The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Oct. 08, 1991
Filed:
Oct. 23, 1989
Timothy P O'Neill, Vista, CA (US);
Other;
Abstract
A digital position transmitter is disclosed which uses a fixed array of physicoelectric proximity switches to locate a physical exciter and transmit the position of the exciter as a hexadecimal coded number or as a string of pulses. The position transmitter uses solid state components, has no moving parts and requires less power than any one proximity operated alone. The transmitter attains moderate resolution while displaying excellent accuracy and precision. The transmitter is completely non-intrusive; there is no contact between the physical exciter and the switch array, making the transmitter particularly suited for determining the position of objects that must be completely isolated because of pressure, temperature, of chemical hazards. Further circuits are described for converting the inherently digital output signal to industrial standard 4-20 mA or voltage signals. Applications are described for determining the 'fullness' of a constant pressure cylinder used in sampling liquids and gaseous materials from pipelines, the status of hydraulic valve positioners the liquid level contained in storage vessels, and differential pressure. Practical variations of the physicoelectric proximity switch array are described for applying the position transmitter to movements as small as one inch and as large as hundreds of feet.