Apparatus and method for compensated sensor output

US6687635B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• MKS Instruments, Inc. · US

Inventors

• Stephen F. Horne · Chelmsford, US
• Philip J. Maiorana · Cambridge, US
• Santhi E. Mathew · Boxford, US
• Leonid Mindlin · Natick, US
• Claudia J. Quigley · Lexington, US
• Eric R. Taranto · Yucaipa, US
• Donald K. Smith · Rye, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Jun 13, 2002
• Grant date: Feb 3, 2004
• Expiry date: Jun 13, 2022

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G01D3/022
• WIPO field: Measurement
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

A compensated sensor includes a sensor, a relatively fast feedthrough path, and a relatively slow compensation path. The relatively fast feedthrough path includes a summer and output circuitry, such as a summing amplifier. The relatively slow compensation path includes circuitry that produces one or more correction factors for such sensor deficiencies as temperature dependency, or nonlinearity effects, for example. These one or more correction factors are fed to the summer for summing with the uncompensated sensor output. Additionally, the output of the output circuitry (e.g., summing amplifier), is fed back to the compensation circuitry where it is compared to a compensated sensor output developed by the compensation circuitry. The difference between the compensated sensor signal developed in the compensation circuitry and the output signal fed back to the compensation circuitry is also provided to the summer for summing with the one or more correction factors and the uncompensated sensor output.