Method and apparatus for measuring relative hydration of a substrate
OwnerMichael J. E. Campbell, Michael L. Gallant +4inventors
InventorsMichael J. E. Campbell, Michael L. Gallant, Dennis D. Giguere, Thomas B. Horgan, Steven W. Nickson, Richard W. Sheppe JR.
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method and apparatus for measuring relative hydration of a substrate. Measurements of the electrical characteristics of the substrate and the force applied to and the temperature of the substrate during the measurement provide inputs for determining such relative hydration of the substrate.
Claims24
A method for measuring relative hydration of a substrate comprising the steps of:
- A) measuring electrical characteristics of the substrate between electrodes contacting the substrate,
- B) measuring an environmental factor of the substrate concurrently with said measurement of electrical characteristics, and
- C) utilizing the measurements for said electrical characteristics and environmental factor measurements for obtaining a substrate impedance value that represents relative hydration of the substrate.
A system for measuring the relative hydration of a substrate comprising:
- A) a probe having first and second electrodes for contacting the substrate at a site for which a measurement is desired,
- B) an electrical impedance measurement circuit for periodically generating a value representing the impedance of the substrate between the first and second electrodes,
- C) an environmental factor measurement circuit for periodically generating a value representing a substrate environmental factor associated with the impedance measurement, and
- D) a substrate hydration calculator for receiving the impedance and environmental factor signals.
A system for measuring the relative hydration of a substrate including a measurement probe and a data processing system wherein said measurement probe comprises:
- A) an elongated probe housing,
- B) a sensor body mounted at one end of said probe housing with first and second concentric electrodes for contacting the substrate at a site for which a measurement is desired,
- C) an electrical impedance measurement circuit in said probe housing for generating an impedance signal representing the impedance of the substrate between the first and second electrodes,
- D) a force sensor in said probe housing for generating a signal representing the force exerted by one of said electrodes on the substrate,
- E) a signal processor in said probe housing for polling said electrical impedance measurement circuit and said force sensor thereby to generate processed impedance and force measurement signals, and
- F) a connector at the other end of said probe housing for enabling communications of the processed impedance and force measurement signals to said data processing system from said signal processor.
A system for measuring relative hydration of a substrate including a measurement probe and a data processing system wherein said measurement probe comprises:
- A) an elongated probe housing,
- B) a sensor body mounted at one end of said probe housing with first and second concentric electrodes for contacting the substrate at a site for which a moisture measurement is desired,
- C) an electrical impedance measurement circuit in said probe housing for generating an impedance signal representing the impedance of the substrate between the first and second electrodes,
- D) a temperature sensor in said probe housing for generating a signal representing the temperature of the substrate contacting said electrodes,
- E) a signal processor in said probe housing for polling said electrical impedance measurement circuit and said temperature sensor thereby to generate processed impedance and temperature measurement signals, and
- F) a connector at the other end of said probe housing for enabling communications between said data processing system and said signal processor.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.