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US 11,112,288 B2Granted
Thermal gas property sensor
AssigneeFirst Sensor AG
InventorsOleg Grudin, Andreas Niendorf
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The present disclosure provides thermal gas property sensors and compensated differential pressure sensors, as well as methods for measuring a physical property of a gas and methods for compensating differential pressure sensors. A reference overpressure of a gas is generated in a cavity. Based on the flow of the gas from the cavity through a channel, properties of the gas are identified.
Claims19
A gas property sensor, comprising:
- a semiconductor measuring device, the measuring device comprising:
- a cavity that carries a first gas and has at least one opening;
- and
- at least one channel in fluid communication with the cavity via an opening and with a first gas volume;
- a pressure generator disposed in the cavity;
- and
- one or more flow-sensitive elements located in the channel for determining a gas flow parameter, wherein the measuring device further comprises:
- a substrate having first and second surfaces;
- a first semiconductor chip portion mounted on the first surface of the substrate;
- and
- a second semiconductor chip portion mounted on the first semiconductor chip portion, the channel being defined within at least one of the first or the second semiconductor chip portion, wherein the cavity defines a partially enclosed space in the semiconductor measuring device, wherein the cavity is open only to the channel via the opening.
8 more elements
A method for measuring a physical property of a gas making use of a gas property sensor comprising a semiconductor measuring device, the measuring device including:
- a cavity that carries a first gas and has at least one opening;
- at least one channel in fluid communication with the cavity via an opening and with a first gas volume, wherein the channel is defined within at least one of a first semiconductor chip portion mounted on a first surface of a substrate or a second semiconductor chip portion mounted on the first semiconductor chip portion;
- a pressure difference sensor measuring the pressure difference between the cavity and the first gas volume, and/or a pressure generator disposed in the cavity;
- and
- one or more flow-sensitive elements located in the channel for determining a gas flow parameter, the method comprising:
- receiving the gas in the cavity of the measuring device, the cavity having at least one opening;
- measuring an overpressure in a first case where the gas property sensor comprises a pressure difference sensor, or generating a reference overpressure of the gas in the cavity by actuating a pressure generator disposed in or near the cavity in a second case where the gas property sensor comprises a pressure generator;
- measuring a gas flow parameter based on movement of the gas through a channel in fluid communication with the cavity via the opening and with a first gas volume, wherein the first gas volume is an outside environment;
- and
- determining the physical property of the first gas based on at least one of:
- the gas flow parameter, the overpressure, an ambient temperature, a temperature of the first gas in the cavity, or an ambient pressure.
8 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.