Resonant signal sensing circuit having a low power mode
First Claim
1. An apparatus comprising:
- a sensor circuit connected to an input that is coupled to a resonant circuit to receive a varying signal at an input of the apparatus, the varying signal produced by the resonant circuit in response to a parameter to be measured, the sensor circuit to provide a sensor signal corresponding to a measurement of the varying signal;
a timer circuit to generate a signal at various intervals of a plurality of intervals; and
a controller coupled to the sensor circuit and having a first power mode and a second power mode, the first power mode having a lower power consumption than the second power mode, the controller to enter the second power mode in response to the signal from the timer circuit and to;
enable the sensor circuit;
capture a plurality of measurements of the varying signal;
return to the first power mode; and
selectively provide a wakeup signal to a microcontroller unit in response to the plurality of measurements of the varying signal.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
An apparatus includes a sensor circuit to receive a varying signal at an input of the apparatus. The sensor circuit provides a sensor signal corresponding to a measurement of the varying signal. The apparatus further includes a timer circuit to generate a signal at various intervals of a plurality of intervals and a controller coupled to the sensor circuit. The controller has a first power mode and a second power mode, where the first power mode has a lower power consumption than the second power mode. The controller enters the second power mode in response to the signal from the timer circuit. The controller enables the sensor circuit, captures a plurality of measurements of the varying signal, and returns to the first power mode.
13 Citations
18 Claims
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1. An apparatus comprising:
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a sensor circuit connected to an input that is coupled to a resonant circuit to receive a varying signal at an input of the apparatus, the varying signal produced by the resonant circuit in response to a parameter to be measured, the sensor circuit to provide a sensor signal corresponding to a measurement of the varying signal; a timer circuit to generate a signal at various intervals of a plurality of intervals; and
a controller coupled to the sensor circuit and having a first power mode and a second power mode, the first power mode having a lower power consumption than the second power mode, the controller to enter the second power mode in response to the signal from the timer circuit and to;enable the sensor circuit; capture a plurality of measurements of the varying signal;
return to the first power mode; andselectively provide a wakeup signal to a microcontroller unit in response to the plurality of measurements of the varying signal. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A metering circuit comprising:
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a sensor circuit connected to an input that is coupled to the input to receive the resonant signal corresponding to the usage of the resource from an external circuit; a timer circuit to generate a timer signal at selected intervals; a microcontroller unit configured to remain in a low power mode and to transition to a higher power mode in response to a wakeup signal; and a controller coupled to the timer circuit and the sensor circuit, the controller having a first power mode and a second power mode, the first power mode having a lower power consumption than the second power mode, the controller configured to enter the second power mode and enable the sensor circuit to capture measurements of the resonant signal in response to receiving the timer signal, the controller configured to selectively provide the wakeup signal to the microcontroller unit based on the measurements of the resonant signal. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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Specification