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:
Sep. 21, 1999
Filed:
Jan. 13, 1998
Raj K Gupta, San Francisco, CA (US);
Stephen D Senturia, Brookline, MA (US);
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA (US);
Abstract
A fluid property sensor includes a substrate having a first electrode thereon, and a flexible member adjacent the substrate and the first electrode wherein the flexible member includes a second electrode. A signal generator generates a predetermined electrical signal across the first and second electrodes so that an electrostatic force is generated between the first and second electrodes and so that said flexible member deflects a predetermined distance. A measuring circuit measures an interval of time between the generation of the predetermined electrical signal and the deflection of the flexible member to the predetermined distance and determines a property of a fluid adjacent the flexible member based on the interval of time. For example, the sensor can be used to determine a viscosity of the fluid. Alternately, the fluid can be a compressible gas, and the sensor can be used to determine a pressure of the gas. Related methods are also discussed.