Inductive proximity sensor and related methods
First Claim
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1. An inductive proximity sensor comprising:
- a programmable Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) wherein said programmable ASIC is capable of being programmed by an automatic program control sequence initiated by application of a predetermined supply voltage to said inductive proximity sensor, said automatic program control sequence programmed to set a finished functionality of said inductive proximity sensor based upon a magnitude of said predetermined supply voltage and said automatic program control sequence is further programmed to set a sense distance of said inductive proximity sensor based upon a position of a target relative to said inductive proximity sensor.
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Abstract
An inductive proximity sensor or switch and a method of using same. The sensor or switch includes an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (“ASIC”) and a plurality of external components. The ASIC is implemented in CMOS technology and has an oscillator. A switch point of the sensor or switch is predetermined by selection of a bias voltage to a potential node of the oscillator.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. An inductive proximity sensor comprising:
a programmable Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) wherein said programmable ASIC is capable of being programmed by an automatic program control sequence initiated by application of a predetermined supply voltage to said inductive proximity sensor, said automatic program control sequence programmed to set a finished functionality of said inductive proximity sensor based upon a magnitude of said predetermined supply voltage and said automatic program control sequence is further programmed to set a sense distance of said inductive proximity sensor based upon a position of a target relative to said inductive proximity sensor. - 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 programming an inductive proximity sensor comprising:
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applying a predetermined supply voltage to said inductive proximity sensor; initiating an automatic program control sequence of an ASIC of said inductive proximity sensor by said predetermined supply voltage; setting a finished functionality of said inductive proximity sensor based upon a magnitude of said predetermined supply voltage; and setting a sense distance of said inductive proximity sensor by positioning a target relative to said inductive proximity sensor at said sense distance when said predetermined supply voltage is applied to said inductive proximity sensor. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20)
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Specification