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. 20, 2009
Filed:
Sep. 29, 2006
Applicant:
Andrzej May, Schenectady, NY (US);
Inventor:
Andrzej May, Schenectady, NY (US);
Assignee:
General Electric Company, Niskayuna, NY (US);
Attorney:
Primary Examiner:
Int. Cl.
CPC ...
G01R 27/08 (2006.01); G01R 27/26 (2006.01);
U.S. Cl.
CPC ...
Abstract
A clearance sensing system is disclosed. The system includes a probe separated from a test object by a variable distance d. The system also includes an alternating current (AC) source for supplying a current through the probe, wherein the AC source and the probe are configured to generate a controlled plasma channel between a tip of the probe and the test object. The system further includes a processing unit configured to determine the variable distance d based on a voltage difference between the tip of the probe and the test object.