Motion sensing device
AssigneeGeophysical Service Inc.
InventorRobert H. Seymour
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An acceleration sensor uses a capsule of mercury filling a rigid enclosure with pressure sensors responsive to inertial forces exerted by the mercury on the walls of the enclosure when it is caused to accelerate. The enclosure may have a flexible lining on its walls or contain a flexible bag for holding the mercury. Means are provided for producing a bias pressure in the mercury. The enclosure may be cubic or tetrahedral, for example, and the outputs of the pressure sensors additively combined to produce outputs representing accelerations in required orthogonal directions when these differ from the directions to which the sensors are responsive. A rotational acceleration sensor is also described.
Claims18
An acceleration sensing device, comprising:
- a housing containing a cavity therein defined by substantially rigid walls and having an opening to the exterior of said housing;
- a flexible envelope of substantially the same shape as said cavity disposed in said cavity and completely filled with a volume of fluid;
- plug means adapted to close said cavity opening immediately proximate said flexible envelope, the inner extent of said plug means matching the configuration of said envelope at said opening and in intimate contact therewith;
- and
- pressure responsive means disposed between at least one of said rigid walls and said envelope and adapted to produce a signal responsive to fluid pressure resulting from acceleration of said fluid within said device.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.