Door position sensor

• US 8,436,628 B2
• Filed: 03/15/2007
• Issued: 05/07/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/17/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Electrolux Home Products Incorporated (AB Electrolux)
• Original Assignee: Electrolux Home Products Incorporated (AB Electrolux)
• Inventors: Uhov, Andrei, Pimputkar, Girish, Giordano, Roberto
• Primary Examiner(s): Isla Rodas, Richard
• Application Number:
  US12/282,392
• Publication Number:
  US 20090072884A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,245 Days
• Field of Search: 340/545.1, 340/545.4, 340/562, 324/661
• US Class Current: 324/661
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 5/241 by relative movement of capacitor electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/955 using a capacitive detector
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/975 using a capacitive movable element

Abstract

The present invention relates to a capacitive sensor system comprising a sensor circuit connected to a first (15) and a second (11) antenna, the first antenna (15) is arranged on a first object (10) and the second antenna (11) is arranged on a second object (11) movable relative to said first object (10). The first antenna (15) is arranged right next to the second object (11) for the sensor circuit to detect the movement and/or position of the second object (11).

Claims

1. Capacitive sensor system comprising a sensor circuit operationally connected to a first (15) and a second (11) antenna, the first antenna (15) arranged on a first object (10) and the second antenna (11) arranged on a second object (11) movable relative to said first object (10),

wherein the first antenna (15) is arranged right next to the second object (11) for the sensor circuit to detect a movement and/or position of the second object (11) and arranged in such a way that a variable capacitance is formed between the first antenna and the second antenna such that a human body movement close to the second antenna has little or no influence on object position measurement results of the sensor circuit,

wherein the sensor circuit detects the movement and/or position of the second object (11) by comparing a measured capacitance with a stored relationship between capacitances and a plurality of respective different open positions of the second object (11),

wherein the second object (11) is a door rotatably or slideably mounted on the first object (10), and the second antenna (11) is formed as a cover sheet on the door, and

wherein the first antenna (15) extends from the first object (10) so as to extend over an end face of the door.

2. Capacitive sensor system according to claim 1 wherein the first antenna (15) is arranged substantially in parallel with a surface on the second object (11).

3. Capacitive sensor system according to claim 2 wherein the first antenna (15) and said surface on the second object (11) at least partly overlap when looking at the surface perpendicularly.

4. Capacitive sensor system according to claim 2 wherein both the first antenna (15) and said surface on the second object (11) have an oblong shape, wherein main extension directions for both the antenna (15) and the surface are substantially parallel at one position of the second object (11).

5. Capacitive sensor system according to claim 2 wherein the first object (10) is a cabinet body, and the body together with the door enclose a cabinet space, the first antenna (15) being arranged at an antenna surface facing said surface on the second object (11).

6. Capacitive sensor system according to claim 5 wherein the antenna surface is arranged on an extended portion of the cabinet body so as to face the end face.

7. Capacitive sensor system according to claim 1 wherein the second antenna (11) is arranged for the sensor circuit to detect a movement and/or position of a user body part (16) next to the second object (11).

8. Capacitive sensor system according to claim 1 wherein a first capacitance (C1) is formed between the first antenna (15) and the first object (10).

9. Capacitive sensor system according to claim 8 wherein a second capacitance (C2) is formed between the second antenna (11) and ground level.

10. Capacitive sensor system according to claim 9 wherein a third capacitance (C3) is formed between the second antenna (11) and the first object (10).

11. Capacitive sensor system according to claim 10 wherein a fourth capacitance (C4) is formed between the first antenna (15) and the second antenna (11).

12. Capacitive sensor system according to claim 11 wherein the value of the fourth capacitance (C4) is influenced by said movement of the second object (11) in relation to the first object (10).

13. Capacitive sensor system according to claim 9 wherein the value of the second capacitance (C2) is influenced by presence of the human body (16) at the second object (11).

14. Capacitive sensor system according to claim 1 wherein the sensor circuit detects the position of the second object from a capacitance measurement of a variable total capacitance, said variable total capacitance including the variable capacitance formed between the first antenna and the second antenna.

15. Capacitive sensor system according to claim 1, wherein the stored relationship between capacitances and the plurality of respective different open positions of the second object (11) comprises a stored diagram of said relationship.

16. Method for a capacitive sensor system comprising a sensor circuit operationally connected to a first (15) and a second (11) antenna, the first antenna (15) arranged on a first object (10) and the second antenna (11) arranged on a second object (11) movable relative to said first object (10), the arrangement of antennas forming an equivalent electrical circuit, wherein the sensor circuit detects a position of the second object (11) by measuring a total capacitance (17) in the electrical circuit and comparing it with a stored diagram of a relationship between total capacitance and the position of the second object (11), wherein the first antenna and the second antenna are arranged in such a way that a variable capacitance is formed between the first antenna and the second antenna such that a human body movement close to the second antenna has little or no influence on object position measurement results of the sensor circuit, and wherein said total capacitance includes the variable capacitance formed between the first antenna and the second antenna,

wherein the second object (11) is a door rotatable mounted on the first object (10) and the position of the second object (11) corresponds to a rotation angle of the second object (11) in relation to the first object (10), and

wherein the first antenna (15) extends from the first object (10) so as to extend over an end face of the door.

17. Method according to claim 16 wherein the sensor circuit when having detected the position of the second object (11) is able to detect a movement and/or position of a user body part next to the second object (11).