US 5,209,126 AGranted

Force sensor

AssigneeBonneville Scientific Incorporated

InventorAllen R. Grahn

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Abstract

A force sensor and related method for determining force components. The force sensor includes a deformable medium having a contact surface against which a force can be applied, a signal generator for generating signals that travel through the deformable medium to the contact surface, a signal receptor for receiving the signal reflected from the contact surface, a generation controller, a reception controller, and a force determination apparatus. The signal generator has one or more signal generation regions for generating the signals. The generation controller selects and activates the signal generation regions. The signal receptor has one or more signal reception regions for receiving signals and for generating detections signals in response thereto. The reception controller selects signal reception regions and detects the detection signals. The force determination apparatus measures signal transit time by timing activation and detection and, optionally, determines force components for selected cross-field intersections. The timer which times by activation and detection can be any means for measuring signal transit time. A cross-field intersection is defined by the overlap of a signal generation region and a signal reception region.

Claims46

Dependent claims

A force sensor comprising:

(a) a deformable medium which is deformable in response to a force applied to a contact surface of said deformable medium,
(b) a signal generator comprising a plurality of signal generation regions,
(c) generation control means for selecting and activating said signal generation regions,
(d) a signal receptor comprising a plurality of signal reception regions,
(e) a reception control means for selecting said signal reception regions and detecting a detection signal from a selected signal reception region, and
(f) a force determination means;
wherein:
(i) a signal generation region is a means for generating a signal which is transmitted to at least one of said signal reception regions by reflection from said contact surface,
(ii) a signal reception region is a means for receiving a signal which has been generated by and transmitted from at least one of said signal generation regions and reflected from said contact surface, and for generating a detection signal in response to the reception of said reflected signal;
(iii) activation by (c) of a signal generation region selected by (c) causes said activated signal generation region to generate a signal as provided in (i);
(iv) (a), (b) and (d) are adapted and positioned with respect to each other such that an application of said force to said contact surface of said deformable medium alters the distance traveled by a signal from at least one of said signal generation regions to at least one of said signal reception regions and, therefore, alters the signal's transit time;
(v) said signal generation regions overlap with said signal reception regions to form a plurality of cross-field intersections;
(vi) selection and activation by (c) of a signal generation region and selection by (e) of a signal reception region defines a selected cross-field intersection;
and
(vii) said force determination means is a means for measuring a signal's transit time by timing activation by (c) and detection by (e).

12 more elements

A force sensor comprising:

(a) a deformable medium which is deformable in response to a force applied to a contact surface of said deformable medium,
(b) a signal generator comprised of overlapping signal generation strata;
wherein a signal generation stratum is comprised of at least one signal generation region,
(c) a generation control means for selecting and activating the signal generation regions of said signal generation strata,
(d) a signal receptor comprised of signal reception strata;
wherein a signal reception stratum is comprised of at least one signal reception region,
(e) a reception control means for selecting the signal reception regions of said signal reception strata and for detecting a detection signal from a selected signal reception region, and
(f) a force determination means;
wherein:
(i) a signal generation region is a means for generating a signal which is transmitted to at least one of said signal reception regions by reflection from said contact surface,
(ii) a signal reception region is a means for receiving a signal which has been generated by and transmitted from at least one of said signal generation regions and reflected from said contact surface, and for generating a detection signal in response to the reception of said reflected signal;
(iii) activation by (c) of a signal generation region selected by (c) causes said activated signal generation region to generate a signal as provided in (i);
(iv) (a), (b) and (d) are adapted and positioned with respect to each other such that an application of said force to said contact surface of said deformable medium alters the distance traveled by a signal from at least one of said signal generation regions to at least one of said signal reception regions and, therefore, alters the signal's transit time;
(v) said signal generation regions overlap with said signal reception regions to form a plurality of cross-field intersections;
(vi) selection and activation by (c) of a signal generation region and selection by (e) of a signal reception region defines a selected cross-field intersection;
and
(vii) said force determination means is a means for measuring a signal's transit time by timing activation by (c) and detection by (e).

14 more elements

A force sensor comprising:

(a) a deformable medium which is deformable in response to a force applied to a contact surface of said deformable medium,
(b) a signal generator comprising at least one signal generation region,
(c) a generation control means for selecting and activating said at least one signal generation region,
(d) a signal receptor comprising at least one signal reception region,
(e) a reception control means for selecting said at least one signal reception region and detecting a detection signal from a selected signal reception region, and
(f) a force determination means;
wherein:
(i) a signal generation region is a means for generating a signal which is transmitted to said at least one signal reception region by reflection from said contact surface,
(ii) a signal reception region is a means for receiving a signal which has been generated by and transmitted from said at least one signal generation region and reflected from said contact surface, and for generating a detection signal in response to the reception of said reflected signal;
(iii) activation by (c) of said at least one signal generation region selected by (c) causes said activated signal generation region to generate a signal as provided in (i);
(iv) (a), (b) and (d) are adapted and positioned with respect to each other such that an application of said force to said contact surface of said deformable medium alters the distance traveled by a signal from said at least one signal generation region to said at least one signal reception region and, therefore, alters the signal's transit time;
(v) said at last one signal generation region overlaps said with at least one signal reception region to form at least one cross-field intersection;
(vi) selection and activation by (c) of said at least one signal generation region and selection by (e) of said at least one signal reception region defines a selected cross-field intersection;
and
(vii) said force determination means is a means for measuring a signal's transit time by timing activation by (c) and detection by (e).

12 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.