Trw Limited

Other

3m Innovative Properties Company

Erland K Persson

Peter J Zarembo

Orville J Birkestrand

Gary William Box

Don Blandino

Michael J Boyer

Michael J Medora

Paul K Webber

David L Perry

A contactless electronic control system particularly adapted to drive a motorized wheel hub includes a tubular bracket and a tubular grip member encircling the bracket and connected thereto by a rotary connection so that the grip member can rotate about the bracket. A ring magnet having diametrically opposite poles is mounted in the grip member for rotation therewith and a Hall Effect device is mounted to the bracket. When the grip member is rotated in one direction so as to move one of the poles toward the device, the device produces a proportional positive electrical signal and when the grip members rotated relatively in the opposite direction so as to move the other of the poles toward the device, the device produces a proportional negative signal. Preferably, the magnet is positioned between concentric inner and outer pole pieces and the grip member is biased to a home position which locates the magnets poles on opposite sides of the sensor. Preferably also, the control system includes a current source and a control circuit which responds to the proportional voltages produced by the Hall Effect device to develop drive signals suitable for causing a brushless DC motor to operate at various speeds in both the forward and reverse directions.

Contactless electronic control system for modular motorized wheel hub

A demagnetization apparatus for use with magnetically based electronic article surveillance systems having a dual status anti-theft marker containing at least one demagnetizable control element which when demagnetized allows the marker to be detected by the system when the marker is present in an interrogation zone. The apparatus includes an elongated magnetic section contained within a housing which exhibits a succession of fields of alternate polarity and at least a portion of which exhibits exponentially decreasing intensities at the working surface of the housing along that portion of the section. The section and a cover plate are orientated such that the external fields near the working surface are sufficient in intensities to demagnetize the demagnetizable element of the marker positioned proximate thereto while being rapidly attenuated a short distance from the section.

Small magnet resensitizer apparatus for use with article surveillance

An apparatus for sensing the relative rotational position between a stator (28) and a rotor (32) in a variable reluctance motor (26) includes a transmitting ring (40) mounted to the rotor (32) and having a transmitting coil (46) mounted thereon. A receiving ring (42) is mounted to stator (46) and has a receiving coil (56) mounted thereon. The receiving coil includes three conductor patterns (56a, 56b, 56c) having the same shape, each of said conductor patterns being electrically insulated from each other, and each conductor pattern being offset from adjacent conductor patterns by 120 electrical degrees. A drive signal is coupled to the transmitting coil. The apparatus further includes a controller (76) for monitoring the outputs from the receiving coil patterns and for determining the relative rotation between the rotor and the stator from the monitored outputs. The receiving coil patterns are each arranged in a circumferentially varying square wave pattern.

Method and apparatus for sensing relative position between two

A torque sensor is presented for use in a power assist steering system for sensing the applied steering torque between an input shaft and an output shaft and wherein the shafts are coaxially aligned and rotatable relative to each other about a common axis. The sensor includes a rotary input transformer having a stationary primary winding and a rotary secondary winding. A rotary transmitter is driven by the input shaft for rotation therewith about the common axis. The transmitter carries a coil set including a plurality of series connected coils arranged in an annular array about the axis on an axially directed face of the transmitter. All of the coils are wound in the same direction and are electrically connected to the secondary winding for receiving an input signal therefrom. A rotary receiver is axially spaced from the transmitter and is driven by the output shaft for rotation therewith about the common axis. The receiver has an axially directed face extending toward the transmitter face and carries first and second coil sets. Each coil set includes a plurality of series connected coils with each coil being wound in the same direction. First and second rotary output transformers are provided having first and second primary windings respectively electrically connected to the first and second receiver coil sets and driven by the output shaft for rotation about the common axis. The output transformers include first and second stationary windings.

Torque sensor for a power assist steering system

An apparatus for sensing the relative rotational position between first and second relatively rotatable members includes a transmitter disk having a planar surface and being mountable to the first member so that the planar surface of the transmitter disk is substantially perpendicular the an axis of rotation of the first and second members. The transmitter disk has a conductive material mounted to the planar surface in a circular pattern with a sinusoidal diameter. A receiving disk having a planar surface and is mountable to the second member so that the planar surface of the transmitter disk is substantially perpendicular the an axis of rotation of the first and second members. The receiving disk has a conductive material mounted thereon and arranged in a circular pattern with a squarewave diameter so as to receive a signal from the transmitter disk and output a signal indicative of the relative rotational position of the first and second members.

A torque sensor for use in a power assist steering system for sensing the applied steering torque between an input shaft and an output shaft wherein said shafts are coaxially aligned with each other and rotatable relative to each other about a common axis. The sensor includes a non-planar rotary input transformer having a stationary primary winding and a rotary secondary winding, both mounted coaxially about a common axis. A transmitter is mounted to the input shaft for rotation therewith and carries, on one axially directed face, a coil set of series connected coils arranged in an annular array about the common axis. A receiver is axially spaced from the transmitter and is mounted on the output shaft for rotation therewith about the common axis. The receiver carries, on an opposing axially directed face, first and second sets of series connected coils each arranged in an annular array about the common axis and with the coil sets being electrically displaced by 90.degree.. First and second non-planar rotary output transformers are provided respectively having first and second axially spaced primary windings coaxially surrounding the axis. The first and second output transformers respectively include first and second stationary secondary windings spaced radially outward from and coaxially surrounding the first and second rotary primary windings.

Growing community of inventors

Golden Valley, MN, United States of America

Erland K Persson