Ifm Electronic Gmbh

Walter Reichart

Christian Kreisel

Ralf Kriesen

Sebastian Liehr

Markus Körber

Werner Hoch

Peter Buhl

Patrick Werner

Nikola Natterer

Stephan Reichart

Volker Schellhorn

Clemens Geiger

Tobias May

The invention relates to an operator control unit for a measuring instrument for process or automation engineering, the operator control unit consisting of at least two adjacently arranged control panels (), the control panels () being operated by pressing on a respective shape-variable or elastic housing region () having a respective capacitive sensor element () disposed thereunder. The sensor elements () each have a first electrode () as a lower plate capacitor and a counter-electrode () arranged in parallel thereabove as an upper plate capacitor, and pressing on one of the housing regions () causes the respective upper plate capacitor () to approach the respective lower plate capacitor (), thus changing the capacitance. The first electrode () is attached to a first carrier material () and the counter-electrode () is attached to a second carrier material (). According to the invention, the housing regions () are arranged adjacently to one another in an uninterrupted manner, and the sensor elements () are parts of a multi-layered composite printed circuit board (), which bears against the inner sides of the housing regions (), wherein the composite printed circuit board () comprises at least the first carrier material (), which consists of a plurality of segments of rigid circuit boards each with flexible intermediate pieces arranged therebetween, and the second carrier material () in the form of a conductive layer, which two carrier materials are spaced apart from one another via an interposed plastic layer (), forming a measuring chamber (), and wherein the plastic layer () has a plurality of interruptions for forming the sensor elements () and a decoupling region () between the control panels ().

Operator control unit for a measuring instrument for process or automation engineering, and measuring instrument having an operator control unit of this kind

A thermal flowmeter comprises a heating element thermally coupled to a flowing medium, a first temperature sensor and second temperature sensor. The first temperature sensor detects a flowing medium temperature in a region not affected by the heating element. The second temperature sensor detects a temperature of the heating element and also serves as a heating element. A control unit controls heating power of the heating element based on the difference between the detected temperatures at a predetermined time. The control unit provides a square wave signal to the second temperature sensor so that in a high phase it acts as heating element and in a low phase as a temperature sensor.

Thermal flowmeter and method having a self-heated element controlled to operate differently under high and low phases of square wave signal

A measuring device, in particular for use in the process measurement technology, including a cylindrical sensor tip which includes a closed housing, a sensor element disposed within the housing in the form of a temperature dependent resistor and for generating a sensor signal, and electronic components, which are connected to the sensor element via electrical connecting lines and/or a conductor film, wherein said sensor element is thermally connected to the housing by means of a solder and a heat conducting, electrically insulating layer is disposed between the sensor element and the solder is provided.

Measuring device, in particular for use in the process measurement technology, comprising a cylindrical sensor tip

A magnetoinductive flowmeter for measuring the flow rate of a flowing, conductive medium with a capacitive measuring apparatus for detecting empty pipes is provided. In order to improve the detection of empty pipes and, in particular, the capacitive coupling to the medium, the invention provides for the measuring apparatus for detecting empty pipes to comprise a sheet-like electrode in each case and a counterelectrode which form a measurement capacitance Cwhich is dependent on the medium and on the degree of filling of the measuring tube; for the measuring tube to have a wall thickness which is reduced in order to maximize the measurement capacitance Cat least in the region of the electrode and the counterelectrode; and for the measuring tube to be surrounded by a metal supporting housing, wherein, in order to maintain the pressure resistance of the measuring tube, a hollow-walled supporting body for minimizing the influence of parasitic capacitances on the measurement capacitance Cis arranged in each case in the region of the reduced wall thickness between the electrode and the inner wall of the supporting housing and between the counterelectrode and the inner wall of the supporting housing and supports the measuring tube against the supporting housing in each case.

Magnetic inductive flow meter having capacitive measuring device for empty pipe detection

A magnetic-inductive flowmeter with a nonconductive measuring tube, a magnetic field generating apparatus, two measuring electrodes conductively coupled to the medium for tapping a measuring-circuit voltage induced in the flowing medium, and with a measuring device for detecting an empty tube. Detection of an empty tube is obtained by the measuring device being an admittance measuring device having a detector, a counter-electrode, an ac signal source and an evaluation unit, the detector having an electrode connected to the ac signal source so that the electrode is exposed to an ac signal in the range of roughly 50 MHz-200 MHz and then an electrical field extends from the electrode into the medium. The electrode of the detector and the counter-electrode planiform shaped and are located essentially opposite one another on the outer surface of the measuring tube above and underneath the longitudinal axis of the measuring tube, respectively.

Magnetic-inductive flowmeter with an empty tube detecting device of an admittance measuring type

The invention relates to a compact magnetic inductive flowmeter device, comprising a measuring tube through which the medium for measuring flows, a housing within which the measuring tube is arranged, with an analysis device which analyses a flow measurement value for the medium recorded in the measuring tube and generates an analysed signal in a standardized form therefrom which contains information about the recorded measured values.

Compact magnetic inductive flowmeter device

A heat transfer monitoring and/or measuring device, especially a flow indicator for media flowing through a pipe ( ), tank or fitting, with a sensor housing ( ) and with two sensor elements ( ), the sensor elements ( ) each having a metallic sensor surface ( ) which comes into contact with the flowing medium. In the flow indicator, the problem &ldquo;deposition or formation&rdquo; of disruptive layers on the sensor surfaces ( ) of the sensor elements ( ) is solved by the element ( ) which is made as a heating element having an electrically conductive protective lead ( ) and by the protective lead ( ) forming a closed protective circuit which includes the pipe ( ), tank, or the fitting, the flowing medium and the sensor element ( ).

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Fronreute, Germany

Walter Reichart