# US 10,480,973 B2 · Flow measuring device measuring air flow through a bypass passage throttled by a throttle portion

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- Number: US 10,480,973 B2
- Document ID: US10480973B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 15/665,721
- Filed: 2017-08-01
- Published: 2018-02-08
- Granted: 2019-11-19
- Earliest claimed: 2016-08-03
- Assignees: Denso Corporation
- Applicants: Denso Corporation
- Inventors: Hiroyuki Akuzawa
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10480973B2

## CPC

- G01F 1/6842: {with means for influencing the fluid flow}
- F02D 9/1055: {having a fluid by-pass}
- F02D 41/187: {using a hot wire flow sensor}
- F02M 35/10386: {for flow rate (air flow meters in air cleaners F02M35/021; circuit arrangements for generating control signals by measuring intake air flow F02D41/18)}
- G01F 1/69: of resistive type
- F02D 2009/0294: {Throttle control device with provisions for actuating electric or electronic sensors}
- F02D 2400/18: Packaging of the electronic circuit in a casing
- G01F 1/6845: {Micromachined devices}
- G01F 5/00: Measuring a proportion of the volume flow
- G01M 15/048: {by monitoring temperature}
- G01N 27/10: Investigation or analysis specially adapted for controlling or monitoring operations or for signalling
- G01F: MEASURING VOLUME, VOLUME FLOW, MASS FLOW OR LIQUID LEVEL; METERING BY VOLUME
- F02D: CONTROLLING COMBUSTION ENGINES (vehicle fittings, acting on a single sub-unit only, for automatically controlling vehicle speed B60K31/00; conjoint control of vehicle sub-units of different type or different function, road vehicle drive control systems for purposes other than the control of a single sub-unit B60W)
- F02M: SUPPLYING COMBUSTION ENGINES IN GENERAL WITH COMBUSTIBLE MIXTURES OR CONSTITUENTS THEREOF
- G01M: TESTING STATIC OR DYNAMIC BALANCE OF MACHINES OR STRUCTURES; TESTING OF STRUCTURES OR APPARATUS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- G01N: INVESTIGATING OR ANALYSING MATERIALS BY DETERMINING THEIR CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROPERTIES (measuring or testing apparatus or processes other than immunoassay, involving enzymes or microorganisms C12M, C12Q)

## Abstract

A flow measuring device includes a housing including a bypass passage and a flow sensing chip located in the bypass passage and including a sensing surface portion. A throttle portion that is a part of a flowing passage wall facing a sensing surface portion throttles a cross-sectional area of a bypass passage. A position where the throttle portion starts is referred to as a start point position, and a position of the throttle portion where a distance between a gravity center of the sensing surface portion and the throttle portion is shortest is referred to as an end point position. The start point position and the end point position define an imagination line, and the imagination line and the flowing direction define an angle that is in a range from 0 degrees to 20 degrees.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A flow measuring device comprising:
a housing including a bypass passage that introduces a part of an air flowing through a duct; and
a flow sensing chip located in the bypass passage and including a sensing surface portion that generates an electrical signal in response to a flow volume of the air in the duct by a heat transmission between the sensing surface portion and the air flowing through the bypass passage, wherein
the sensing surface portion is located along a flowing direction in which the air flows through the bypass passage,
the bypass passage is throttled by a throttle portion such that a cross-sectional area of the bypass passage perpendicular to the flowing direction decreases in accordance with a decrease in distance from a gravity center of the sensing surface portion to a center of the cross-sectional area in a direction parallel to the flowing direction,
the throttle portion is a part of a flowing passage wall facing the sensing surface portion, the throttle portion throttles the cross-sectional area of the bypass passage such that a distance from the sensing surface portion to the flowing passage wall at the cross-sectional area in a direction perpendicular to the sensing surface portion decreases in accordance with a decrease in distance from the gravity center of the sensing surface portion to the center of the cross-sectional area in the direction parallel to the flowing direction,
a position where the throttle portion starts is referred to as a start point position, and a position of the throttle portion where a distance between the gravity center of the sensing surface portion and the throttle portion is shortest is referred to as an end point position, and
the start point position and the end point position define an imagination line, and the imagination line and the flowing direction define an angle that is in a range from 0 degrees to 20 degrees.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The flow measuring device according to claim 1, wherein
the throttle portion includes a surface that is a planar surface or a curved surface.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The flow measuring device according to claim 1, wherein
another throttle portion that is different from the throttle portion is located in the bypass passage.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The flow measuring device according to claim 1, wherein
the throttle portion extends in the direction parallel to the flowing direction, the throttle portion includes a first part located upstream of the gravity center of the sensing surface portion in the flowing direction and a second part located downstream of the gravity center of the sensing surface portion in the flowing direction.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The flow measuring device according to claim 1, wherein
the bypass passage is configured to introduce the part of the air flowing through the duct along a main-flow direction; and
the housing defines an outlet that discharges the air that passed through the sensing surface portion into the duct from the bypass passage, and
the outlet opens along the main-flow direction.

### Claim 6

A flow measuring device comprising:
a housing including a bypass passage that introduces a part of an air flowing through a duct; and
a flow sensing chip located in the bypass passage and including a sensing surface portion that generates an electrical signal in response to a flow volume of the air in the duct, wherein
the bypass passage is throttled by a throttle portion such that a cross-sectional area of the bypass passage perpendicular to a flowing direction in which the air flows through the bypass passage decreases in accordance with a decrease in distance from a gravity center of the sensing surface portion to a center of the cross-sectional area in a direction parallel to the flowing direction,
the throttle portion is a part of a flowing passage wall facing the sensing surface portion,
a position where the throttle portion starts is referred to as a start point position, the start point position is located upstream of the sensing surface portion in the flowing direction, and
the throttle portion includes a surface that is a planar surface, the surface of the throttle portion and the flowing direction define an angle that is in a range from 0 degrees to 20 degrees.

### Claim 7

A flow measuring device comprising:
a housing including a bypass passage that introduces a part of an air flowing through a duct along a main-flow direction; and
a flow sensing chip located in the bypass passage and including a sensing surface portion that generates an electrical signal in response to a flow volume of the air in the duct by a heat transmission between the sensing surface portion and the air flowing through the bypass passage, wherein
the sensing surface portion is located along a flowing direction in which the air flows through the bypass passage,
the bypass passage is throttled by a throttle portion such that a cross-sectional area of the bypass passage perpendicular to the flowing direction decreases in accordance with a decrease in distance from a gravity center of the sensing surface portion to a center of the cross-sectional area in a direction parallel to the flowing direction,
the throttle portion is a part of a flowing passage wall that is included in the housing and faces the sensing surface portion, the throttle portion throttles the cross-sectional area of the bypass passage such that a distance from the sensing surface portion to the flowing passage wall at the cross-sectional area in a direction perpendicular to the sensing surface portion decreases in accordance with a decrease in distance from the gravity center of the sensing surface portion to the center of the cross-sectional area in the direction parallel to the flowing direction,
a position where the throttle portion starts is referred to as a start point position, and a position of the throttle portion where a distance between the gravity center of the sensing surface portion and the throttle portion is shortest is referred to as an end point position,
the start point position and the end point position define an imagination line, and the imagination line and the flowing direction define an angle that is in a range from 0 degrees to 30 degrees,
the housing defines an outlet that discharges the air that passed through the sensing surface portion into the duct from the bypass passage, and
the outlet opens along the main-flow direction.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

The flow measuring device according to claim 7, wherein
a distance from the end point position to a support portion supporting the sensing surface portion is shorter than a distance from the start point position to the end point position, in an orthogonal direction perpendicular to the flowing direction.

### Claim 9 (depends on 7)

The flow measuring device according to claim 7, wherein
the flowing passage wall is a first flowing passage wall, the housing includes a second flowing passage wall facing the first flowing passage wall, a support portion supporting the sensing surface portion is located between the first flowing passage wall and the second flowing passage wall,
the sensing surface portion is located on a surface of the support portion facing the first flowing passage wall,
a distance from the start point position of the first flowing passage wall to the support portion is shorter than a distance from the support portion to the second flowing passage wall.

### Claim 10 (depends on 7)

The flow measuring device according to claim 7, wherein
the throttle portion is an upstream throttle portion that is located at a position in the bypass passage upstream of the sensing surface portion and extends in the flowing direction to throttle the bypass passage, and
the sensing surface portion includes a center part that is located between the start point position and the end point position in the flowing direction.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

The flow measuring device according to claim 10, further comprising:
a support portion being a plate shape, the support portion supporting the sensing surface portion, the support portion extending to a position upstream of the throttle portion.