Pressure transducer, in particular for sensing a lateral collision in a motor vehicle

US5974892A · kind A · utility

Assignee

• Siemens Aktiengesellschaft · DE

Inventors

• Marten Swart · Obertraubling, DE
• Lorenz Pfau · Regensburg, DE
• Manfred Frimberger
• Arnulf Pietsch · Regensburg, DE

Key dates

• Filing date: Aug 18, 1997
• Grant date: Nov 2, 1999
• Expiry date: Aug 18, 2017

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G01L19/02
• WIPO field: Measurement
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

A pressure transducer, in particular for sensing a lateral collision in a motor vehicle, delivers an electric useful signal which is determined by a relative pressure change relating to a pressure event. Low-frequency changes in an output signal of a sensor device, which depend on the ambient pressure, are compensated by a control device with an integrating behavior. The sensitivity of the sensor device, as a manipulated variable, changes in a manner inversely proportional to the ambient pressure. Higher-frequency pressure changes in the output signal of the sensor device are not compensated, but as a result of the variable sensitivity of the sensor device, determine as relative pressure changes the useful signal, which is additionally independent of temperature influences and offset errors of the pressure transducer.