Thermal measuring and testing – Thermal testing of a nonthermal quantity – Of fluid volume
Reexamination Certificate
2011-01-25
2011-01-25
Verbitsky, Gail (Department: 2855)
Thermal measuring and testing
Thermal testing of a nonthermal quantity
Of fluid volume
C374S141000, C374S029000, C374S135000, C374S152000, C374S016000, C374S001000, C374S173000, C073S204270, C073S001730, C073S001160, C073S292000
Reexamination Certificate
active
07874724
ABSTRACT:
Two vertically offset thermistors for sensing a fluid such as oil and refrigerant in a compressor shell are monitored by a method that takes into account rapidly changing conditions within the shell. The system can determine the fluid's sump temperature, high/low liquid levels, and can determine whether the thermistors are sensing the fluid as a liquid, gas, or a mixture of the two, such as a foam or mist of liquid and gas. For greater accuracy, thermistor readings can be dithered and filtered to provide temperature or voltage values having more significant digits than the readings originally processed through a limited-bit A/D converter. For faster response, limited microprocessor time is conserved by sampling thermistor readings at strategic periods that enable the microprocessor to identify certain conditions and temperatures via simple delta-temperature ratios and undemanding equations rather than resorting to exponential functions or lookup tables to determine time constants.
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“Response Compensation of Thermistors: Frequency Response and Identification of Thermal Time Constant”, Review of Scientific Instruments, Mar. 2003, vol. 74, No. 3.
Brown Jerry E.
DeGroot Jeffrey J.
Klingemann Steven K.
Nelson Charles E.
Okoren Ronald W.
O'Driscoll William
Trane International Inc.
Verbitsky Gail
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