Texas Instruments Corporation

Yoshihiko Mikawa

Dale R Sogge

Keith Crowe

Masashi Matsutomo

Shuji Tanaka

A magnetic position sensor has a stator () formed of magnetic material and a pair of magnets () rotatably mounted about the stator and movable between opposite angular extremities and spaced from the stator by a primary cylindrical air gap (). A secondary air gap () is formed in a stationary member at a location at which the magnetic field varies with the angular position of the magnets. A first Hall Effect sensor () is disposed in the secondary air gap to measure the magnetic field there-across as an indication of the angular position of the magnets. A second reference sensor () is provided to detect the magnetic decay of the magnets. The second sensor can be a Hall Effect sensor disposed at a location at which the magnetic field is relatively constant, independent of the angular position of the magnets. The reference sensor output can be used as a diagnostic indicator or as a correction for the first sensor output.

Magnetic position sensor apparatus and method

A pressure switch of this invention comprises a base electrode , a terminal , a disc and a diaphragm . The base electrode has a switching chamber for inserting the contact part of the terminal . The switching chamber is sealed with an insulation member at one side. The disc is formed so as to be able to contact with the contact part of the terminal while it is connected to the base electrode and to be able to inverse under a predetermined magnitude of pressure. The diaphragm is made of a metal and is fixed to the base electrode so as to keep vacuum of the switching chamber including the contact part and the disc by sealing the opening of the switch chamber at other side.

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Shizuoka, Japan

Yoshihiko Mikawa