Dual measurement displacement sensing technique
AssigneeAuburn University
InventorsAustin R. Gurley, David G. Beale, Royall M. Broughton
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method for determining a length of a span of electrically conductive material, comprising a first voltage measurement across the entire span, and a second voltage measurement across a constant-length segment of the span. The dual measurements allow the calculation of the span length in a manner that is robust to many disturbances including ambient temperature, material temperature, and material stress and fatigue.
Claims9
A method for estimating a length of an electrically conductive material, comprising the steps of:
- a. providing a span of electrically conductive material,
- b. applying a voltage across the entire said span of electrically conductive material from a base of said span to an opposing base thereof,
- c. determining a first voltage which is equal to the applied voltage across said span of electrically conductive material, said first voltage determined by use of a voltage sensor or by predetermined knowledge of said applied voltage;
- and
- d. measuring a second voltage at a fixed probe location within said span of conductive material, said fixed probe location being a predetermined distance from the base of said span of conductive material,
- whereby the length of said span of electrically conductive material is determined by computing the ratio of said first voltage to said second voltage and scaling that ratio by the distance from said base to said fixed probe.
A method for estimating a length of an electrically conductive material, comprising the steps of:
- a. providing a span of electrically conductive material,
- b. applying a predetermined first voltage across said span of electrically conductive material from a first base of said span to an opposing second base thereof, and
- c. measuring a second voltage at a selected probe location within said span of electrically conductive material, said selected probe location being a predetermined distance from the base of said span of conductive material,
- whereby the length of said span of conductive material is determined by computing the ratio of said first voltage to said second voltage and scaling that ratio by the distance of the fixed probe location from the base.
An apparatus for estimating a length of an electrically conductive material:
- a span of electrically conductive material supported between a first base and an opposing second base thereof,
- a source of electrical voltage attached at said based of said span for applying a predetermined first voltage to said span;
- and
- a voltage probe having a sensor for measuring voltage and movable to a selected probe location within said span, said selected probe location being a predetermined distance from the base of said span of conductive material, for determining a second voltage,
- whereby the length of said span of conductive material is determined by computing the ratio of said first voltage to said second voltage and scaling that ratio by the distance of the fixed probe location from the first base.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.