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US 2014/0231633 A1Published application
Proximity sensor
AssigneesSTMicroelectronics (Grenoble 2) SAS, STMicroelectronics (Research & Development) Limited
InventorsPierre-Jean Parodi-Keravec, Marc Drader
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A device including a photon emitter, a photon receiver, and a screen opaque to photons following a direct path from the outside of the device to the photon receiver.
Claims22
A device comprising:
- a body having a cavity;
- an opaque structure;
- an aperture in the body that places the cavity in fluid communication with an environment external to the body;
- a photon emitter located in the cavity below the aperture and configured to emit photons through the aperture to the environment external to the body;
- and
- a photon receiver located in the cavity below the opaque structure of the body and configured to receive photons that are each reflected from both an object in the environment external to the body and from a surface of the opaque structure.
3 more elements
A method comprising:
- emitting photons through an aperture in a body for a period of time;
- receiving the emitted photos reflected from an object external to the body and reflected from at least one surface in a cavity of the body;
- measuring a first value of the photons received by the photon receiver;
- and
- storing the first value.
2 more elements
A device comprising:
- a body that includes a cavity:
- an opaque structure located over the cavity;
- an aperture in the opaque structure that places the cavity in fluid communication with an environment external to the body;
- a radiation emitter located in the cavity below the aperture and configured to emit radiation through the aperture to the environment external to the body;
- and
- a radiation receiver located in the cavity below the opaque structure of the body and spaced apart from the radiation emitter, the radiation receiver configured to receive radiation reflected from an object located in the environment external and proximate to the body.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.