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AssigneeAzoteq Holdings Limited
InventorsDaniel Barend RADEMEYER, Wikus WOLMARANS, Frederick Johannes BRUWER, Frederick Johannes BRUWER, JR., Francois BRUWER
Estimating the term…
A sensing system senses a position of an object along a sensing axis, and has a plurality of sensing coils arranged along the sensing axis. A plurality of sensing coils are positioned on a first side of a covering member, and an object is positioned on a second side thereof. Measurement circuitry is coupled to the sensing coils and is configured to measure a change of inductance of the sensing coils that is caused by an interfering member, having an interfering magnetic field, adjacent to the object, The measurement circuitry is further configured to determine the position of the object along the sensing axis based on the inductance change caused by the interfering magnetic field of the interfering member as part of the object. The interfering member may be a magnet, a passive LC circuit, a metallic interfering member or a highly permeable material such as ferrite.
A sensing system configured to sense a position of an object along a sensing axis, said sensing system comprising a plurality of sensing coils arranged along said sensing axis, a covering member, wherein the plurality of sensing coils are positioned on a first side of said covering member, and wherein the object is positioned on a second side of the covering member, measurement circuitry coupled to the plurality of sensing coils, wherein the measurement circuitry is configured to measure a change of inductance of said sensing coils which is caused by an interfering member adjacent to the object, said interfering member having an interfering magnetic field, and wherein said interfering member is configured to affect at least one of the plurality of sensing coils along the sensing axis at any given position along the sensing axis, and wherein the measurement circuitry is further configured to determine the position of the object along the sensing axis based on the inductance change caused by the interfering magnetic field of the interfering member as part of the object.
A method for configuring a sensing system to sense a position of an object along a sensing axis, the method comprising the steps of arranging a plurality of sensing coils along said sensing axis, positioning the plurality of sensing coils on a first side of a covering member, positioning the object on a second side of the covering member, coupling measurement circuitry to the plurality of sensing coils, configuring the measurement circuitry to measure a change of inductance of said sensing coils, said change of inductance caused by an interfering member adjacent to the object, said interfering member having an interfering magnetic field, and wherein the method further comprises the steps of configuring said interfering member to affect at least one of the plurality of sensing coils along the sensing axis at any given position along the sensing axis, and configuring the measurement circuitry to determine the position of the object along the sensing axis based on the inductance change caused by the interfering magnetic field of the interfering member as part of the object.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.