Method and apparatus for control and location of an instrument or appliance
First Claim
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1. An apparatus for locating an instrument, comprising:
- an instrument having a body;
at least one magnet disposed inside the body of the instrument, the at least one magnet being rotatable independently of a rotation of the body of the instrument and adapted to produce a moving magnetic field extending outside the body of the instrument to generate a magnetic moment which is perpendicular to an axis of the instrument;
a drive for rotating the at least one magnet independent of the body of the instrument;
variation means for varying the magnetic field generated outside the body of the instrument by the at least one magnet, thereby creating a variable magnetic field component which relates to a roll angle of the instrument; and
a receiver outside the body of the instrument configured for measuring the variable magnetic field component to determine the roll angle of the instrument.
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Abstract
The invention relates to an apparatus for location of an instrument or appliance having at least one magnet which produces a magnetic moment at right angles to the appliance shaft and can be rotated independently of the instrument or appliance. This results in a location system which allows precise location at an accurate time, determination of the axis direction and control of an appliance which is being operated in a channel or medium.
151 Citations
19 Claims
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1. An apparatus for locating an instrument, comprising:
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an instrument having a body; at least one magnet disposed inside the body of the instrument, the at least one magnet being rotatable independently of a rotation of the body of the instrument and adapted to produce a moving magnetic field extending outside the body of the instrument to generate a magnetic moment which is perpendicular to an axis of the instrument; a drive for rotating the at least one magnet independent of the body of the instrument; variation means for varying the magnetic field generated outside the body of the instrument by the at least one magnet, thereby creating a variable magnetic field component which relates to a roll angle of the instrument; and a receiver outside the body of the instrument configured for measuring the variable magnetic field component to determine the roll angle of the instrument. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A method of determining a location of an instrument, comprising the steps of:
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rotating at least one magnet disposed inside a body of the instrument independent of a rotation of the instrument to produce a magnetic field to generate a magnetic moment outside the body of the instrument perpendicular to an axis of the instrument; detecting three time-dependent magnetic field components of the magnetic field; modulating a frequency of the rotation for variation of the magnetic field generated by the magnet to minimize the influence of a disturbing external magnetic field or to distinguish the magnetic field from another magnetic field; and determining a location of the instrument based on the detected magnetic field components.
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19. A method of determining a location of an instrument, comprising the steps of:
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producing a magnetic field by a rotating magnet inside a body of the instrument independent of a rotation of the body of the instrument to generate a magnetic moment perpendicular to an axis of the instrument, with the magnet configured as a transmitter; detecting with a receiver three time-dependent magnetic field components produced by the rotating magnet outside the body of the instrument; and modulating a frequency of the rotation for variation of the magnetic field generated by the magnet to minimize the influence of a disturbing external magnetic field or to distinguish the magnetic field from another magnetic field; and determining a location of the instrument based on the detected magnetic field components.
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Specification