Microwire temperature sensors constructed to eliminate stress-related temperature measurement inaccuracies and method of manufacturing said sensors
First Claim
1. A temperature sensor for sensing a temperature of a material of an object of interest, comprising:
- an outer, close-ended tube; and
a sensor assembly within said tube including—
an elongated, magnetically susceptible temperature-sensing primary microwire having a re-magnetization response under the influence of an applied alternating magnetic field and operable to sense the temperature of said material of the object of interest over a selected temperature range, said primary microwire re-magnetization response being defined by at least one short, detectable pulse of magnetic field perturbation of defined duration and different above and below a primary microwire set point temperature, said primary microwire set point temperature being at or below the Curie temperature of the primary microwire;
an elongated, magnetically susceptible temperature-sensing secondary microwire having a re-magnetization response different than the re-magnetization response of said primary microwire under the influence of said applied alternating magnetic field and operable to sense the temperature of said material over at least a portion of said selected temperature range, said secondary microwire re-magnetization response being defined by at least one short, detectable pulse of magnetic field perturbation of defined duration and different above and below a secondary microwire set point temperature, where the secondary microwire Curie temperature is less than or equal to the Curie temperature of said primary microwire,said tube formed of a material which does not appreciably magnetically bias said primary microwire, such that the presence of said tube does not significantly alter the re-magnetization responses of said primary and secondary microwires,said tube operable to substantially prevent forces exerted on the tube by said material from distorting said sensor assembly within said tube.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Improved, highly accurate microwire sensors (10) include a microwire assembly (14) including at least one primary, temperature-sensing microwire (16) encased within a closed-ended, stress-absorbing protective tube (12). Preferably, the sensor assembly (14) includes a plurality of microwires, e.g., a primary temperature-sensing microwire (16), a reference microwire (18), and a calibration microwire (20). The sensors (10) may be embedded within a heat-treatable or curable material (24) to monitor the temperature of the material (24) over a selected temperature range, e.g., during a pre- and/or post-curing temperature range. The tube (12) is formed of material which does not appreciably magnetically bias the microwire assembly (14), and substantially prevents forces exerted on the tube (12) from distorting the sensor assembly (14).
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Citations
16 Claims
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1. A temperature sensor for sensing a temperature of a material of an object of interest, comprising:
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an outer, close-ended tube; and a sensor assembly within said tube including— an elongated, magnetically susceptible temperature-sensing primary microwire having a re-magnetization response under the influence of an applied alternating magnetic field and operable to sense the temperature of said material of the object of interest over a selected temperature range, said primary microwire re-magnetization response being defined by at least one short, detectable pulse of magnetic field perturbation of defined duration and different above and below a primary microwire set point temperature, said primary microwire set point temperature being at or below the Curie temperature of the primary microwire; an elongated, magnetically susceptible temperature-sensing secondary microwire having a re-magnetization response different than the re-magnetization response of said primary microwire under the influence of said applied alternating magnetic field and operable to sense the temperature of said material over at least a portion of said selected temperature range, said secondary microwire re-magnetization response being defined by at least one short, detectable pulse of magnetic field perturbation of defined duration and different above and below a secondary microwire set point temperature, where the secondary microwire Curie temperature is less than or equal to the Curie temperature of said primary microwire, said tube formed of a material which does not appreciably magnetically bias said primary microwire, such that the presence of said tube does not significantly alter the re-magnetization responses of said primary and secondary microwires, said tube operable to substantially prevent forces exerted on the tube by said material from distorting said sensor assembly within said tube. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A temperature sensor for sensing a temperature of a material of an object of interest, comprising:
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an outer, close-ended tube; and a sensor assembly within said tube including— an elongated, magnetically susceptible temperature-sensing primary microwire having a re-magnetization response under the influence of an applied alternating magnetic field and operable to sense the temperature of said material of the object of interest over a selected temperature range, said primary microwire re-magnetization response being defined by at least one short, detectable pulse of magnetic field perturbation of defined duration and different above and below a primary microwire set point temperature, where said primary microwire pulse is detectable as a voltage pulse, said primary microwire set point temperature being at or below the Curie temperature of the primary microwire, wherein the integral over time of said primary microwire detected voltage pulse at any given material temperature within said selected temperature range has a first magnitude; an elongated, magnetically susceptible reference microwire having a re-magnetization response different than the re-magnetization response of said primary microwire under the influence of said applied alternating magnetic field, said reference microwire re-magnetization response being defined by at least one short, detectable pulse of magnetic field perturbation of defined duration, where said reference microwire pulse is detectable as a voltage pulse, said microwire re-magnetization response being substantially constant throughout said temperature range, wherein the integral over time of said reference microwire detected voltage pulse at said given material temperature has a second magnitude, wherein the quotient of said first and second magnitudes provides a quotient value which is used in part to determine the temperature of said material, said tube formed of a material which does not appreciably magnetically bias said primary microwire, such that the presence of said tube does not significantly alter the re-magnetization responses of said primary and reference microwires, said tube operable to substantially prevent forces exerted on the tube by said material from distorting said sensor assembly within said tube. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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Specification