High-precision measuring method and apparatus
US7080554B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | May 13, 2004 |
| Grant date | Jul 25, 2006 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | May 13, 2024 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG01N2291/102
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A method and apparatus for monitoring a condition having a known relation to, or influence on, the transit time of a cyclically-repeating energy wave moving through a transmission channel, by: (a) transmitting a cyclically-repeating energy wave through the transmission channel from a transmitter at one end to a receiver at the opposite end; (b) continuously changing the frequency of the transmitter according to changes in the monitored condition while maintaining the number of waves in the transmission channel as a whole integer; and (c) utilizing the changes in frequency of the transmitter to provide a continuous indication of the monitored condition. Operation (b) is preferably performed by detecting a predetermined fiducial point in each cyclically-repeating energy wave received by the receiver, but may also be performed by the use of a phase-locked loop circuit, to maintain the number of energy waves in the loop of the transmission channel as a whole integer.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.