OBSCURED FEATURE DETECTOR WITH BUILT-IN CORRECTION MODULE
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Accused Products
Abstract
A surface-conforming obscured feature detector includes a plurality of sensor plates, each having a capacitance that varies based on the dielectric constant of the materials that compose the surrounding objects and the proximity of those objects. A sensing circuit is coupled to the sensor plates 32 to measure the capacitances of the sensor plates. A controller is coupled to the sensing circuit to analyze the capacitances measured by the sensing circuit. One or a plurality of indicators are coupled to the controller, and are selectively activated to identify the location of an obscured feature behind a surface.
74 Citations
204 Claims
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1-181. -181. (canceled)
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182. An obscured feature detector comprising:
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a plurality of sensor plates, each having a capacitance that varies based on;
(a) the proximity of the sensor plates to one or more surrounding objects, and (b) the dielectric constant(s) of the surrounding object(s);a sensing circuit coupled to the sensor plates, the sensing circuit being configured to measure the capacitance of each of the sensor plates; a controller coupled to the sensing circuit, the controller being configured to analyze the capacitances measured by the sensing circuit; a surface material detection module coupled to the controller and configured to detect one or more properties of a detected surface; and a correction module coupled to the controller and configured to apply corrections to the measured capacitances using at least one of the properties detected by the surface detection module. - View Dependent Claims (183, 184, 185, 186, 187, 188, 189, 190, 191, 192)
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193. A method for determining the location of an obscured feature behind a surface, the method comprising:
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placing an obscured feature detector on the surface, the obscured feature detector having a plurality of sensor plates arranged in an array; measuring capacitance readings in an area surrounding one or more of the sensor plates; detecting at least one property of the surface; correcting the capacitance readings, using the detected property of the surface; identifying, based upon the corrected capacitance readings, the location of one or a plurality of obscured features; and activating one or a plurality of indicators to identify the location of an obscured feature. - View Dependent Claims (194, 195, 196, 197, 198, 199, 200, 201, 202, 203)
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204-239. -239. (canceled)
Specification