Modular transducer assembly
AssigneeWestinghouse Electric Corp.
InventorJames L. McShane
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A flowmeter transducer assembly specially designed for high temperature operation includes only dry-coupled elements. A subassembly preassembled before installation on the pipe section consists of a piezoelectric element held between front and backing electrodes. The backing electrode is backed by a contact electrode while leaving a gap therebetween to prevent reflection of acoustic energy back to the rear of the transducer. The subassembly is introduced into a housing clamped directly on a flow section of a pipe, where the pipe wall is an acoustic wave transmitting or receiving window. In a different embodiment the pipe may serve as the front electrode in dry coupling.
Claims9
A unitary transducer assembly operative with a housing having first and second openings about a common axis, and operative with a fluid flow section of a pipe having a wall facing one of said openings, comprising the following stacked and dry-coupled elements disposed along said axis, radially toward said wall a piezoelectric cell sandwiched between a first and a second electrode;
- said second electrode being adapted for mating with said wall to serve as a front acoustic window in relation to said piezoelectric cell;
- said first electrode serving as a backing member for said piezoelectric cell;
- an insulating member and an end plate;
- said insulating member being disposed between said first electrode and said end plate;
- an electrical connection being provided for said first electrode through said insulating member and said end plate;
- and means for mechanically connecting said end plate with said second electrode to hold all of said elements together as a unit.
A transducer assembly adapted for mounting upon a pipe section having an axis and containing fluid, comprising:
- at least one mounting block having a surface for mating with said pipe section, a bore within said block extending between two opposite openings thereof and about an axis transverse to said pipe section axis, one of said openings being on the side of said mating surface;
- a plurality of transducer elements including one electrode member and a piezoelectric cell having a front and a back face, said back face facing said one electrode member, said elements being stacked in said bore and along said transverse axis, the smallest dimension of said bore being at least as wide as the piezoelectric cell;
- means mounted on said block for resiliently applying forces upon said stacked elements along said transverse axis and toward said surface;
- and
- means for securing said block upon said pipe along said surface so that the front face of said piezoelectric cell directly engages the wall of said pipe section under said applied forces.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.