TRD temperature sensor and electronics

A temperature sensing apparatus, comprising:

• probe means thermally coupled to an environment whose temperature is to be sensed, the probe means having an excitation source for repetitively emitting radiation and a luminescing means for luminescing with a thermally responsive time-rate-of-decay;
• control means coupled to the probe means for measuring luminescence from the luminescing means to provide at least two measured amounts representing average luminescence during at least each of two respective time intervals, the first interval overlapping the second interval;
• and
• differencing means for providing a difference signal representative of the difference between the two measured amounts, the control means being responsive to the difference signal for adjusting the time intervals.

The method of sensing temperature comprising:

• emitting excitation radiation onto a luminescent material which is responsive to the excitation radiation, the luminescent material emitting luminescence with a thermally responsive time-rate-of-decay;
• sampling emissions from the luminescent material during a first time interval to obtain a first sampled average value;
• sampling emissions from the luminescent material during a second time interval to obtain a second sampled average value, the first time interval overlapping the second time interval;
• providing a signal representative of the difference between the first and second sampled average values;
• adjusting at least one of the first and second time intervals as a function of the difference between the sampled values so that the first and second sampled average values are substantially equal;
• and
• representing the temperature as a function of the time intervals.

The method of sensing temperature comprising:

• repetitively emitting excitation radiation onto a luminescing material which is thermally coupled to the temperature to be sensed, the luminescing material being responsive to the excitation radiation and emitting luminescence with a thermally responsive time-rate-of-decay;
• measuring the amount of luminescence emitted by the luminescing material in response to the excitation radiation during at least two time intervals, the first interval overlapping the second time interval;
• providing a signal representative of the difference between the measured amounts;
• and
• adjusting the time intervals as a function of the difference signal.

The method of measuring temperature in an environment from an emissions signal representative of emissions from a luminescent material having a temperature responsive time-rate-of-decay of luminescent intensity, comprising:

• emitting excitation radiation onto the luminescent material;
• sampling the emissions signal over a first time period between time A and time D and over a second time period between time B and time C, where
• A=.eta.D,
• B=A+.alpha.(D-A), and
• C=A+.beta.(D-A),
• where .eta., .alpha., and .beta. are constants;
• providing first and second signals each representative of an average of the emissions from the luminescent material over the respective first and second time periods in accordance with the relationships ##EQU8## where k.sub.1 is an amplitude of the emissions signal at a time no later than time A, k.sub.2 is a DC component of the emissions signal, and e.sup.-t/.tau. is proportional to the luminescent intensity of the emissions;
• and
• identifying the temperature of the environment from a lookup table if x is substantially equal to y.

Apparatus for measuring temperature in an environment from a signal representative of emissions from a luminescent material having a temperature responsive time-rate-of-decay of luminescent intensity, comprising:

• sampling means for sampling the signal over a first time period between time A and time D and over a second time period between time B and time C, where
• A=.eta.D,
• B=A+.alpha.(D-A), and
• C=A+.beta.(D-A),
• where .eta., .alpha., and .beta. are constants;
• and processor means having
• first means providing representations of ##EQU9## where, k.sub.1 is an amplitude of the signal at time A, k.sub.2 is a DC component of the signal, and e.sup.-t/.tau. is proportional to the luminescent intensity of the emission,
• a lookup table, and
• second means for identifying the temperature of the environment from the lookup table if x is substantially equal to y.