|Número de publicación||US7963164 B2|
|Tipo de publicación||Concesión|
|Número de solicitud||US 12/135,392|
|Fecha de publicación||21 Jun 2011|
|Fecha de presentación||9 Jun 2008|
|Fecha de prioridad||9 Jun 2008|
|También publicado como||US20090301189|
|Número de publicación||12135392, 135392, US 7963164 B2, US 7963164B2, US-B2-7963164, US7963164 B2, US7963164B2|
|Inventores||Herbert G. Ross, Jr., Gagik Farmanyan|
|Cesionario original||Rochester Gauges, Inc.|
|Exportar cita||BiBTeX, EndNote, RefMan|
|Citas de patentes (49), Citada por (13), Clasificaciones (11), Eventos legales (3)|
|Enlaces externos: USPTO, Cesión de USPTO, Espacenet|
This application is related to U.S. application Ser. No. 12/135,359 and U.S. application Ser. No. 12/135,421 filed on even date herewith, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
This invention relates to capacitive transducers, and more particularly to variable capacitance transducers for determining the level of fluent materials within a container.
Transducers for determining liquid level are often used in vehicles, industrial equipment and other systems and components. Such transducers typically operate by detecting a change in an electrical property of the transducer which varies in accordance with the liquid level.
By way of example, prior art liquid level sensors, such as fuel sensors for motor vehicles, usually include a float that rides on an upper surface of the fuel in a fuel tank. The float is typically connected to one end of a pivot arm while the other end of the pivot arm typically includes a wiper mechanism that brushes against a resistor strip when the arm is rotated due to a change in fuel level in the tank. Such sensors are prone to wear, mechanical and/or electrical breakdown or inaccurate liquid level detection. Although variable capacitance probes have been developed to overcome these drawbacks, they are cost-prohibitive in many applications and are typically limited to measure a certain type of liquid, since different liquids will have different dielectric properties.
In addition, a variable capacitance probe designed to measure fuel level normally cannot be used for measuring water level due to the different dielectric properties associated with different liquids. For example, the dielectric constant at room temperature of a vacuum is one, of air is close to one, of gasoline is about two, of industrial alcohol is anywhere from 16-31, and of water is about 80. Since capacitance is directly dependent on the dielectric constant, a transducer designed for measuring the level of one type of liquid could not be relied upon for measuring other types of liquids. However, even when the transducer is designed for measuring only one type of liquid, such as gasoline, the dielectric constant can change due to different gasoline formulations, the presence of water, alcohol, detergents, additives, as well as environmental factors such as temperature, thus leading to significant measurement inaccuracies. Prior art liquid level switches for detecting a low or high level condition in coolant or oil reservoirs or the like also suffer the same drawbacks.
According to one aspect of the invention, a capacitive sensor assembly for measuring a level of fluent material in a container includes electrical circuitry for receiving and processing signals and an antenna probe operably associated with the electrical circuitry. The antenna probe has an electrical conductor and an insulating layer that covers at least a portion of the electrical conductor. The electrical conductor is connected to the electrical circuitry and an enlarged measurement portion is connected to the electrical conductor for detecting the presence or absence of the fluent material. The enlarged measurement portion has a surface area that is larger than a surface area of the electrical conductor over the same height to function as a first plate of the capacitive sensor assembly, with the fluent material to be measured functioning as a second capacitive plate. In this manner, a change in detected capacitance of the antenna probe is reflective of a level condition of the fluent material.
The foregoing summary as well as the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention will be best understood when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein like designations denote like elements throughout the drawings, and wherein:
It is noted that the drawings are intended to depict only typical embodiments of the invention and therefore should not be considered as limiting the scope thereof. It is further noted that the drawings are not necessarily to scale. The invention will now be described in greater detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Referring to the drawings, and to
Referring now to
Each trace 26, 28, 30, 32, 34, 36, 38, 40, 42, 44, 46, and 48 has a distal tip portion 56A-56L, respectively, and a proximal connection portion 58 for electrical connection to the electronics section 12. Preferably, the traces are of diminishing length from the first trace 26 to the last trace 48 to thereby form a first space or distance 60A between the tips 56A and 56B of the traces 26 and 28; a second space 60B between the tips 56B and 56C of the traces 28 and 30; a third space 60C between the tips 56C and 56D of the traces 30 and 32; a fourth space 60D between the tips 56D and 56E of the traces 32 and 34; a fifth space 60E between the tips 56E and 56F of the traces 34 and 36; a sixth space 60F between the tips 56F and 56G of the traces 36 and 38; a seventh space 60G between the tips 56G and 56H of the traces 38 and 40; an eighth space 60H between the tips 56H and 56I of the traces 40 and 42; a ninth space 60I between the tips 56I and 56J of the traces 42 and 44; a tenth space 60J between the tips 56J and 56K of the traces 44 and 46; and an eleventh space 60K between the tips 56K and 56L of the traces 46 and 48. The spaces 60A-60K are preferably of equal dimension to facilitate level determination. However, it will be understood that the spaces may have different dimensions.
It will be further understood that the provision of twelve traces is by way of example only since more or less antenna probes may be provided. For example, when the type of flowable material to be measured is known and does not change in material properties, and when environmental factors affecting the accuracy of the measurement are known, such as temperature and humidity, it may be possible to use a single antenna probe for accurate level determination with environmental factors being resolved by the electronics section 12. In accordance with the present invention, a single antenna probe may be formed on a stiff or flexible PCB or be embodied as an insulated electrical wire that connects to the electronics section 12 or any other electrically conductive material with an insulative sheath.
When the material to be measured is unknown, or when a known material undergoes unknown or unanticipated property changes, the provision of two or more antenna probes is preferable, with accuracy of measurement increasing proportionately with the number of antenna probes provided. By way of example only, when the capacitive transducer 10 of the present invention is installed in a fuel tank of a motor vehicle, it would be very difficult to anticipate the type of fuel that would be in the tank because of variations in dielectric constant and density which are affected by temperature, humidity, pressure, fuel formulations, additives, and octane levels from different manufacturers. In addition, the operator may choose to add other substances to the fuel tank in an attempt to increase fuel economy, boost octane level, and/or reduce the presence of moisture within the tank. Similar uncertainties may also be encountered when measuring the coolant level, oil level, as well as other fluid levels of a motor vehicle, stationary equipment and other systems and components where the measurement of liquid level is desirous.
It will be understood that the present invention is not limited to the particular arrangement shown and described but includes other arrangements such as traces formed on a single layer PCB or multiple traces formed on different layers of a multi-layer PCB to increase the trace density and reduce the probe section footprint. In accordance with a further embodiment of the invention, the probe section 14 may be constructed of one or more solid or stranded conductive wires surrounded by one or more insulating layers. Where a plurality of antenna probes are used, the antenna probes may be embodied as an electrical cable having a plurality of electrically isolated conductive wires.
Referring again to
The signal conditioning module 82 can include electrical components (not shown) for interfacing with the display 24 in a well-known manner and/or control circuitry for operating a pump, alarm, and so on. The signal conditioning module is of well-known construction and therefore will not be further described.
As shown in
The SoC device preferably includes a chip with I/O ports 95, an integrated processor 84, memory 86 connected to the processor, and a plurality of oscillator circuits 88 (only one shown) connected between different ports 89 of the processor and the I/O ports 95, which are in turn connected to the antenna probes 26-48. Preferably, the number of oscillator circuits 88 is equal to or greater than the number of antenna probes being monitored. Each oscillator circuit 88 is multiplexed by the processor 84 so that a separate measurement can be determined for each antenna probe without interference from the other antenna probes. The memory 86 preferably includes both volatile memory, such as RAM, and non-volatile memory, such as EEPROM, for programming functions and data storage.
Each oscillator circuit 88 is identical in construction and therefore will be described as it applies to the antenna probe 26, it being understood that identical circuits would also be associated with the remaining antenna probes. The oscillator circuit 88 is preferably in the form of a relaxation oscillator that includes a charging current source 90 and a comparator 92 with a reset switch 94. The comparator 92 has two analog voltage inputs (labeled positive and negative) and a single digital output 96 having on and off states. The internal chip power, the comparator's positive input and an I/O port 95 (
More information on a suitable programmable SoC device can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 7,307,485 issued to Snyder et al., the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. Suitable touch-sensitive modules 78 are currently available from Cypress Semiconductor Corp. of San Jose, Calif. under the CY8C21 series of programmable SoC devices as well as from Texas Instruments of Dallas, Tex. and other manufacturers.
It will be understood that the touch-sensitive module 78 need not be entirely embedded in a chip but may include separate electrical components and/or systems that could be used for detecting a change in electrical properties of the antenna probe(s) as the liquid or other material being measured travels up and down the probe.
In operation, and again only referring to the antenna probe 26, when a measuring cycle is initiated on the chip's port 95 that connects with the positive end 58 of the antenna probe 26, the reset switch 94 is first closed to deplete any charges remaining on the antenna probe. Once depleted, the reset switch 94 is opened to commence charging of the antenna probe 26. As the antenna probe charges, the voltage on its positive input steadily approaches the threshold voltage on the comparator's negative input. When the charge voltage of the antenna probe 26 reaches the preset threshold voltage, the output 96 of the comparator 92 turns on the reset switch 94 to thereby close the circuit and discharge the antenna probe 26 to ground, causing the charging cycle to start over again. The antenna probe functions as one side of a capacitor plate of the relaxation oscillator which has a fixed physical area. Since the substrate insulates the internal plate (antenna) of the capacitor, the surrounding fluent material becomes the other plate of the capacitor. As the fluent material travels up the probe, the area of the oscillator's second (fluent) plate increases proportionally. In turn, the value of the capacitance or the oscillator changes which can be quantified by reading the resulting changes in the frequency of the relaxation oscillator. The varying frequency is converted to increasing or decreasing counts depending on the fluid rising or falling along the length of the probe antenna. For example, the rate of the capacitance charge/discharge is greater at the material level 18A (
A method for measuring liquid level is preferably embodied as a software program in the memory 86 of the touch-sensitive module 78 for providing various instructions to the processor 84. In general, the method preferably includes the steps of: 1) pre-calibrating the capacitive transducer 10 prior to immersion in a material to be measured; 2) reading the current probe values into memory; 3) determining the material level based on the currently stored probe values and the pre-calibrated probe values; 4) performing a dynamic calibration after each reading to compensate for material type, resonance, temperature and so on; and 5) repeating steps 2) through 4).
Referring now to
As shown, the probe section 100 preferably includes a plurality of antenna probes 102, 104, 106, 108, 110, 112, and 114 formed on an elongate electrically insulating substrate 116. Each antenna probe preferably extends from a position at least proximal to an upper edge 119 of the substrate 116. Depending on the type of sensing application, the substrate may be a stiff or flexible printed circuit board (PCB) and the antenna probes 102, 104, 106, 108, 110, 112, and 114 may be formed between layers of the PCB using well-known techniques.
Each antenna probe 102, 104, 106, 108, 110, 112, and 114 preferably has a trace portion 118A-118G (shown in hidden line) electrically connected to an enlarged measurement portion 120A-120G, respectively, and a proximal connection portion 122 located at a proximal end of the trace portion. The proximal connection portion 122 is adapted for electrical connection to the electronics section 12 or other electrical circuitry. Each enlarged measurement portion is preferably in the form of an electrically conductive plate 120A-120G that is much greater in size or surface area than its associated trace portion over an equivalent height to ensure a wide measurement bandwidth for a particular level condition without the need to calibrate the capacitive transducer for different liquids or other fluent materials, as well as environmental factors such as temperature, humidity, fluid type, and so on. Since the traces 118A-118G are formed on a different layer or side of the substrate 116, a plated thru-hole can be used to connect each trace to its respective plate. The proximal connection portions can also be in the form of plated thru-holes as shown, or as electrically conductive pads or other well-known termination means. Preferably, the traces are of diminishing length from the first trace 118A to the last trace 118G so that the enlarged measurement portions 120A-120G are positioned at discrete positions along the length of the substrate 116. The spaces between each enlarged measurement portion are preferably of equal dimension to facilitate discrete level determination. However, it will be understood that the spaces may have different dimensions depending on the desired location of one or more switch points. It will be further understood that the provision of seven antenna probes is by way of example only since more or less may be provided.
Each antenna probe is preferably electrically isolated from and functions independently of any other antenna probe, with each probe relying on the presence or absence of fluent material to serve as the second conductive plate. In this manner, the multiple electrically isolated conductor plates can be used for detecting multiple discrete levels (such as empty, ¼, ½, ¾, and full tank conditions), actuating a pump or warning signal when the level of fluent material has reached a predetermined point, and so on.
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
The mounting head 272 is preferably constructed of a metal material, such as brass, but may alternatively be constructed of plastic or other material. The mounting head 272 includes a mounting section 278 with external threads 280 for engagement with internal threads of a reservoir housing (not shown), which may be in the form of a tank, vessel, or other container or the like. The head 272 also preferably includes a securing section 282 with generally flat, external faces 284 for engagement by a wrench or the like (not shown) for installing and removing the liquid level sensor assembly 270 with respect to the reservoir housing in a well-known manner. The particular configuration of the mounting head 272 will largely depend on the mounting arrangement of the reservoir housing. Accordingly, the external threads 280 and external faces 284 may be eliminated and other mounting means may be provided.
With additional reference to
The end cap 294 has an annular side wall portion 296 with an enlarged wall section 298 and an upper wall 300. The enlarged wall section 298 is preferably supported on the annular step 301 of the mounting head 272. An annular flange 302 of the wall 286 can be pressed, rolled or otherwise deformed over the enlarged wall section 298 to secure the end cap 294 to the securing section 282. It will be understood that other means for holding the components together can be employed, such as adhesive, welding, heat staking, and so on. Electrical wires 304, 306 and 308 from the capacitive transducer 274 exit the mounting head 272 through openings 310 formed in the upper wall 300 of the end cap 294. The electrical wires preferably provide electrical power to the capacitive transducer 274 and send a liquid level signal to a display or other control circuitry (not shown). For example, the wires 304 and 306 may conduct power and ground, respectively, while the wire 308 may conduct the liquid level signal. It will be further understood that the end cap 294 can be replaced with encapsulating material and/or any other arrangement to isolate the electronics from the outside environment.
In accordance with a further embodiment of the invention, the wires and/or end cap may be replaced with a male or female plug portion with electrical connectors (not shown) for mating with a female or male plug portion (not shown), respectively, of the vehicle or system on which the liquid level sensor assembly 270 is to be installed.
A bore 312 is formed in the mounting section 278 of the mounting head 272. An elongate antenna probe 314, which forms part of the transducer 274, extends through the bore and terminates at a PCB 316. An annular channel 318 surrounds the bore 312. An O-ring is installed in the channel 18 for sealing the antenna probe 314 with the mounting head 272 to thereby create a pass-through connection for the antenna probe.
The PCB 316 preferably includes electronic circuitry similar to the electronics section 12 previously described for receiving signals from the antenna probe 314. However, it will be understood that the PCB 316 may contain other electronic circuitry for processing signals from the antenna probe 314.
The antenna probe 314 preferably includes a single electrical trace portion 322 surrounded by an electrically insulating inner sleeve 324, a center sleeve 326 and an outer sheath 328. The inner sleeve 324 is preferably conical in shape and includes a central bore 330 through which the electrical trace portion 322 extends. The center sleeve 326 is preferably generally cylindrical in shape and includes a conically-shaped bore 332 for receiving the inner sleeve 324. A reduced diameter portion 334 is formed at a lower end of the center sleeve 326. The outer sheath 328 is preferably generally cylindrical in shape and includes a cylindrically-shaped bore 336 for receiving the center sleeve 326. The outer sheath 328 also includes an annular side wall 338 and an end wall 340 to encapsulate the center and inner sleeves as well as the portion of the trace portion 322 that would otherwise be exposed to the liquid being measured. An enlarged diameter portion 342 is formed at an upper end of the outer sheath 328. When assembled, the enlarged portion 342 seats on an internal shoulder 344 of the mounting section 278. A pair of nubs 346 project upwardly from the enlarged portion 342 and are located within openings 348 formed in the PCB 316. The inner and center sleeves as well as the outer sheath can be constructed of any known insulating material such as elastomers, plastics, ceramics, composites, and so on. In environments where foreign materials may tend to adhere to the outer sheath 328, it can be constructed of a material or coating with a low coefficient of friction, such as Teflon™, Tefzel™ or other fluorinated material.
The trace portion 322 is preferably in the form of a single electrically conductive wire, such as copper or aluminum, with an upper or proximal end 350 electrically connected to the PCB 316 and a lower end 352 electrically connected to an enlarged measurement portion 354. In accordance with a further embodiment of the invention, the trace portion 322 is preferably in the form of a flexible, multi-stranded conductive cable that terminates at the PCB 316. The enlarged measurement portion 354 is preferably constructed of an electrically conductive material, such as copper, aluminum or brass, and formed into a cup-shaped configuration with a continuous side wall 356 extending upwardly from a bottom wall 358 to form a hollow interior 362 which in turn is received over the reduced portion 334 of the center sleeve 326. An opening 360 is formed in the bottom wall 358 for receiving the lower end 352 of the trace portion 322. The enlarged cup-shaped measurement portion 354 can be electrically connected to the trace portion 322 through any well-known connection means such as soldering, crimping, bonding with conductive adhesive, and so on. The enlarged cup-shaped measurement portion 354 is preferably much greater in size or surface area than the trace portion 322 over an equivalent height to ensure a wide measurement bandwidth for a particular level condition to thereby minimize or eliminate the need to calibrate the capacitive transducer for different liquids or other fluent materials, as well as environmental factors such as temperature, humidity, fluid type, and so on. In order to obtain an even greater bandwidth, the center sheath 326 can also be constructed of an electrically conductive material and electrically connected to the enlarged measurement portion to thereby increase the measurement surface area.
It will be understood that the inner and middle sleeves, and/or the outer sheath may be replaced with one or more insulating layers that are overmolded or otherwise formed on the trace portion 322 and enlarged measurement portion 354.
The above-described arrangement is especially suitable for measuring liquid level in high pressure and/or low temperature environments, such as propane tanks, cryogenic tanks, and so on, as well as low pressure and or highly volatile environments since the measurement electronics are completely isolated from the liquid being measured. In addition, the pass-through connection arrangement for the antenna probe 314 eliminates the need for specialized connectors when it becomes necessary to seal the contents of the tank from the electronics, thereby reducing manufacturing costs of the liquid level sensor assembly 270.
It will be understood that the antenna probe 270 is not limited to a single electrical conductor 226 but can be provided with multiple electrically isolated conductors.
In accordance with a further embodiment of the invention, the antenna probe 314 can be replaced with one or more of the embodiments of
Referring now to
In each of the above-described embodiments, it is not necessary to provide a second conductive plate as the material being measured functions as such. Accordingly, the antenna probes of the present invention are capable of measuring both discrete and continuous level of liquids and other fluent material with a single conductive element, the measurement of which is enhanced by the provision of a capacitive transducer with an enlarged measurement portion.
It will be understood that the term “preferably” as used throughout the specification refers to one or more exemplary embodiments of the invention and therefore is not to be interpreted in any limiting sense. It will be further understood that the term “connect” and its various derivatives as may be used throughout the specification refer to components that may be joined together either directly or through one or more intermediate members. In addition, terms of orientation and/or position as may be used throughout the specification relate to relative rather than absolute orientations and/or positions.
It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes could be made to the embodiments described above without departing from the broad inventive concept thereof. By way of example, the enlarged measurement portion can be located at any position along the conductive trace portion or other electrical conductor. It will be understood, therefore, that this invention is not limited to the particular embodiments disclosed, but is intended to cover modifications within the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.
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|Clasificación de EE.UU.||73/304.00C, 73/304.00R, 73/290.00R, 73/290.00B|
|Clasificación cooperativa||G01F25/0061, G01F23/268, G01F23/265|
|Clasificación europea||G01F23/26B6, G01F23/26B2, G01F25/00B|
|30 Ene 2015||REMI||Maintenance fee reminder mailed|
|21 Jun 2015||LAPS||Lapse for failure to pay maintenance fees|
|11 Ago 2015||FP||Expired due to failure to pay maintenance fee|
Effective date: 20150621