sensor frame including a sensor pad such that the downward displacement of the sensor pad results in the compression or flexing of the optical waveguide, wherein a load spring is attached to at least a portion of the sensor frame, supports the sensor pad, configured to counter at least some of a pressure exerted against the sensor pad, and is adapted to allow a desirable displacement of the sensor pad at a maximum pressure, wherein the load spring is adapted to provide a maximum displacement of the sensor pad between 0.5 and 3 millimeters at a maximum pressure; detecting, using an optical detector held by the sensor frame, an amount of optical energy exiting a second end of the optical waveguide and generating therefrom a signal indicative of optical energy received, the amount of optical energy exiting the second end of the optical waveguide being reduced in response to the downward displacement of the sensor pad; and generating a measure of an amount of downward displacement of the sensor pad using the generated signal indicative of the optical energy exiting the second end of the optical wave guide.
-
-
11. A method of detecting an amount of localized displacement, the method comprising:
-
transmitting optical energy into a first end of an optical waveguide, the optical waveguide positioned within a sensor frame including a sensor pad such that the downward displacement of the sensor pad results in the compression or flexing of the optical waveguide, wherein the optical waveguide comprises a numerical aperture of between 0.2 and 0.4; detecting, using an optical detector held by the sensor frame, an amount of optical energy exiting a second end of the optical waveguide and generating therefrom a signal indicative of optical energy received, the amount of optical energy exiting the second end of the optical waveguide being reduced in response to the downward displacement of the sensor pad; and generating a measure of an amount of downward displacement of the sensor pad using the generated signal indicative of the optical energy exiting the second end of the optical wave guide.
-
-
12. A method of detecting an amount of localized displacement, the method comprising:
-
transmitting optical energy into a first end of an optical waveguide, the optical waveguide positioned within a sensor frame including a sensor pad such that the downward displacement of the sensor pad results in the compression or flexing of the optical waveguide, wherein the optical waveguide comprises a core and a cladding, the core having a refractive index between 1.43 and 1.50, the cladding having a refractive index between 1.39 and 1.48, the core, the cladding, or both the core and the cladding have a Shore A hardness of between 25 and 75; detecting, using an optical detector held by the sensor frame, an amount of optical energy exiting a second end of the optical waveguide and generating therefrom a signal indicative of optical energy received, the amount of optical energy exiting the second end of the optical waveguide being reduced in response to the downward displacement of the sensor pad; and generating a measure of an amount of downward displacement of the sensor pad using the generated signal indicative of the optical energy exiting the second end of the optical wave guide.
-
Specification